Let us take a closer look at the German town of L. It is a medium-sized industrial town where a little more than half of the employment is in industry (not counting producer services), L. is endowed with a rich mix of industrial activities: aluminium processing, automobile industry, electrical and lighting, mechanical engineering, and tool manufacturing. Industry is dominated by small and medium-sized companies which, thanks to their innovativeness, jave proved to be competitive internationally. There is, for example, the success story of a family business founded in the crisis years of the thirties. It has moved from the production of lamps to the 'concept of light', applied in museums, galleries, trade fairs and exhibitions around the world.
Over the years the local economy has not been hit by any major crisis. Moreover, the employment situation has fostered the integration of foreign workers even in the absence of an active integration policy.
Recently, a network of five regions has been created, including the region of L. The partners engage in diversified projects. One of them - labeled innovation region - delas with the expansion of the economic structure. As part of this, L. has started a so-called thinking factory.