Institutional Readiness for Sustainable Urban Industrial Cluster Planning: Evidence from Semarang Batik Enterprises
Main Article Content
Yan Marina*
Dian Sandri
Fananni Adi Nugroho
Urban industrial cluster programs combine spatial policy, infrastructure provision, technical assistance, and market facilitation, yet their effectiveness depends on whether recipient organizations can convert these inputs into sustained operations. This study examines the relationships among government support diversity, institutional governance capacity, market activation, and operational sustainability in batik small and medium-sized industrial enterprises in Semarang, Indonesia, and interprets the results within the city’s current spatial and industrial planning framework. Primary data from the 2026 IKM Cluster Survey covered 22 enterprises in four batik clusters. Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation, the Mann-Whitney U test, and Fisher’s exact test were combined with a focused review of Semarang’s spatial plan and 2025-2045 industrial development plan. All enterprises had received government support, but 17 (77%) had ceased production. Support diversity was not significantly associated with institutional governance capacity (rho = -0.35; p = 0.108), whereas governance capacity was associated with operational status (p = 0.007) and market activation (rho = 0.63; p = 0.002). The findings indicate an institutional conversion gap. For sustainable urban industrial cluster planning, facilities and assistance should be sequenced after institutional diagnostics, tied to verifiable operating milestones, and monitored through production continuity, collective management, facility utilization, and market outcomes.
Bell, M., & Albu, M. (1999). Knowledge Systems and Technological Dynamism in Industrial Clusters in Developing Countries. World Development, 27(9), 1715–1734. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0305-750x(99)00073-x
Cohen, W. M., & Levinthal, D. A. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35(1), 128–152. https://doi.org/10.2307/2393553
Flatten, T. C., Greve, G. I., & Brettel, M. (2011). Absorptive capacity and firm performance in SMEs: The mediating influence of strategic alliances. European Management Review, 8(3), 137–152. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1740-4762.2011.01015.x
Giuliani, E. (2005). Cluster Absorptive Capacity. European Urban and Regional Studies, 12(3), 269–288. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969776405056593
Giuliani, E., & Bell, M. (2005). The micro-determinants of meso-level learning and innovation: evidence from a Chilean wine cluster. Research Policy, 34(1), 47–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2004.10.008
Humphrey, J., & Schmitz, H. (2002). How does insertion in global value chains affect upgrading in industrial clusters? Regional Studies, 36(9), 1017–1027. https://doi.org/10.1080/0034340022000022198
JDIH Kota Semarang. (2021). Peraturan Daerah Kota Semarang Nomor 5 Tahun 2021 Tentang Perubahan Atas Peraturan Daerah Kota Semarang Nomor 14 Tahun 2011 Tentang Rencana Tata Ruang Wilayah Kota Semarang Tahun 2011-2031. Jaringan Dokumentasi Dan Informasi Hukum Kota Semarang.
JDIH Kota Semarang. (2025). Peraturan Daerah Kota Semarang Nomor 6 Tahun 2025 Tentang Rencana Pembangunan Industri Kota Tahun 2025-2045. Jaringan Dokumentasi Dan Informasi Hukum Kota Semarang.
Lane, P. J., Koka, B. R., & Pathak, S. (2006). The Reification of Absorptive Capacity: A Critical Review and Rejuvenation of the Construct. Academy of Management Review, 31(4), 833–863. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2006.22527456
Mole, K. F., Hart, M., Roper, S., & Saal, D. S. (2011). Broader or Deeper? Exploring the Most Effective Intervention Profile for Public Small Business Support. Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 43(1), 87–105. https://doi.org/10.1068/a43268
OECD. (2008). OECD Framework for the Evaluation of SME and Entrepreneurship Policies and Programmes. OECD. https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264040090-en
Park, J. (2026). Decoding the Conversion Gap in SME Digital Transformation: A Causal AI Framework. Systems, 14(6), 655. https://doi.org/10.3390/systems14060655
Porter, M. E. (1998). Clusters and the New Economics of Competition. Harvard Business Review, 76(6), 77–90. https://hbr.org/1998/11/clusters-and-the-new-economics-of-competition
Spithoven, A., Clarysse, B., & Knockaert, M. (2010). Building absorptive capacity to organise inbound open innovation in traditional industries. Technovation, 30(2), 130–141. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2009.08.004
Storey, D. (2002). Methods of evaluating the impact of public policies to support small businesses: the six steps to heaven. International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education, 1(2), 181–202. https://www.tara.tcd.ie/tara8/server/api/core/bitstreams/118356ad-d5b8-498c-8b46-6baa5e63e34e/content
Todorova, G., & Durisin, B. (2007). Absorptive capacity: Valuing a reconceptualization. Academy of Management Review, 32(3), 774–786. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2007.25275513
Volberda, H. W., Foss, N. J., & Lyles, M. A. (2010). Absorbing the Concept of Absorptive Capacity: How to Realize Its Potential in the Organization Field. Organization Science, 21(4), 931–951. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1090.0503
Zahra, S. A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review, reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review, 27(2), 185–203. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2002.6587995
