The so-called “house of” clusters, such as the House of Finance, or the House of Pharma generate an innovation edge for the region as a whole.2 This edge has been especially visible during the pandemic, where companies operating in the area have been at the forefront of the response to the pandemic, including by exploiting strong networks in the region.
One of the key vaccines was produced by the pharmaceutical company BioNTech, in cooperation with Pfizer. A large pharmaceutical company in the region was then able to meet the high demand for lipids – a key component of mRNA-based vaccines. Just as important were the borosilicate glass bottles3 supplied by a special glass manufacturer nearby and used to safely store the vaccine.