Upstate SC Alliance on LinkedIn: Halton MEI USA, Inc. selects Anderson County for first South Carolina… (2024)

"I-85 is to the South what the Transcontinental Railroad was to the entire country 150 years ago," Site Selection Magazine describes. "It is the region’s undisputed king of commerce."Historical data backs up this vivid assertion: Each county along I-85's 666-mile path from Virginia to Alabama wins at least one economic development project every year. Upstate South Carolina has certainly experienced the benefits of being located along this corridor. Between January 2023 and March 2024, Greenville County was the No. 2 Top County by Projects along I-85, winning 28 projects worth $1.05 billion in capital investment. Surrounding Upstate counties also see the interstate's impact on their economies: “Some 75,000 cars a day pass through here,” says Ken Moon, Executive Director of the Cherokee County Development Board. “With nine interchanges on I-85 and a lot of land at each, we are poised to capitalize on our location in the heart of the automotive corridor.”“Tourism is big business here, but we also have one of the highest concentrations of manufacturing employment in the state,” says Jamie Gilbert, President & CEO of the Oconee Economic Alliance. “Manufacturing firms thrive here due to the workforce and access to I-85.”https://bit.ly/3A1i4Ew #I85 #EconDev #Logistics #Manufacturing cc: Greenville Area Development Corporation (GADC)

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Piedmont-based startup Bubble Paper is not just thinking outside the box — they're redesigning it. And the new version is looking greener. 🌿The company produces sustainable bubble wrap and packaging solutions that are biodegradable and create 20 times less carbon emissions than plastic wrap.Rooted in South Carolina's vibrant startup ecosystem, Bubble Paper won the 2024 Company of the Year award from SCRA: South Carolina Research Authority this spring. It has also received multiple grants from SC Launch, SCRA's investment affiliate. Company founder Benjamin Moore, a Clemson University graduate and Upstate native, has leveraged his engineering background to develop their innovative products."People have been using the same packaging materials — look at the corrugated box — for years,” Moore says. "This is a new-type thing.”https://bit.ly/3yajGLB#Sustainability #Startup #BusinessMovesHere

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FENECON, a provider of energy storage systems, is establishing its first North American operation with headquarters and manufacturing in Greenville County. The company’s $3 million investment will create 68 new jobs. “Fenecon is a high-tech German company whose products are advancing the energy transition, and we are excited for them to join the emerging advanced energy cluster in South Carolina,” says our President & CEO John Lummus in the release. “Their choice of the Upstate once again shows that our region is a great place for manufacturing world-class products.”https://bit.ly/4faiBEy#AdvancedEnergy #BatteryStorage #BusinessMovesHere #EconDev cc: Greenville Area Development Corporation (GADC)

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Nordson Industrial Coating Systems is establishing their newest manufacturing facility for airless spray equipment in Laurens County. The $30 million investment will create 125 new production, machining, engineering and management jobs.https://bit.ly/3Lr6PHZ#BusinessMovesHere #Manufacturing cc: Laurens County Development Corporation

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SCRA: South Carolina Research Authority is celebrating the opening of their new office in Greenville. Located downtown in the Greenville ONE Center, the office is centrally located and offers free conference rooms and collaborative meeting spaces for its member and portfolio companies.Fueling South Carolina's innovation economy, SCRA strives to support startups and increase collaboration with the state's leading universities. https://bit.ly/3zBGunT #Innovation #Collaboration

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Food and beverage companies — both old and new — are thriving in Upstate South Carolina. For more than three decades, the Nestlé facility in Gaffney has been expanding its production of frozen food entrees. In 2019, Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. established its coffee roasting facility in Spartanburg County.New investments have continued to pour into the region, with the arrival of ramen noodle giant Nissin Foods, beverage-maker Milo's Tea Company, Inc., ready-to-eat-sandwich-maker E.A. Sween Company, and meat processer Tomahawk Processing.Trade & Industry Development highlights Upstate SC as a hotspot for food production, listing it alongside other powerhouse markets: Conecuh County, Alabama; Evansville, Indiana; Iowa; Laredo, Texas; Northern Colorado; and Shelby County, Indiana.“We have one-day access to 102 million consumers, a history of manufacturing expertise and supportive partners who understand what industry needs, all within a collaborative business environment,” says our President & CEO John Lummus in the article. https://bit.ly/3LhDzTX #FoodManufacturing #FoodProduction #BusinessMovesHere

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Area Development has awarded South Carolina the highest honor in its 19th Annual Shovel Awards: the Platinum Shovel.With a total investment surpassing $7 billion and a promise of more than 8,500 new jobs, the Palmetto State is turning heads in economic development. Upstate SC's Nissin Foods and ZF Transmissions were submitted as top projects and directly contributed to South Carolina' recognition. https://bit.ly/45r5aLD#EconomicDevelopment #Mobility #EV #FoodManufacturing cc: ZF Group

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, a manufacturer of cable support and power distribution systems, is expanding its Greenville County operations in Mauldin. The company's $11.1 million investment will create 35 new jobs.cc: Greenville Area Development Corporation (GADC) | City of Mauldin https://bit.ly/3zDYZby

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Michelin North America is naming Matthew Cabe its new president and CEO, effective October 1.Across his 19-year tenure with Michelin, Cabe has held various leadership roles in engineering, manufacturing and marketing both in North America and at the global level. His international experience includes serving as senior vice president of Michelin's automotive regional brands line in Budapest, where he has worked since 2021.Cabe is also a graduate of two of South Carolina's major research hubs, Clemson University and the University of South Carolina Darla Moore School of Business.https://bit.ly/3VIzUo8

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