Columbia Regional Business Report - November 9, 2020 by SC Biz News

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SUPPLY AND DEMAND

Center of attention Columbia facility named to Readers’ Choice list. Page 4

Nimbleness and diversification help S.C. manufacturers navigate pandemic

Going Silver

Regional carrier to serve three Florida cities from CAE. Page 8

Honoring excellence S.C. manufacturing leaders receive recognition. Page 13

Columbia 3D design company ZVerse mushroomed from an 8,000-square-foot facility into a 30,000-square-foot one as it retooled its production process to manufacture face shields. (Photo/Provided)

Good as gold

Columbia Craft savors national brewing award. Page 21

INSIDE

Upfront................................. 2 SC Biz News Briefs................. 3 In Focus: Manufacturing..... 10 List: Manufacturers............. 15 Bonus List: Largest Employers .......................... 16 At Work............................... 21 Viewpoint............................23

By Melinda Waldrop

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

even months ago, John Carrington took a deep breath and pushed all his chips to the center of the table. His Columbia company, ZVerse, was at a crossroads. Founded in 2013 as a 3D design and software solutions provider, the Shop Road outfit faced overwhelming demand for the protective face shield that had grown from an idea hatched to help local hospitals into orders multiplying into the millions. “The first request we had was for 3,000 units, which we could solve, no problem,” Carrington said. “The next day it was 10,000, and the next day it was 50,000, and at that

point we knew that 3D printing would not be able to keep up with that demand. … We had to place a bet.” The wager involved shutting down for a few weeks to completely retool ZVerse’s production process to injection molding while scaling up from an 8,000-square-foot facility to a 30,000-square-foot one that could fill three tractor-trailers a day. “It was really painful to do it at the time, because there was a lot of uncertainty,” said Carrington, who also found himself navigating uncharted waters of overseas shipping and distribution. “We’re going to invest all this money, and then be potentially saddled with all this investment, this product. It turned out to be the right decision to make. It allowed us to go from 1,000 units a day to

Retail ahoy

S.C. Ports shifting focus in light of pandemic, Walmart announcement. Page 19

120,000 units a day in production.” ZVerse learned on the fly one of the lessons that the COVID-19 pandemic has taught many S.C. manufacturers. In the face of faltering supply chains and other distribution snags, companies are having to diversify, increase flexibility and look for new ways to make things and get them to customers. “A lot of companies are really starting to rethink and try to relocate or reshore. Regional consolidation, stuff like that,” said Chuck Spangler, president of the South Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership, a nonprofit organization that promotes innovation and industrial competitiveness. “How can they bring back regional supply chain See ZVERSE, Page 17

Upfront

BRIEFS | FACTS | STATEWIDE NEWS

Photo/Provided

Just charge it and go!

A LA CARTE

ou might be interested in buying an electric vehicle, but since many of the substantial tax credits have run out, the sticker shock of buying retail has you looking at the aftermarket. EVs have been pushing against the gasoline barrier for a while now, thanks in no small part to Tesla Inc. Concerns, such as where to charge a car when traveling and how far a car can travel on a single charge, represent fewer obstacles to ownership than in the past. Even in some rural areas, you’ll

find electric vehicle charging stations if you know where to look. So what’s selling in the EV aftermarket in the Midlands region? We queried online used car retailer iSeeCars. com to find out. The company does online matchmaking for buyers and sellers in the used car market, and recently completed a study of electric vehicle sales across the U.S. While popular, Tesla wasn’t the top automaker nationally or locally for used cars. Perhaps because owners are just holding on to them or maybe because a used Leaf costs 73.4% less than a used Model S on average, the Nissan is too good of a deal to drive past.

Bestselling used EVs in Charleston Rank 1 2 3 4 5

Vehicle Nissan Leaf Tesla Model S Chevy Bolt EV Tesla Model 3 BMW i3

% of EVs 35% 11.4% 11.1% 9.1% 6.7% Source: iSeeCars.com

Charging from the mountains to the beach If you want to travel from Charleston to Greenville in your new used Nissan Leaf or Model S, you have charging options, many of them free. City Charleston North Charleston Mount Pleasant

Lowcountry EV stations 39 17 13

Columbia Lexington Irmo

Midlands 82 5 1

46.3% 100% 0%

Greenville Spartanburg Anderson

Upstate 95 26 4

68.4% 92.3% 75%

Nissan Leaf

HEARD IN THE

REPORT

Free to charge 61.5% 64.7% 46.2%

Source: ChargeHub

“This COVID made everything come into laser focus. We cannot be dependent on the world for things that we need in our manufacturing process.” — Lou Kennedy, Nephron owner and CEO

WEBSITE: www.ColumbiaBusinessReport.com

@CRBR

Training facility opens on Millwood Avenue Chosen Uno Training has leased 1,100 square feet at 2627 Millwood Ave. for a fitness facility. Steadman Rogers, a 2020 graduate of the University of South Carolina, founded Chosen Uno Training, which focuses on personal and group training, in 2018. His clients have included former USC standout and current NFL player Deebo Samuel as well as state and national pageant winners, according to a news release. Former Gamecocks wide receiver and 2020 USC graduate Chavis Dawkins is also a Chosen Uno trainer. Rogers won three state weightlifting titles in high school and was named the S.C. strength athlete of the year as a senior. Colliers International South Carolina brokerage associate Crawford Prezioso represented Chosen Uno in the transaction. “Gyms and workout spaces seem to be thriving again since they were allowed to re-open during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Prezioso said in the release. “Chosen Uno Training is one of the newer fitness concepts in Columbia that has quickly taken off the ground. This new space on Millwood Avenue had been vacant for some time and the landlord, Palmstar Millwood LLC, was able to make the deal happen quickly.” The gym is now open and selling a limited number of memberships. “Crawford was very helpful and active in finding a new home for my training business,” Rogers said. “He stayed in contact daily and always had a variety of properties for me to visit in person.”

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November 9 - 22, 2020

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SC Biz News Briefs

moving business forward with people.

Longtime philanthropists Wilbur O. “Billy” and Ann Powers have donated $60 million to Clemson University’s College of Business. The gift is the largest in Clemson’s history. (Photo/Provided)

CLEMSON

GSA Business Report

Clemson names new building following couple’s $60 million donation to college

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lemson University has received a $60 million gift for the College of Business from longtime philanthropists Wilbur O. “Billy” and Ann Powers. The gift was announced during a university board of trustees meeting in mid-October. The gift, the largest in Clemson’s history and one of the largest to a public institution in South Carolina, will support President Jim Clements and Dean Wendy York’s vision to grow the now-named Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business into a nationally recognized leader in business education, according to an announcement after the meeting. In addition to providing funding for need-based scholarships and financial assistance for those students who need it most, the gift from the Powers family will propel many of the college’s signature programs, according to the news release. “With internships and study abroad programs, collaborative teamwork, industry partnerships, marketplace modeling, hands-on laboratories, experiential learning, interdisciplinary study and a business component to nearly all majors, the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business is positioned to make a significant impact for generations of Clemson students and South Carolina industries,” the news release said. “It also serves as a major research hub for world-class scholars.” The new $87.5 million building that houses the college is occupied for the first time this semester. With more than 176,000 square feet, the five-story, dual-tower structure includes 303 rooms, 1,660 classroom seats, a 90-foot-high atrium that provides natural light for every office, and distance-learning capabilities in every room. It is located across S.C. Highway 93 from Sikes Hall and Bowman Field, on the approximate site of the iconic Clemson House, which was razed in 2017. “You always want to do the very best you are able to do, and if you plan well, you can accomplish more,” Billy Powers said in the news release. “This gift is about helping students grow and be the best they can be.”

BEST ADVICE Eric Watson, Charleston County deputy administrator of public safety

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Banking sector works to balance coronavirus, business By Teri Errico Griffis and Alexandria Ng

Construction on fire

Giving

A guide to nonprofits and philanthropic organizations across the Lowcountry, including Philanthropy Day Awards. INSIDE

An eye on forgiveness

A Roof with a View

Area bankers assess what’s gone right with PPP. Page 6

Rise of the gig economy

Expert urges care in relying on contract workers. Page 23

Rising tide brings more shipping

The rise of online shopping and other habit changes lead to more retail for ports. Page 8

INSIDE

Leading Off .......................... 2 SC Biz News Briefs ................ 3 C-Suite ................................ 4 In Focus: Architecture, Engineering and Construction ............... 13 LIST: Heating and Air Contractors ........................ 14 At Work ..............................22 Viewpoint ...........................23

AC Hotel unveils plans for roof venue Juniper See story on Page 10

Black-owned business lists drive recognition By Molly Hulsey

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

t all started on Juneteenth with an internal Google Doc marketing firm EP & Co. used to spotlight Greenville’s Black entrepreneurs. Walker Reed, a senior experience designer with the marketing company, then began to realize the list could do more to support those businesses if seen by additional eyes. “I thought, ‘This should be public. It’s a shame we had to do so much work to find these businesses,” Reed said, so he launched the site BLKGVL in July with an interactive display of 115 Black-owned businesses from a variety of sectors — some from the original list and others uncovered by Reed’s curiosity. Since then, the list has grown to include 400 Black business owners, many who reached out to Reed after the site’s launch to be included

for additional publicity. “I think it’s really important for you to go and meet your neighbor,” Reed said, adding that the list was created to help prompt the discovery of businesses that patrons either didn’t realize were Black-owned or that were off the beaten path. So far, he hasn’t had any feedback from business owners on how effective the lists have been in driving customers to their websites and cash registers. Still, the public response to the list has been “overwhelmingly positive,” according to Reed, well aware that as a white man, his list could be received as just a tokenistic badge of support for the Upstate’s Black business community. In an effort to remain anonymous, Reed didn’t include his name or EP & Co. branding on the site. “With the lists, I think what is good about See BUSINESSES, Page 11

hen the Paycheck Protection Program became available, loan officers at S.C. Federal Credit Union found themselves logging into the Small Business Administration website at 3 a.m. and on

Powering Forward

By Teri Errico Griffis tgriffis@scbiznews.com

Century Aluminum threatens to turn off smelter without a better electricity contract. Page 9

The future is retail for the South Carolina Ports Authority. For the past 10 years, the SCPA has been driven by advanced manufacturing, doubling its container volume and jobs almost 1 for 1 from 2009 to 2019 and generating $63.4 million annually throughout the state, an economic impact study found last year. The heavy, advanced manufacturing focus has made the Palmetto State’s ports stand out from others who have had a larger percentage of retail distribution. Yet as the pandemic altered consumption habits and delayed the production of auto parts, S.C. Ports Authority President and CEO Jim Newsome said the time is right to diversify the port’s cargo base and transition into retail. Let’s not forget that Walmart also is building a 3-million-square-foot distribution center in Dorchester County. “We’re an efficient port. We should not underestimate the whole thesis behind what we’ve done in the last 11 years in investing in

Banking up

JP Morgan Chase brings expansion plans to Charleston region. Page 13

INSIDE

Harold Hughes of Bandwagon FanClub, says the lists have linked Black entrepreneurs to investors. (Photo/Provided)

In Focus

Taking on turbulence

Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport forges ahead with development plan, despite pandemic. Page 13

Fall 2020

See BANKS, Page 10

S.C. Ports sees rising value in retail cargo

Power play

Upfront ................................ 2 SC Biz News Briefs ................ 3 Best Advice .......................... 4 In Focus: Banking and Finance ......... 13 List: Banks ......................... 14 Bonus List: Financial Brokerage Firms ................ 16 At Work .............................. 19 Viewpoint ........................... 21 Day in the Life .....................23

ume dropped down to where we could log in and input our members’ application data,” said Scott Woods, president and CEO of S.C. Federal Credit Union. “We had to get very creative in getting our members’ information in the system and getting the loans generated.” Across the country, financial institutions shifted their services to help struggling busi-

As half of professional ECHL teams return to the ice next month, the move isn’t without risk for organizations such as the S.C. Stingrays, with only a fraction of fans allowed to attend. Page 8

Headwinds

S.C. aerospace industry meets challenges, embraces new opportunities

See PORTS, Page 11

Remaking Volvo Car Stadium

The owners of the tournament investing in reimagined experience for visitors, events, athletes at iconic Daniel Island venue. Page 7

SC Biz News 1439 Stuart Engals Blvd. Suite 200 Mt. Pleasant, SC 29464

Fire station building is hot in Upstate Under Construction. Page 17

tgriffis@scbiznews.com ang@scbiznews.com

Sunday afternoons to process loans. This pivot in operational strategy was the best they could do to avoid national web traffic as droves of small business owners flocked to banks and credit unions for support. Financial institutions like these were getting thousands of applications a day. “It was the sheer volume — the program was being heavily utilized across the entire country, and that was the only time the vol-

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November 9 - 22, 2020

Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center nets award; visitors center launches online store

Staff Report

he Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center has won a 2020 Readers’ Choice award from ConventionSouth, a national multimedia event planning resource. The award marks this 10th consecutive year the Columbia event venue has won the honor, according to a news release from Experience Columbia SC. “The value in receiving this prestigious recognition is that it comes from the United States’ top meeting professionals who hold events in the South,” ConventionSouth associate publisher Ashleigh Osborne said in the release. “These planners demand the highest level of customer service and quality facilities, and they have contributed in determining that Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center indeed displays the commitment to professionalism, creativity and service that they require.” The convention center is one of 380 meeting facilities, hotels and visitor bureaus to receive the 2020 awards, compiled by nominations throughout the year and selected by online voting. More than 8,000 voters, the highest-ever total, participated in this year’s selection process, according to the release. “This acknowledgement affirms that our dedication and commitment to exceeding customer expectations are noticed and appreciated,” Cheryl Swanson, convention center vice president and general manager, said. “The staff has adapted to client needs over the 10 years and has demonstrated a strong resilience in 2020 to continue their pledge to excellence.” A complete list of award winners will be featured in the December issue of ConventionSouth magazine. Other S.C. facilities winning Readers’ Choice awards were: • BMW Performance Center

The Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center has won a Readers’ Choice award from ConventionSouth, a national multimedia event planning resource, for the 10th consecutive year. The center was one of 380 facilities to receive a 2020 award, selected by online voting. (Photo/File)

• Breakers Resort • Charleston Area CVB • Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center • Embassy Suites Myrtle Beach-Oceanfront Resort • Florence Center • Fripp Island Golf & Beach Resort • Hampton Inn & Suites Oceanfront, Myrtle Beach • Hilton Head Island Beach & Tennis Resort • Hilton Head Island Visitor & Convention Bureau • Hotel Bella Grace • Myrtle Beach Area CVB • Myrtle Beach Convention Center • OneSpartanburg Inc. • Palmera Inn • Sonesta Resort Hilton Head Island • Spartanburg Marriott • Tides Folly Beach Oceanfront • VisitGreenvilleSC

Visitors center launches online store

Visitors to the convention center, the Vista or other Columbia attractions now have an additional option to remember their experience. The Columbia SC Visitors Center has launched an online store featuring merchandise such as apparel, home goods and face masks. The center, located at the corner of Gervais and Lincoln streets and operated by Experience Columbia SC, began planning for the online store several months ago, according to a news release. “With the challenges presented from the COVID-19 pandemic, we recognized a need to provide our customers with Columbia SC merchandise and sought out a safe and clean way to do so,” Jason Outman, Experience Columbia SC executive director, said. “The online store has been months in the making and offers a great variety of products.”

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November 9 - 22, 2020

Banking sector responds to balance coronavirus, business By Teri Errico Griffis and Alexandria Ng tgriffis@scbiznews.com ang@scbiznews.com

hen the Paycheck Protection Program became available, loan officers at S.C. Federal Credit Union found themselves logging into the Small Business Administration website at 3 a.m. and on Sunday afternoons to process loans. This pivot in operational strategy was the best they could do to avoid national web traffic as droves of small business owners flocked to banks and credit unions for support. Financial institutions like these were getting thousands of applications a day. “It was the sheer volume — the program was being heavily utilized across the entire country, and that was the only time the volume dropped down to where we could log in and input our members’ application data,” said Scott Woods, president and CEO of S.C. Federal Credit Union. “We had to get very creative in getting our members’ information in the system and getting the loans generated.” Across the country, financial institutions shifted their services to help struggling businesses and individuals. Like many others reevaluating their strengths, emphasis was placed on outreach and the digital sphere. According to a study by Washington, D.C.-based Callahan & Associates, S.C. Federal Credit Union, headquartered in North Charleston, was the leading credit union in the state for number of PPP loans funded. In total, it lent more than $10 million. Woods credits the success to the fact that the institution could easily pick up new loans as a certified small business lender and because of the technology infrastructure they had already built over the years. “The technology development was from a competitive point of view — we just wanted to have the best that was out there to meet the members’ needs,” Woods said. “But we had no idea that we were actually fortifying for a cultural shift that would demand remote banking in all aspects.” This shift to digital was seen in the 22% increase in online banking year over year, Woods said. This was the first year that they had seen 100,000 visits to their website every month. From February to March, mobile app downloads increased by 225%, and mobile deposits went up 20% year over year. The number of mobile bill payments increased as well. Across the country, national banks

Photo/File

“We had to get very creative in getting our members’ information in the system and getting the loans generated.” Scott Woods President and CEO, S.C. Federal Credit Union

were seeing similar trends. Based in San Francisco, Calif., Wells Fargo saw its mobile deposit volume shoot up 108.3% in the second quarter compared to 2019. Wire transactions were also up 49.6% year over year. Jim Lawrence, Wells Fargo’s region bank president for eastern South Carolina who has been with the firm for more than 25 years, said the coronavirus’ impact on the bank has been twofold with shifts for both clients and employees. “For clients, we had to make sure that they’re both safe and have the services they need in order to keep moving on with their daily lives,” Lawrence said. The latter sparked the uptick in online banking. Year-over-year, digital logins for online banking were up 21% for Wells Fargo in quarter two, more than 80% of which were on mobile devices for a total of 1.5 billion logins. Additionally, 31.7 million checks were deposited using mobile devices. Wells Fargo, founded in 1852, also made adjustments to its branch operations, with only four in the region completely closing. The others are opening in one of three phases: drive-thru only, drive-thru and lobby entry by appointment only, and then controlled access. During Phase III, customers can enter branches to perform transactions, but employees will monitor door traffic and enforce social distancing and other CDC guidelines.

“It was obvious early on that we had to do a lot of research to create an environment that people can feel safe in,” Lawrence said. Since then, Wells Fargo has installed sneeze shields, barriers and hand sanitizer stations at all locations, and is asking customers in South Carolina, as well as employees, to wear masks. According to an Ipsos study, these strides toward health and safety practices earned Wells Fargo a rating as the top-performing brand in the financial services industry for COVID-19 safety.

Flexibility is key

While most of the banking industry is a face-to-face role, Lawrence said that across the enterprise, Wells Fargo transitioned a large number of team members to work from home. “In fact, some of our branch team members, we actually reassigned on temporary work shifts if they were considered high-risk and couldn’t come into a branch to work, but still wanted to help customers,” he said. “We cross-trained them to maybe help with handling customer complaints or work on phone banks.” Similarly, S.C. Federal Credit Union repositioned part of its staff to work remotely with the call center. There have been no layoffs, rather a rotating system where only a portion of employees work in-person each week. Flexibility is key in accommodating staff members’ home lives when working

remotely, Woods said, but he wanted to ensure that job security was not an issue. While S.C. Federal lobbies are now open with safety protocols in place, branches experimented with temporary shutdowns and opening drive-thrus and lobbies the past few months. However, Woods said he views the plans not as inconsistent, but rather, responsive, according to how the pandemic is affecting different markets across the state. Part of that responsiveness is keeping in communication with members about expanded remote services, Wood said. Members are updated through texts and emails, and through the “Coronavirus Updates” tab on the credit union’s website. There, members can learn about financial center operations, online banking and specific assistance for those affected by the pandemic. Such services include support for mortgage payment deferrals, stimulus checks, health insurance, and loan forbearance and extensions, a service which Woods said he has seen an increase in demand for. Wells Fargo also has assisted clients by waiving fees, deferring payments and helping with loans. For clients without access to computers, banking staff educated those with smartphones about mobile banking. “That has been one of our biggest resources. We have customers who’ve never utilized those mobile services before and are now opening up to it out of necessity more than ever before,” Lawrence said. With fewer people coming into the physical offices, Wells Fargo branches have proactively increased outreach to clients, and Lawrence said it’s these complex conversations that will sustain the need for banks even as mobile banking becomes more popular. Looking back, both he and Woods believe the pandemic has proven to be a learning experience for banking institutions, highlighting the need for a more nimble framework in the future. “People have gotten more used to using online banking, mobile banking, and we’ll see people continue to incorporate that into their banking habits,” Woods said. “We’re going to see more remote operating workforces, but we’re going to lean on this going forward in ensuring that our workforce knows that they have a great place to work and that gives them the tools, the training and the authority to take care of our members wherever they are.”

Reach staff writer Teri Errico Griffis at 843849-3144 and digital editor Alexandria Ng at 843-849-3124.

November 9 - 22, 2020

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New project to collect COVID-19 information

Staff Report

two-step initiative involving 32,500 randomly selected South Carolinians is designed to gather information about disease infection and to identify health inequities. The SC STRONG project, which stands for Sampling and Testing Representative Outreach for Novel coronavirus Guidance, is led by the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and the University of South Carolina. Participation includes completing an online, private survey and taking one free COVID-19 test consisting of both a nasal

swab and a blood sample to identify current and past infection. Selected participants will receive a blue envelope in the mail, according to a news release from DHEC. “Partnering with collaborators from academic institutions, government agencies, family medicine and pediatric clinics, and nonprofit organizations across the state, this widescale public health project will track current infection rates and provide scientific evidence of immunity among various populations,” said Dr. Virginie Daguise, DHEC Bureau of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention director. “Each participant’s information will remain confidential. This is an

exciting, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for South Carolinians to directly support public health experts’ understanding of this new and deadly disease that continues to impact our state and nation.” Participants will include those five and older, with parents or guardians responsible for minors’ participation. The project tam will work with local health care providers and community partners to collect samples, with results available within a few days. “We’re trying to better understand the patterns of transmission within specific populations and we’re looking for existing immunity within individuals who have already recovered from infection,”

Dr. Melissa Nolan, assistant professor at epidemiologist with the Arnold School of Public Health, said. “We’ll be using this information to make projections about the dynamics of both the spread and the immunity within specific populations — by geographical area, for example — so we can help inform public health officials’ and policymakers’ decision about the distribution of resources, such as vaccinations, testing, treatment and more.” SC STRONG biostatisticians and epidemiologists will prepare interim reports about the project’s findings, including geospatial hotspot analysis and infectious disease forecasting models. These reports will be available at scstrong.sc.edu.

Richland County property tax bills to include fee increase

Staff Report

ichland County property owners will not see higher property tax rates this year but will notice an increase in fees for solid waste services. The county said that the fee increases on the tax bills, which began being mailed Oct. 23, will be about 13%. Last year,

curbside collection fees rose for the first in more than a decade, while landfill fees increased for the first time since 1993, according to a news release. The increases will be implemented in two-year increments. Concerned that the already enacted fee increase would present a financial challenge for those affected by the COVID-19

pandemic, Richland County Council and county staff worked with millage agencies to avoid raising the 2020 tax rate, according to the release. The county auditor’s office mailed about 177,000 real estate tax bills, 33,000 business tax bills and 142 personal property tax bills last month. The bills, due by Jan. 15, include a tax distribution chart

outlining provided services. Taxpayers age 65 or older and residing in South Carolina as of Dec. 31, 2019, or who are legally blind or 100% disabled, are exempt from paying taxes on the first $50,000 value of their homes. Bills can be paid by mail or online, via a drop box at the county administration building at 2020 Hampton St.

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November 9 - 22, 2020

Silver Airways to begin service to Florida from CAE Staff Report

ilver Airways will begin service to three Florida cities out of Columbia Metropolitan Airport on Dec. 17. The low-cost regional carrier will fly to Tampa, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando with fares starting at $49 one way, according to a news release from CAE. Flights will depart twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays. “Silver Airways is a great low-cost carri-

er and we’re very pleased to welcome them to CAE and the capital city,” Mike Gula, CAE executive director, said in the release. “As we all work to recover from this devastating year, this airline addition supports our focus on moving forward no matter what. We will remain the strong, regional airport that we are, while getting our travelers there and back, safely and with ease.” Silvery Airways also operates routes to the Bahamas and its Caribbean network

connects Puerto Rico with destinations including the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic. The carrier is a codeshare partner with United, JetBlue, American, Delta, Avianca and Copa Airlines, and has interline agreements with Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, All Nippon Airways, Azul, Bahamasair, Emirates and Hahn Air. “We are delighted to introduce Silver’s safe, reliable, and customer friendly ser-

vice to Columbia, South Carolina,” Steve Rossum, Silver Airways CEO, said in the release. “Columbia and the surrounding communities comprise a vibrant region bursting with natural beauty, historic significance, countless recreational opportunities, a growing and progressive business community, and one of the most storied public universities in the South. We are very excited.”

Sandhills Neighborhood Plan seeking public feedback

Staff Report

ichland County is seeking feedback from Northeast residents on the Sandhills Neighborhood Plan, featuring recommendations developed based on surveys and community meetings with area residents and businesses. The plan address issues such as recreation, transportation, housing and business development, and community identity. The draft recommendations, including a vision map and a survey link, are available online at www.renewpontiac.com/

input. Suggested interventions to date are also listed. “Public input and engagement are critical components to ensuring that we capture the community’s vision through our neighborhood plans,” Brian Crooks, interim planning services manager for Richland County, said in a news release. “We are asking the public to review and give feedback on the recommendations that will guide future development and projects in the Sandhills area and bring that vision to life.” The Sandhills Neighborhood Plan boundary includes the Richland North-

east Industrial Park on Clemson Road as well as historic businesses and residences at Two Notch and Spears Creek Church roads, an area commonly known as Pontiac. County development officials began seeking input for the plan in September 2019 with two public sessions. “At this point, everything is on the table,” Clayton Voignier, director of Richland County Community Planning and Development, said last October. “It could be anything from a park, to better access for transportation, more bus shelters. It could be better signage for their neigh-

borhood.” Master plan suggestions include redesigning Spears Creek Church Road from Interstate 20 through its intersection with Two Notch Road to address streetscaping, additional lane needs and stormwater issues; investigating new bus service options with the Central Midlands Transit Authority; and creating a walkability loop and dog park. There are also recommendations to coordinate public educational programs and greenspace access with Clemson University’s Sandhill Research and Education Center.

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www.columbiabusinessreport.com 9

Continental Tire expanding Lancaster County operations

Staff Report

ontinental Tire the Americas LLC is investing more than $20 million to expand its Lancaster County operations. The expansion will include a new, 88,000-square-foot building constructed next to Continental Tire’s headquarters at 1820 MacMillan Park Drive. Construction is expected to be completed by mid-2022. “Lancaster County has been home to our tire operations for the Americas Region since 2009,” Continental Tire the Americas CEO Jochen Etzel said in a news release. “We are excited to invest in our campus and bring our team together in a new, fresh space that includes modern features and design to support the future work environment.” Employment information is available at continental.com/en-us/career. The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved a $2.6 million Closing Fund grant to Lancaster County for project-related costs. “Lancaster County couldn’t be more excited that Continental Tire the Americas will be expanding their

Indian Land headquarters,” Lancaster County Council Chair Steve Harper said. “Continental is one of our premier and most recognizable employers. … The new investment and jobs resulting from the expansion are very much welcomed and appreciated.”

Fish farming company establishing Orangeburg operations

Fish farming company Pure Blue Fish is investing $28.1 million in new Orangeburg County operations expected to create 82 jobs. Founded in 2016 in Israel, Pure Blue Fish grows yellowtail using recirculating aquaculture systems with zero water discharge technology, helping to reduce water costs and pollution, according to a news release. “All of us at Pure Blue Fish appreciate the time, effort and interest that the South Carolina Department of Commerce, SC Power Team, Tri-County Cooperative and the Orangeburg County Development Commission have offered to assist us at this location,” Nimrod Litvak, co-founder and CEO of Pure Blue Fish US Inc., said in a news release. “We are looking forward to a long working relationship.”

The production and packaging facility, located at Matthews Industrial Park in Orangeburg, is expected to be completed by 2022. Employment information is available online by contacting udi@purebluefish.com by December 2021. “Environmentally sustainable aquaculture is an important frontier in farming,” S.C. Commissioner of Agriculture Hugh Weathers said. “I’m pleased to welcome Pure Blue Fish to South Carolina, where agribusiness is the state’s No. 1 industry.”

New $85 million solar project coming to Orangeburg County

Brewer Renewables is investing $85 million in a new photovoltaic project in Orangeburg County. The project, to be located in a combination of cultivated farmland and managed timberland, will include a 100-megawatt solar facility with the option for additional energy storage of up to 100 megawatts and 400 megawatt-hours. That’s enough renewable energy to power roughly 20,000 homes in South Carolina, according to a news release. “We appreciate the help and sup-

port of the Orangeburg County Council, county administration and the Orangeburg County Development Commission to make this 100-megawatt solar energy project a reality, and are excited to contribute to making Orangeburg County the solar capital of South Carolina,” Kevin Casey, Brewer Renewables president and CEO, said in the release. “We look forward to continuing to work with and support the county and the Development Commission to promote additional economic development in the area and to being a longterm member of the community.” Founded in 2019, Brewer Renewables is a subsidiary of Seahorse Capital which develops renewable energy projects in the Southeastern U.S. The Orangeburg solar project is expected to be operational in 2023. “As Orangeburg County continues to be a leader in renewable energy, we are pleased to see the addition of this project that not only provides the benefit of clean energy for our residents and businesses but also provides economic opportunities for our communities,” said Orangeburg County Council Chairman Johnnie Wright.

South Carolina joins 11-state antitrust lawsuit against Google

Staff Report

outh Carolina is one of 11 states joining the U.S. Justice Department in a civil antitrust lawsuit against Google alleging anticompetitive and exclusionary practices in the search and search advertising markets. S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson filed the suit Oct. 20 in the U.S District Court for the District of Columbia. “Google’s monopoly is hurting consumers in South Carolina and across the country and we think the company’s actions violate federal laws,” Wilson said

in a news release. “This affects every device that has access to the internet, from computers to cell phones.” Other participating states are Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana and Texas. “Today, millions of Americans rely on the Internet and online platforms for their daily lives,” U.S. Attorney General William Barr said in a news release. “Competition in this industry is vitally important, which is why today’s challenge against Google — the gatekeeper

of the Internet — for violating antitrust laws is a monumental case both for the Department of Justice and for the American people. “This lawsuit strikes at the heart of Google’s grip over the internet for millions of American consumers, advertisers, small businesses and entrepreneurs beholden to an unlawful monopolist.” The complaint alleges that Google has entered into a “series of exclusionary agreements to lock up the primary avenues through which users access search engines, and thus the internet, by requiring that Google be set as the default or

exclusive search engine on billions of mobile devices and computers worldwide,” the Justice Department said. Those agreements include forcing preinstallation of undeletable Google search applications on mobile devices and forbidding preinstallation of any competing search service, according to the release. “These and other anticompetitive practices harm competition and consumers, reducing the ability of innovative new companies to develop, compete, and discipline Google’s behavior,” the Justice Department said.

In Focus

MANUFACTURING LISTS: Manufacturers, Page 15 | Largest Employers, Page 16

NEXT ISSUE’S FOCUS: Aerospace

A $215.8 million expansion at Nephron. includes a vaccine production wing and the Kennedy Innovation Center. (Photo/ David Bohrer/National Association of Manufacturers)

Exponential growth fuels expansion at Nephron By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

mong all the high-tech bells and whistles being added to Nephron Pharmaceutical Corp.’s sprawling West Columbia campus, Lou Kennedy may be most excited about a more basic improvement. Along with a 110,000-square-foot vaccine production, chemotherapy medication and antibiotic wing and the 240,000-square-foot Kennedy Innovation Center, part of a $215.8 million expansion announced in July, the Saxe-Gotha Industrial Park is getting a new, 10-acre parking lot. “It’s long overdue,” Kennedy, Nephron owner and CEO, said, brimming with excitement behind the marble table of an expansive conference room. “We’re parking in ditches.” Parking spaces are at a premium as business keeps booming at Nephron, a developer and producer of generic

inhalation solutions and suspension products, including those used to treat respiratory distress symptoms. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has received Food and Drug Administration approval to develop and obtain additional prescription product lines. Nephron also began manufacturing hand sanitizer and opened a CLIA-certified diagnostics lab. Kennedy’s company also operates a 503B Outsourcing Facility division which produces pre-filled sterile syringes and IV bags for hospitals across the country in an effort to alleviate drug shortages — a function made all the more vital during the pandemic. It’s a nonstop job that begins each day before 7 a.m. as Kennedy fields phone calls between sips of ChickFil-A tea. She is still learning, she said, how to anticipate ever-changing health care needs. “The older part of my business, I keep lots of raw material. I keep it stocked. I

know exactly what’s in demand every month of every year, now and forever,” Kennedy said. “This new division, the outsourcing, we didn’t know what drugs were going to be the hot 30 on the COVID list. All of a sudden something that I made this much of became this much. … There’s no real forecast. There’s no last month’s history when things like this are going on. All bets are off. You’re trying to stay ahead of it. “We’ve adjusted and we think the sweet spot is 45 days of inventory for raw materials, but what if we have another spike like we saw in March? We just have to be savvy and watch carefully and don’t take our eyes off the ball.” Nephron receives electronic orders 24/7. Tractor-trailers loaded with product for customers which include some of the country’s largest drug wholesalers pull of out the complex three times a day. Demand has subsided from a “freak-

ish” March that saw a 141% increase in Nephron’s monthly production of inhalation solutions from 80 million doses shipped to 193 million, Kennedy said. But the company is still operating all 12 production lines while adding new packaging lines and quality efficiency equipment. “It is like a startup, because you’re adding a new drug every few weeks. You don’t know what the needs are going to be,” Kennedy said. “You’ve got to figure out how to get it made, how many to make. … It’s really hard to predict and get it right. Production scheduling here is Ph.D. work.” The expansion, which is expected to create 380 jobs, will help strengthen Nephron’s vertical integration, allowing the company to produce more things it needs in-house as supply chain disruptions have exposed some vulnerabilities. At the height of the pandemic in See NEPHRON, Page 11

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 9 - 22, 2020

NEPHRON, from Page 10

“I think every month that goes by with COVID still lingering, you realize, I hate to be dependent on X, Y, and Z. Could I bring that in-house? We’re trying to be even more vertically integrated so we’re not dependent on those outside partners as much.” Lou Kennedy Owner and CEO, Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp.

Nephron responds to FDA warning letter By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

ephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. received a warning letter in September from the Food and Drug Administration addressing emails regarding generic asthma drug budesonide. The letter, sent to Nephron owner and CEO Lou Kennedy, referenced emails sent by Kennedy and a Nephron sales representative on July 7 and July 14 representing budesonide as a treatment for COVID-19. In the letter, the FDA’s Office of Prescription Drug Promotion said the drug is not approved for that use and called the emails “false or misleading” for presenting the drug’s benefits without including any risk information. Nephron acknowledged receipt of the letter on Sept. 22. “Nephron recognizes the importance of the issues raised by OPDP’s letter and is working diligently with the FDA on a comprehensive plan of action to ensure truthful and non-mis-

leading communications regarding Budesonide,” the company said in a statement sent to the Columbia Regional Business Report. “Among other things, this includes a corrective communication that will address the approved use of Budesonide and associated risks.” The West-Columbia based manufacturer of generic respiratory products received FDA approval to run all 12 of its production lines in response to increased demand for its inhalation solutions during the pandemic. “Our products are not approved for the treatment of COVID-19 or its symptoms; however, in response to demands created by the pandemic, we have worked with the FDA to develop and obtain approval of additional prescription product lines, began manufacturing hand sanitizer, and recently opened a CLIA-certified diagnostics lab,” the statement said. “We take our regulatory obligations and commitment to public health seriously, and are proud to commit ourselves to these endeavors.”

March and April, Kennedy said, Nephron needed a component of active pharmaceutical ingredient only available in India. “The plants were all shut down and nothing’s going between us and India,” Kennedy said. “Our UPS guy called India UPS, convinced the lead India guy to drive to the plant. The plant manager met him there, unlocked the doors, got our big blue drum of powder, gave it to the UPS guy and then they got it to us so we wouldn’t be without raw materials.” Nephron has also had to shore up its procurement practices after running perilously low on personal protective equipment for its employees. “I have been working for the last three or four months to build up new people and get them trained for procurement so that we are adding an extra layer,” Kennedy said. “I’ve had technology put into place to better assist me for when I’ve hit the watermark that’s too dangerous and to adjust those watermark levels.” The new space will also address those concerns, doubling pallet storage and housing seven new laser-guided vehicles being added to Nephron’s current fleet of nine. Four new secondary packaging suites and a 20,000-square-foot machine shop expansion are also under construction. The Kennedy Innovation Center will house two businesses operated by Kennedy and her husband, Bill Kennedy, including a company that makes the hand-held nebulizers Nephron produces, in 80,000 square feet. The remaining 160,000 square feet will be marketed to state and county commerce departments for startup ideas, Kennedy said. “It would be my personal dream for whoever goes in there to be PPE that I could benefit from and/or other health care or life sciences where we could say, ‘Oh, I’ve already got a lab that can do

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 11

that. Can we help …?’ You know, build an ecosystem,” Kennedy said. “It’s like when I couldn’t get enough labels on time, we just set up our own print shop here. … I think every month that goes by with COVID still lingering, you realize, I hate to be dependent on X, Y, and Z. Could I bring that in-house? We’re trying to be even more vertically integrated so we’re not dependent on these outside partners as much.” Kennedy is not revealing any details about the other business to be housed in the innovation center until next month but said the idea has been percolating for nearly a year. “This COVID made everything come into laser focus. We cannot be dependent on the world for things that we need in our manufacturing process,” she said. A topping out ceremony to celebrate the raising of the last beam is planned for Nov. 11 as the excitement generated by the expansion builds. “We are proud to have Nephron Pharmaceuticals in South Carolina,” S.C. Henry McMaster said at the time of the expansion announcement. “Since coming here, they have become an integral part of the community, and recently have been vital in the fight against COVID-19.” Nephron invested $313 million to move its headquarters from Florida to West Columbia in 2016. The company said more than 1,800 full- and part-time jobs have been created since that move as Nephron’s makeup has changed. “We’re a much more diverse company than when we moved here,” said Kennedy, a native of Lexington. “We made respiratory meds only. We’ve added three new generics since then. We’ve added 60-some-odd products for outsourcing. Back then, we didn’t do IV bags. Now we do. “This is such a different company than what I came to South Carolina to do originally. I’m proud of it.”

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November 9 - 22, 2020

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S.C. companies honored for manufacturing excellence By Ross Norton

rnorton@scbiznews.com

im Newsome, president and CEO of the S.C. Ports Authority, was presented the BlueCross BlueShield Manufacturing Lifetime Service Award during the Manufacturing Excellence Awards ceremony that anchored the final day of the 2020 S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo. The Oct. 30 ceremony was hosted by Grady Johnson, president of SC Biz News, and Matt Brewer, president of Choate Construction, co-presenter of the ceremony. Newsome has served as president and CEO of the S.C. Ports Authority since September 2009 and was in private shipping before that. He studied logistics at the University of Tennessee before launching a career leading shipping lines. During the past 11 years at the helm of the port system, Newsome has doubled port container volumes, led crucial infrastructure projects, and turned S.C. Ports into one of the most successful ports in the country. He has received numerous leadership awards, including being named to the 2020 International Maritime Hall of Fame. Other awards handed out during the virtual ceremony included Innovator of the Year Awards for Daedalus Industrial of Easley and for Archroma of Martin. Minileit Inc. of Greenville was named the

Freightliner Custom Chassis was honored during the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo on Oct. 30 as a Smart Move S.C. Expansion Award winner. (Photo/Provided)

Emerging Manufacturer of the Year. The Outreach Award was presented to Sun Surveillance of Spartanburg. Smart Move SC awards went to Elite Quartz Manufacturing LLC of Latta, Adornus Cabinetry of Lancaster of Lancaster and The Shyft Group of North Charleston for their decisions to move to the Palmetto State. Freightliner Custom Chassis of Gaffney of Gaffney, McCall Farms of Effingham and Urban Electric Co. of North Charleston were presented Smart Move SC awards for expanding their facilities. Transformation and Operational Excellence Awards were handed out to First Quality tissue makers of Anderson, Charles River Laboratories International

Inc. of Charleston and Proper Polymers of Anderson. A group of special awards were created this year to recognize those companies that dealt with and overcame extraordinary circumstances to respond to the coronavirus pandemic and its fallout. “We had a lot of companies that were almost going to have to lay off their whole staff but instead they pivoted, they made some decisions, they made some PPE and instead, not only did they keep their employees, they hired,” said Chuck Spangler, president and CEO of the S.C. Manufacturing Extension Partnership. “So there are some incredible stories our there across South Carolina.”

Five organizations were recognized for the SCMEP Beyond the Call of Duty Award. These are companies that “had a bias for action and made a major impact, not only in South Carolina but in the United States,” Spangler said. They were: BorgWarner of Seneca, ZVerse of Columbia and Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. of West Columbia, Hemmingway Apparel Manufacturing Co. of Williamsburg County and Vikor Scientific of Charleston. Eleven companies were selected for the SCMEP COVID-19 Response Award. They were: • Fire & Pine, Ridgeland • Colite, Columbia • Carolina Cover Tech, North Augusta • Springs Creative Products, Rock Hill • Venus Group, Fort Lawn • Life Industries, North Charleston • Parimer Scientific, Powdersville • Composite Resources, Rock Hill • Multi Plastics, Charleston • Carolina Cotton Works, Gaffney • Harris Pillow, Beaufort The conference and expo were conducted online this year, along with the 23rd annual Manufacturing Excellence Awards. The awards were co-sponsored by the S.C. Manufacturing Extension Partnership, which also co-sponsored the conference along with SC Biz News. Reach Ross Norton at 864-720-1222.

Governor tells manufacturing conference S.C. is ‘place to be’ By Teri Errico Griffis

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

ov. Henry McMaster closed the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo on Oct. 30 with his thoughts on what makes South Carolina attractive to businesses, how the state’s handling of the pandemic sends a strong message to the world and why employment taxes might not need to be raised. “Around the world they know that South Carolina makes things,” McMaster said. “And not only do we make them, we make them well and can get them to just about any place as quickly or quicker than anyone else.” In particular, McMaster recognized Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Michelin, Schaeffler Group USA Inc., Giti Tire USA, Samsung and Honda, as well as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo for their contributions to the state’s successful manufacturing sector. “We’re making things all over the state, and that’s good news because those are good jobs. They pay well and those are

the things that are putting South Carolina on the map,” he said. McMaster also noted that South Carolina’s location in the Sun Belt makes it a prime location for manufacturers and other businesses looking for a place to relocate, build or invest millions or even billions of dollars. Other advantages of doing business in South Carolina, he said, include the state’s universities and its technical college system, as well as its ports and agriculture. The governor praised the Hampton County’s new Agriculture Technology Campus — a $314 million agribusiness center that anticipates the creation of 1,547 jobs — as well as the S.C. Ports Authority. In particular, McMaster addressed the work of the port’s Charleston Harbor Deepening Project, which will dredge the harbor to 52 feet, allowing some of the largest ships to dock in Charleston. He added that being one of the only states with two inland ports is another big plus for manufacturing. “We have all these assets. What we need is to talk to each other, to communi-

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster addresses the S.C. Manufacutring Conference. (Photo/SC Biz News)

cate, collaborate and cooperate. If we do that, with everyone looking to go to the Sun Belt, to invest, to grow and to build, with the assets we have — our research universities, these rail lines, the great port, the technical college system — we are really in great, great shape,” McMaster said. The fact that South Carolina didn’t fully close during the pandemic and currently has the lowest unemployment rate

in the Southeast at 5.1% only enhances its reputation, the governor said. Much of this is owed to the $1.9 billion in coronavirus relief fund, half of which was used to replenish the unemployment insurance trust fund that was drained following the Great Recession in 2008. McMaster said it had only been refilled within the last year. “With the economy recovering as we’re opening up in South Carolina, that means we likely will not have to raise taxes on businesses to replenish that fund,” he said. All of these resources, including the fact that Charleston will soon be home to the largest concentration of Coast Guard assets in the country, will open up doors for the state, McMaster said. Other manufacturers and service providers will want to come and be closer to the industries, and with them will come even more jobs for South Carolina residents. “We’ve got a phrase we like to use, and that is: If you want to go places, South Carolina is the place to be,” McMaster said. Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 9 - 22, 2020

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IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

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www.columbiabusinessreport.com 15

Manufacturers

Ranked by No. of Employees in the Midlands Company

Phone / Website / Email

Top Local Official(s) / Year Founded

Purchasing Manager

Continental Tire the Americas LLC 1805 Highway 521 South Sumter, SC 29153

803-506-5100 larsen.cline@conti-na.com

Benny Harmse, Ashton Elmore, Larsen Cline 2011

James Burton

1,300

Produces passenger and light truck tires

Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. 4500 12th St. Extension West Columbia, SC 29172

800-443-4313 www.nephronpharm.com

Lou Kennedy 1991

Makenzie Hudson

1,153

Pharmaceuticals

BD Life Sciences - Integrated Diagnostic Solutions 1575 Airport Road Sumter, SC 29153

803-469-1725 ken.l.lee@bd.com

1890

1,000

Medical devices, preanalytical systems

Zeus Industrial Products 3737 Industrial Blvd. Orangeburg, SC 29118

803-268-9500 www.zeusinc.com support@zeusinc.com

Jennifer McQuesten, Steve Peterson 1966

Zeus Sales

1,000

Polymer tubing and extrusions

CMC Steel S.C. 310 New State Road Cayce, SC 29033

803-936-3700 www.cmc.com

Bryan Porter 1960

Charles Rogers

400

Steel bar mini mill

Nucor Corp. 200 Whetstone Road Swansea, SC 29160

803-568-2100 www.nucorbuildingsystems.com matt.currie@nucor.com

Ed Aller, Matt Currie 1965

375

Steel and steel products

Sleep Number Corp. 630 Western Lane Irmo, SC 29063

803-749-5746 www.sleepnumber.com

Hunter Mottel 1997

250

Manufacturer of the Sleep Number Bed

Sumter Packaging Corp. 2341 Corporate Way Sumter, SC 29154

803-481-2003 www.sumterpackaging.com sales@sumterpackaging.com

Jim Baibak, Benjamin DeSollar 1980

Doug Copeland

125

Customer corrugated boxes, POP displays, industrial packaging, digital printing, litho labels, product fulfillment, wood and foam and corrugated combinations, plastic corrugated, contract packaging, partitions

Reco USA 1839 Dunbar Road Cayce, SC 29033

803-794-3360 www.recousaheaters.com info@recousaheaters.com

Robert A. Platt, Dan Krebs, Reggie Parker 1998

William Langley

Commercial water heating systems, steam generators, heat exchangers and engineered pressure vessels

Brandrite Sign Co. Inc. 313 John C. Calhoun Drive Orangeburg, SC 29115

803-533-7446 www.brandritesign.com rosetta@brandritesign.com

Jay L Oberholtzer, Rosetta Oberholtzer 1986

Lighted electric signs, channel letters, 3D signs, vehicle graphics, large format printing interior and exterior

Cameron Lumber Co. 5119 Cameron Road Cameron, SC 29030

8803-823-2275 www.cameronlumber.com

Randy Hunt, TM Rhodes 2001

Bud Utsey

High grade lumber; timbers

J&J Machine & Specialty Inc. 164 Smith Pond Road Lexington, SC 29072

803-359-9652 www.jjmachineinc.wordpress.com jjmachineinc@aol.com

Joann S. Keisler, James D. Keisler 1975

James D. Keisler

Jigs, fixtures, prototype, production run jobs, welding, sheet metal fabrication; CNC turning and milling, manual machining turning and milling, industrial automation

Manchester Fluid Power LLC 25 W. Clark St. Pinewood, SC 29125

803-452-7000 www.manchesterfluidpower.com sales@manchesterfluidpower.com

Kelsey L. Newman, Gerald C. Lyles 2014

Gerald C. Lyles

Manufacturer of hydraulic and air actuators, design of pneumatic automation controls

Columbia Analytical Instruments Inc. 2249 Hollingshed Road Irmo, SC 29063

803-732-5118 www.caisc.com mgilbert@caisc.com

Mark W. Gilbert 2003

Mark W. Gilbert

SmartBlock for trace metals digestions; COD and GGA standards for BOD5 used by labs in the waste water industry, municipalities, private and state labs

Because of space constraints, sometimes only the top-ranked companies are published in the print edition. Although every effort is made to ensure accuracy, errors sometimes occur. Email additions or corrections to lists@scbiznews.com.

Employees

Products Manufactured

Researched by Paige Hardy

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 9 - 22, 2020

Largest Employers

Ranked by No. of Employees in the Columbia Area Company

Phone / Website / Email

State of South Carolina (Midlands data) 1200 Senate St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-734-0380 www.sc.gov -

University of South Carolina 915 Bull St. Columbia, SC 29208

Top Local Official(s) / Year Founded

Employees: Local / Statewide / Worldwide

Headquarters

Description

Henry McMaster 1788

26,304 -

Columbia

State government

803-777-7700 www.sc.edu uscuadms@mailbox.sc.edu

Bob Caslen 1801

5,761 5,761 5,761

Columbia

Higher education

Richland County School District 1 1616 Richland St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-231-7000 www.richlandone.org -

Craig Witherspoon 1881

5,567 5,567 5,567

Columbia

Public education

Lexington School District One 100 Tarrar Springs Road Lexington , SC 29072

803-821-1000 http://www.lexdistrict1.com/ communications@lexington1.net

Gregory D. Little 1952

4,000 4,000 4,000

Lexington

The sixth-largest school district in S.C.

Continental Tire the Americas LLC 1805 Highway 521 South Sumter, SC 29153

803-506-5100 larsen.cline@conti-na.com

Benny Harmse, Ashton Elmore, Larsen Cline 2011

1,300 -

Fort Mill

Produces passenger and light truck tires

Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. 4500 12th St. Extension West Columbia, SC 29172

800-443-4313 www.nephronpharm.com -

Lou Kennedy 1991

1,153 1,153 1,189

West Columbia

Pharmaceuticals

BD Life Sciences - Integrated Diagnostic Solutions 1575 Airport Road Sumter, SC 29153

803-469-1725 ken.l.lee@bd.com

1890

1,000 1,500 65,000

Doctors Care 2601 Rosewood Drive Columbia, SC 29205

803-782-4051 www.doctorscare.com -

Curtis Franke 1981

1,000 -

Marathon Staffing 1314 Lincoln St., Suite 306 Columbia, SC 29201

803-753-1771 www.marathonstaffing.com columbia@marathonstaffing.com

Carolyn Zaleski 1987

1,000 16,000 -

Zeus Industrial Products 3737 Industrial Blvd. Orangeburg, SC 29118

803-268-9500 www.zeusinc.com support@zeusinc.com

Jennifer McQuesten, Steve Peterson 1966

1,000 1,700

Midlands Technical College 316 S. Beltline Blvd. Columbia, SC 29205

803-738-8324 www.midlandstech.edu askmtc@midlandstech.edu

Ronald L. Rhames 1974

AT&T 1441 Main St., Suite 305 Columbia, SC 29201

803-401-2211 www.att.com -

Jane Sosebee 1879

South State Bank 520 Gervais St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-771-2265 www.southstatebank.com -

Jack Goettee, Montague Laffitte 1934

Newberry County Memorial Hospital 2669 Kinard St. Newberry, SC 29108

803-276-7570 www.newberryhospital.org info@newberryhospital.net

CMC Steel S.C. 310 New State Road Cayce, SC 29033

Medical devices, preanalytical systems

Columbia

Urgent care, family care, virtual urgent care

Orangeburg

Polymer tubing and extrusions

959 959 959

Columbia

6-campus, two-year public college

621 2,815 240,000

Dallas, TX

Wireless and wireline telecommunications

500 1,800 5,508

Columbia

Financial services company

1925

454 454 454

Newberry

Hospital

803-936-3700 www.cmc.com -

Bryan Porter 1960

400 -

Irving, TX

Steel bar mini mill

Columbia International University 7435 Monticello Road Columbia, SC 29203

803-754-4100 www.ciu.edu admissions@ciu.edu

Mark A. Smith 1923

395 395 395

Columbia

On-campus and online undergraduate and graduate

Nucor Corp. 200 Whetstone Road Swansea, SC 29160

803-568-2100 www.nucorbuildingsystems.com matt.currie@nucor.com

Matt Currie, Ed Aller 1965

375 2,400 27,000

Charlotte

Steel and steel products

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP 1320 Main St., 17th Floor Columbia, SC 29201

803-799-2000 www.nelsonmullins.com info@nelsonmullins.com

James K. Lehman 1897

338 574 1,525

Columbia

Litigation; corporate; intellectual property

Safe Federal Credit Union 160 W. Wesmark Blvd. Sumter, SC 29150

803-469-8600 www.safefed.org bcopeland@safefed.org

Michael Baker 1955

324 -

Central Carolina Technical College 506 N. Guignard Drive Sumter, SC 29150

803-778-6602 www.cctech.edu publicrelationsoffice@cctech.edu

1962

265 265 265

Sumter

Public, two-year S.C. institution

Sleep Number Corp. 630 Western Lane Irmo, SC 29063

803-749-5746 www.sleepnumber.com -

Hunter Mottel 1997

Minneapolis

Manufacturer of the Sleep Number Bed

Newberry College 2100 College St. Newberry, SC 29108

800-845-4955 www.newberry.edu admission@newberry.edu

Maurice William Scherrens, Sid Parrish, David Sayers 1856

221 -

Newberry

A Lutheran, private, liberal arts college

Heathwood Hall Episcopal School 3000 S. Beltline Blvd. Columbia, SC 29201

803-765-2309 www.heathwood.org snagy@heathwood.org

Chris Hinchey 1951

220 220 220

Columbia

Independent Episcopalian day school

M. B. Kahn Construction Co. Inc. 101 Flintlake Road Columbia, SC 29223

803-736-2950 www.mbkahn.com jmorris@mbkahn.com

Robert A. Chisholm, William H. Neely 1927

206 348 392

Columbia

Construction since 1927

First Community Bank 5455 Sunset Blvd. Lexington, SC 29072

803-951-2265 www.firstcommunitysc.com -

Michael C. Crapps 1995

201 233 253

Lexington

Commercial banking; deposits and loans

McAngus Goudelock & Courie LLC 1320 Main St., 10th Floor Columbia, SC 29201

803-779-2300 www.mgclaw.com -

James R. Courie 1995

164 -

Columbia

Law firm

Nexsen Pruet LLC 1230 Main St., Suite 700 Columbia, SC 29201

803-771-8900 www.nexsenpruet.com -

Leighton Lord, Howard Janis 1945

163 -

Columbia

Represents businesses

250 250 4,300

Researched by Paige Hardy

November 9 - 22, 2020

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 17

ZVERSE, from Page 1

closer to help minimize these risks for cost? … The other thing is that more and more companies during COVID-19 really learned that they didn’t have visibility down the supply chain. When you know what kind of inventory you have throughout your whole system, how fast you can produce and respond to the needs of the market, (that) is huge.” The diversification and adaptability ZVerse demonstrated in first designing and then producing the ZShield Flex, a lightweight visor that clips around the user’s neck and which won an Innovation by Design Award from business magazine Fast Company, also have served manufacturers well in 2020, Spangler said. He’s seen that strategy pay off for other companies that have funneled resources to personal protective equipment. “The cut-and-sew operations that we have, they’re really converted over and done phenomenal,” Spangler said. “Some of them have kept that market and are still supplying their other market and are doing really, really well. Some, maybe a third of them, went back to doing their own business and quit doing the PPE. And then you still have about a third that are out there saying hey, we need to diversify more, so if this hits again, we’re not sitting here in one or two market segments. A lot of those are small- to medium-sized businesses that just may have very few customers, and if they will do that, it will make them stronger for the future.”

QUICK CHANGE

Things looked different for Carrington in March, when his concern about his employees’ physical well-being mingled with worries about looming layoffs as businesses across the state and the nation shut down in response to the new coronavirus. “At the beginning of the year, we were an early-stage technology company, doing primarily software and design for manufacturing,” Carrington said. “And whenever the world or market inverted in March, it was pretty scary for us. Our customers were shutting down factories. I wasn’t really sure if we were going to have to start laying people off. You’re concerned about the health and safety of employees and also the health of the business. It was really scary on all fronts, like it was for everyone, when everything started going into shutdown mode.” In mid-March, Carrington began fielding calls from local hospitals in need of personal protective equipment. “At first it was just we were trying to just help people in our community,” he said. “Some of these folks were doctors, nurses, mothers of nurses, but then the hospital administrators. … We were trying to help those in need, and we were fortunate to be able to do that, and really felt fortunate that we could redirect our

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster (right) wears a ZShield Flex face shield during a news conference in May as ZVerse CEO John Carrington (center) looks on. (Photo/Provided)

energy in such a great design.” In April, as some restrictions on businesses began to ease, ZVerse shifted its focus to include retailers, such as restaurants and hair salons, looking for functional PPE options. “As businesses were beginning to reopen, we were getting requests from people for the protective face shields that we designed to worn in the hospital,” Carrington said. “I had a conversation with one customer — if people are wearing these face shields in a restaurant, nobody’s going to want to eat there, because it looks like a hazmat suit, pretty much, and nobody’s going to feel comfortable doing that. “We thought, how can we rethink or reimagine what these face shields look like and (make) something that could be worn at a W hotel or in a Chick-Fil-A or a retail environment. That’s really what spawned the ZShield Flex.” ZVerse took feedback from customers to create the wraparound shield that flips up and down, striving for aesthetically pleasing comfort. Schools took note, as administrators in search of solutions for face-to-face instruction that could provide flexibility and be inclusive of special-needs students also expressed interest in the ZShield Flex. “We planning to introduce it at end of May or beginning of June,” he said. “But then Gov. McMaster came to visit us in mid-May and brought along with him all the press and held a live press conference from our facility. So at that point, we officially launched. … This is the first time we actually took our own product to market and went completely end-to-end from design concept to actual product, shipping and marketing and the whole nine.” Companies ranging from national pharmacy chains to film production com-

panies have snapped up the shield, and Carrington’s early spring concerns faded to a distant memory by fall. “In March, we had 18 employees. Now we’re at 84,” he said. “It’s an amazing feeling, that we’ve been able to go from complete uncertainty for the small team that we had to now being able to do something valuable during this crazy, uncertain time, and then also to provide jobs that are much-needed right now here in our community and beyond.”

NEW NORMAL

Whatever a post-COVID normal looks like, Carrington foresees applications for the lessons ZVerse has learned as well as the products it is developing. “COVID one day will go away, but post-COVID attitudes are being shaped right now, and those things will not go away,” Carrington said, pointing to demand for contactless devices in a wide range of industries. “There’s never been a time when the world needed as much innovation as it does right now, all at one time. We have several products that are in our pipeline that are not shields that will help address this post-pandemic world. “You think about before 9-11. If you were to walk into a concert or a football game and somebody was going through your bag or doing a security check, many people would have thought that was a hassle. Today, people are actually more concerned if there isn’t security. You feel a little bit unsafe going into a crowded event. That’s going to be the case with hygiene and cleanliness.” ZVerse’s exponential growth during the pandemic has attracted “some of the best and brightest people with other products they want us to design and bring to market,” Carrington said. “Some things are pandemic-related, some things are

not. But we’re utilizing our rapid design and manufacturing process and technology to be able to bring more products to market faster than most.” That speed will be helped by shoring up supply chains and decentralizing a manufacturing process that can become paralyzed when one faraway hub becomes inaccessible, Carrington said. “When everything goes overseas and the capabilities don’t even exist in the U.S. to do it, it’s a problem,” he said. “Moving forward, for manufacturing, it’s going to be all about the decentralization of manufacturing and digital manufacturing, and that’s really where our expertise is. We look forward to building that here in South Carolina, specifically.” Spangler agreed that bringing more manufacturing capabilities closer to home should be a lasting response to the pandemic. “Other countries that were producing for the U.S., they said look, we’ve got to take care of our own countries first and then we’ll start exporting again. That was tough,” Spangler said. “I think it was a wake-up call. … You hate that anything like COVID-19 hit, but I think it did wake up a lot of businesses’ minds, going hey, we may have to rethink things. We have to pay a little more, yet we can get it domestically — that’s not a bad thing.” Less on-site inventory can help companies be more flexible, Spangler said, while increasing automation can help reduce production costs. “Really, what we want to do is get them to where they’re only producing what the market needs,” he said. “That’s really when we have utopia.” The work SCMEP has done with organizations such as the S.C. Commerce Department, the S.C. Hospital Association and SCBIO in connecting PPE suppliers to customers has better-positioned the state to respond to future crises, Spangler said. “We have setup now. We have companies identified so that if anything ever happens — hopefully we never have anything like this is the future, but if you do, we can be so much responsive now than at any time ever in the past,” he said “We have that capacity here that we didn’t before.” It’s crucial, Spangler said, for that momentum to continue, even when COVID-19 is no longer driving change. “People say, ‘I don’t want to be in this situation ever again. What can I do to not have this?’ ” he said. “That’s when people really start looking at diversifying and coming up with other alternatives. … We have to be competitive for people to buy. We can’t lose focus. We can’t just go back to what we were and slip back to what we were doing. That would be our fault. We need to keep the thorn in our side and make sure that we’re doing the necessary things where we’re manufacturing more than critical needs in the United States.”

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 9 - 22, 2020

THE NEWEST ADDITION TO THE SC BIZ NEWS FAMILY What’s new on SCBIZtv this week? Check us out on YouTube. With more than 100 archived videos (and counting), you’ll find a wide variety of businessrelated content, including: Virtual awards shows, Power Events, interviews with high-level business executives and several ongoing video series, including Coffee With…, 120 Seconds, Industry Trends and Coping with Covid. Here’s just a taste of what you’ll find on SCBIZtv this week

VIRTUAL AWARDS SHOWS

120 SECONDS

COFFEE WITH…

COPING WITH COVID

From Women of Influence in the Upstate to Forty Under 40 in the Lowcountry to Icons and Phenoms in the Midlands, you’re sure to find executives you know being honored in a variety of ways.

Business executives sharing insight about their business, the industry in which they work and the community in which they live.

CEOs answering as many questions as they can in two minutes. You’ll definitely learn something personal about the executive and get a thoughtful answer on a serious topic to boot.

Explores the impact the Coronavirus is having on our daily lives, both at home and at the office.

This is just a sampling of what you’ll find on SCBIZtv. Check us out on YouTube to find a complete library of archived videos.

November 9 - 22, 2020

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 19

The S.C. Ports Authority is shifting its cargo focus to include more retail as the pandemic has altered consumption habits and delayed the production of the auto parts the state’s manufacturing industry has long been dependent upon. In July, Walmart announced plans to build a $220 million import distribution center near Ridgeville. Approximately 70,000 containers will be imported to South Carolina a year. (Photo/Kim McManus)

Change driving increased value in retail cargo By Teri Errico Griffis

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

he future is retail for the South Carolina Ports Authority. For the past 10 years, the SCPA has been driven by advanced manufacturing, doubling its container volume and jobs almost 1 for 1 from 2009 to 2019 and generating $63.4 million annually throughout the state, an economic impact study found last year. The heavy, advanced manufacturing focus has made the Palmetto State’s ports stand out from others who have had a larger percentage of retail distribution. Yet as the pandemic altered consumption habits and delayed the production of auto parts, S.C. Ports Authority President and CEO Jim Newsome said the time is right to diversify the port’s cargo base and transition into retail. Let’s not forget that Walmart also is building a 3-million-square-foot distribution center in Dorchester County. “We’re an efficient port. We should not underestimate the whole thesis behind what we’ve done in the last 11 years in investing in infrastructure on a timely basis and making sure our port works well…We’re a top 10 port, probably the major top 10 port that didn’t really have a significant retail presence,” Newsome said. With Volvo and Mercedes-Benz Vans

both building or expanding plants in S.C. in the past few years and BMW entering the state in the 1990s, SCPA has become dependent on auto parts, and the automotive industry’s two-month shutdown during the pandemic only magnified the port’s need to transition into retail. Also, BMW, which has invested $10 billion in the state since 1994, likely won’t be significantly expanding anytime in the next decade, he said. Newsome envisions a healthier mix of advanced manufacturing, transloading and retail, which makes sense with advanced manufacturing accounting for only 11% of the U.S. economy’s overall gross domestic product, while consumer spending comprises 70%. “We were dominating in a smaller piece of the overall trade picture, and we needed to diversify if we were going to continue to grow above the market,” Newsome said.

WELCOME TO WALMART

As recently as five years ago, the state still wasn’t terribly interested in retail development, Newsome said. Then in March 2017 talks with Walmart began, culminating in the company’s announcement in July to build a $220 million import distribution center near Ridgeville that anticipates the creation of 1,000 fulltime jobs. “Having this IDC is on magnitude with

having a BMW come here and use our port,” Newsome said. “I don’t think I’m overstating the importance of it.” He added that prior to the spring there already was a shortage of distribution centers to support imports. The pandemic only accelerated the ecommerce trend, as instead of going out, people stayed in and bought products online, he said. On average, Walmart, imports 700,000 containers a year, and approximately 70,000 will be imported here to South Carolina’s ports. The Dorchester County storage and dock facility will take approximately 14 months to build and will supply regional distribution centers that support more than 850 Walmart stores and Sam’s Clubs in and around the state. The supply chain and logistics sectors are going to be a “great story for South Carolina,” Newsome said, and the state’s 15% population boom since 2010 only enhances the state’s attraction, as ecommerce companies want to be closer to where the goods are needed. In the Southern region, South Carolina, along with Alabama, has become a juggernaut for attracting business within the advanced manufacturing industry — even without dependency from Boeing in regard to the aerospace sector’s supply chain. While South Carolina is the ninth-largest U.S. container port, it is the sec-

ond-largest in handling auto parts as a single commodity, Newsome said. Because of its ability to fulfill the high-service demands of the automotive industry, Newsome thinks SCPA could leverage its track record and reputation as an efficient port to enter a new segment. “There are really two types of projects of prominence today,” Newsome said. “One is plastic manufacturing, which is in Texas and Louisiana, and the other is fulfillment centers or ecommerce distribution centers.” Newsome said that when the conversation about introducing retail first began, he thought why not start with one of the biggest retailers in the country and approach Walmart, with whom he had an existing working relationship. The distribution center will provide middle-class jobs where people can work where they live, in addition to other growth opportunities that come from putting South Carolina on the radar. “I think when people realize the extensive vetting that is done by a major retailer in choosing a site for an import distribution center, they’ll see it does get the attention of other retailers and does help to attract ship services to the port,” he said. “I think it all plays together.”

Reach staff writer Teri Errico Griffis at 843849-3144.

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 9 - 22, 2020

People in the News BUSINESS SERVICES

Target your market in an upcoming issue of the Columbia Regional Business Report

NOVEMBER 23

AEROSPACE

List: Statewide Aviation & Aerospace Companies Advertising Deadline: November 9 DECEMBER 7

ARCHITECTURE, ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION (AEC) List: Engineering Companies Advertising Deadline: November 23 DECEMBER 21

BOOK OF LISTS

Advertising Deadline: November 6 JANUARY 18, 2021

2021: THE YEAR AHEAD List: Financial Brokerage Firms Advertising Deadline: January 4

Tom Kokoska has joined Systemtec Inc. as director of finance and accounting search. He has a degree in finance and banking from the University of MisKokoska souri and worked for four years post-graduation as an accountant. Aaron Thomas has been hired as director of information technology search. He has a degree in computer Thomas science and five years as a systems engineer prior to seven years of recruiting and placement experience. Paul Featheringill has joined the South Carolina Small Business Development Centers as director of the University of South Carolina region, which covers 13 counties, eight area centers and Featheringill one satellite location. Featheringill, who will join the North Charleston office, has worked for the Savannah Development and Renewal Authority and as as a business loan officer for the City of Columbia.

EDUCATION Columbia International University chaplaincy professor Mike Langston received the G. William Dando Volunteer Service Award at the Military ChapLangston lains Association national meeting held earlier this month on the CIU campus. Langston, a former U.S. Navy chaplain, was recognized for his volunteer training of South Carolina State Guard chaplains and his leadership as the guard’s deputy commander, holding the rank of brigadier general. He is also a volunteer chaplain for the Richland County Sheriff ’s Department.

ENGINEERING

For advertising information, call Lucia Smith at (803) 726-7547

Anita Hicks has joined the Thomas & Hutton corporate marketing team as a senior marketing coordinator. She attended University of South Carolina

and Georgia Military College. She brings more than 13 years of experience in the architecture, engineering and construction industry.

LAW

Hicks

Haley Saxby has joined Robinson Gray law firm as an associate. Her practice will focus on premises liability, automobile and trucking torts, insurSaxby ance coverage, and products liability. Saxby earned her Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law earlier this year, graduating magna cum laude and finishing in the top five of her class.

NONPROFIT The board of directors at the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science & Mathematics Foundation has four new members: Tom Burns, PhD, senior vice president for Parsons in Aiken; Jason Hong, a 1993 GSSM graduate and professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Human-Computer Interaction Institute; Ernest J. Kapopoulos Jr., site vice president for Duke Energy’s Robinson Nuclear Plant; and Jim Rourke, a member with Nexsen Pruet in Columbia. The Therapy Place board of directors has elected seven new members: Charles Foster, Southeastern Insurance Consultants; Nicole Huffman, Columbia Metropolitan Airport; Melanie Matthews, Modern Exterminating; Marcella Ridley, Winston’s Wish; Liza Robertson, South Carolina Department of Transportation; Whitney Starling, Palmetto Pediatrics; and Amber Watson, Watson Weddings. Richland Library volunteer Mary Louis Anderson Lewis was awarded the Legacy Volunteer Award to Mary Louis Anderson Lewis during a virtual ceremony of the 2020 Governor’s Awards for Volunteerism. For the last 16 years, Lewis has worked to index obituaries found in The State newspaper as well as past obituaries and births published in the Columbia Record newspaper and Black community newspapers. The executive committee for Columbia Opportunity Resource consists of Chase Heatherly, Free Times (chair); See PEOPLE, Page 22

Submit items using our online submission portal: www.SodaCityBizWire.com. Publication is subject to editorial discretion.

At Work

PEOPLE, PLACES AND HAPPENINGS ACROSS THE MIDLANDS

Gold medal, renewed construction boost Columbia Craft spirits By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

is superstitious nature kept Shaun Piggott from hearing the news when it happened. Piggott, head brewer at Columbia Craft Brewing Co., was on his way to dinner with his girlfriend as the Great American Beer Festival awards were being live-streamed last month. A later check of his phone revealed a cascade of messages and led to the realization that one of his creations had won a gold medal at festival, which drew 8,806 entries from 1,720 breweries nationwide. Carolinian took first place in the golden or blonde ale category, giving South Carolina its only medal in the competition and Piggott, a history major in his first job as head brewer after seven years in the craft beer industry, his first GABF win. “It’s still pretty shocking,” Piggott said. “When I found out, I kind of was in disbelief. It was kind of like, of course it would be this year of all years that we have something so great happen in such a weird year. I’m just proud of my team, too. It’s all of us. From grain to glass, it takes everyone. It was fun reaching out to them and breaking the news and everyone being able to have a moment of happiness.” The good news came as the brewery, which opened in 2016 at the corner of Huger and Greene streets, ramps up an expansion slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic but now expected to complete by next March. While the first phase of the expansion begun in February, including a barrel-aging room, stayed on schedule, plans for a 1,200-square-foot rooftop bar and a 500-square-foot covered patio were shelved. “We just put everything on hold because you kind of go into survival mode and make sure you can just get by,” said Andrew Strauss, Columbia Craft co-owner and business development officer. “When the state opened back up and we were allowed 50% (capacity), we’ve had a good three or four months of that. What we’re getting now is probably all we’re going to get until there’s a lift, so we just decided we needed to go ahead and move forward with the build.” The patio is slated to be finished by Jan. 1, while the rooftop bar is on track for a March 1 completion, Strauss said. Not yet allowed to operate at full capacity because it’s classified as a bar, Columbia Craft is doing 70% to 75% of its normal business in its taproom, Strauss said. After focusing on rolling out can production and keeping staff on payroll when the

Columbia Craft’s Carolinian took first place in the golden or blonde ale category at the Great American Beer Festival last month. (Photo/Melinda Waldrop)

The first phase of a Columbia Craft expansion allowed for a larger barrel-aging room. Other construction, including a rooftop bar, is ramping back up after a pandemic-related delay. (Photo/Melinda Waldrop)

Columbia Craft head brewer Shaun Piggott surveys the brewery’s production room. Piggott, who has been with Columbia Craft since it opened in 2016 and in the craft beer industry for seven years, won his first Great American Beer Festival medal with Carolinian Blonde Ale, which took gold. (Photo/Melinda Waldrop)

state shut down in March, Strauss is happy to be at that point now. “I’m thankful for what we do have,” he said. “I know a lot of places probably would be doing backflips if they had this.” The timing of the GABF award served as a pick-me-up for the brewery, which will soon have its wares available for sampling in larger swaths of the state. Columbia Craft will start distribution in Charleston next February, Strauss said, with a bit of buzz behind it. “Going into those new markets, it is nice to have a medal,” Strauss said. Piggott, who came to Columbia Craft from Tampa, Fla., as the S.C. brewery was being constructed, said Carolinian is one

of his most useful brews in addition to now being the most recognized. While it was not an original core beer like Columbia Craft’s lager or Famously Hop IPA, it has proved to be quite versatile. “Our blonde ale uses the same yeast as our IPA. It’s not dry-hopped or anything, so it’s good for harvesting yeast to reuse in our other beers,” Piggott said. “It’s superclean and gives us a really good density and viability so it saves us a lot of money with other beers. It was a nice, clean beer we could produce that’s kind of an all-year drinking beer.” Piggott began to realize the beer’s potential when Carolinian took home a gold medal in the golden or blonde ale

category from the S.C. Brewers Association in 2019. “It was literally the first batch of it we did,” he said. “We like, ‘Oh, maybe we’re on to something with this.’ ” Now that it’s joined Columbia Craft Lager, Famously Hop and Alien Hat, a watermelon sour ale, in widespread distribution, Carolinian is primed to bask in its own flagship status. Piggott said Columbia Craft is also planning to distribute its Hazy IPA in kegs soon as the brewery continues to find ways to move product during the pandemic. “This year, obviously it sucks for everyone. It’s been terrible,” he said. “But this was kind of the year where we were looking to make a big leap, especially with our patio expansion and the second-floor bar, and all of that obviously got put on hold. But we’re still selling plenty of beer, so it could have been worse.” Now, Piggott has a shiny new trinket to serve as ongoing inspiration. “It’s been cool to take something that you kind of helped build and then see it get to this point and potentially go even further,” Piggott said. “I feel like it hasn’t really sunk in. It’s awesome but also kind of weird at the same time. Surreal. This whole year has been surreal.” Columbia Craft is planning a scaleddown anniversary celebration on Dec. 5 as 2020 winds down with regular COVID testing for employees continuing and optimism for the future persisting. “We’re still testing our employees every two weeks. We’re trying to do everything we can to keep them safe and keep the machine running,” Strauss said. “We’ve been fortunate it hasn’t hit us too hard. Our employees have been very disciplined. “We’ll see what the extra space does. I really think we can get back to where we were pre-COVID, at least in the tap room. … If we could just get more space, I think we’ll be fine.” Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 9 - 22, 2020

S.C. auto industry: How to be smart about smart manufacturing By Molly Hulsey

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

here is only so much “kaizen” — the Japanese term for continuous improvement — that can take place without implementing what has become known Manufacturing 4.0 technologies, according to Antonio Vaz, director of production engineering at JTEKT North America. Manufacturing 4.0 technologies, the harbinger of the “fourth industrial revolution,” include increased automation, artificial intelligence, predictive maintenance and augmented reality, just to name a few. “Our main focus has been on eliminating a lot of the waste,” Vaz said during his keynote speech at the S.C. Manufacturing Conference, adding that automation isn’t used to replace the human workforce on the factory floor but to make the most of human skills machines can’t emulate, for example, interpersonal collaboration and creative problem solving. While JTEKT’s Japanese locations have been much more enthusiastic in adopting completely automated manufacturing practices due to a quickly shrinking labor pool, North American 4.0 innovation tends to center around tools used to help human technicians perfect and streamline their work, Vaz said. Still, the adoption rate of these technologies is a still “pretty slow,” he said, as it takes time to determine which new technologies actually help propel a company’s business model forward and which are just a glossy (and expensive) gadgets. “It’s not about technology, it’s about people,” he said. “It’s about process — then it’s about technology. If we don’t address these three, it’s not going to be successful.” One of the practices that JTEKT has seen to be advantageous so far is the adoption of automatic guided vehicles

A JTEKT representative mans booth at the 2020 S.C. Automotive Summit earlier this year. JTEKT’s North American locations have been adapting automated manufacturing practices designed to help human technicians perfect and streamline their work. (Photo/John Carlos)

used to transport materials from place to place around plants. It first began with vehicles programmed to move in straight lines, but now, AGVs implanted with GPS can maneuver throughout a manufacturing campus on its own. The use of ever-evolving AGVs also aids Volvo in its goal to use 4.0 technologies to “redirect manpower away from processes that pose safety or ergonomic risks,” according to Kevin Graham, director of plant engineering at the Lowcountry’s Volvo plant. Not only are the risks of an employee injuring him or herself while maneuvering a heavy cart of fixtures mitigated with the use of AGVs, this automated system also helps make the most of an already stretched manufacturing labor force. Other 4.0 technologies employed by Volvo include the use of an iPhone program used to carry out the visual inspection of products with a 98% confidence level. The program notifies shift managers with text messages if a product appears to

be faulty, including soft-set conditions that can’t be detected by the human eye, Graham said. “In the automotive world, this could mean the difference between a car proceeding straight and ready for shipping or several hours troubleshooting or repairing,” he said. Augmented reality has also been installed as a key feature of employee training, while artificial intelligence will soon become a future component of Volvo’s preliminary hiring and candidate vetting process. While the creation of the iPhone inspection program was outsourced to an international technology firm, Volvo’s Smart Manufacturing and Innovation Team and Silicon Valley-based research and development team expect the next step will be the internal development and design of automated guided vehicles, predictive analytics, additive manufacturing and other 4.0 innovations. “We believe we can create greater synergy in integrating exactly what a process requires: nothing more and nothing

ism); Ashley Jenkins, City of Columbia (diversity and inclusion); Charlotte Knoop, LTC Health Solutions (Table for Six); newcomer Heather McDonald, LawyerLisa (Time for Art); and Meg Southern, Garvin Design Group (communications). Other board members are David Bornemann, Goodman McGuffey; Ben Culbreth, Alzheimer’s Association; Lindsay Medlin, Bauknight Pietras & Stormer; Lindsey Miles, Nephron Pharmaceuticals; Shayla Riley, Coldwell Banker; Andrew Saleeby, Nexsen Pruet; and newcomers Jared Clary, Splash Omnimedia; Lauren Fleming, Columbia College; Khali

Gallman, Soda City Certified App; Lee Goble, Central Carolina Community Foundation; Tanvi Patel, United Way of the Midlands; and Aditi Srivastav, PhD, Children’s Trust of South Carolina.

less — and at a much lower cost,” he said, adding that internal smart manufacturing development simply contributes to a “lean way of thinking.” Robert Bosch has long been on the cutting edge of Manufacturing 4.0 technologies through its deployment of intelligent and predictive maintenance solutions and its transition toward an entirely digitized shopfloor management system with real-time data supplied by machine data and an ERP program. This year, Bosch became one of the first main auto suppliers to go C02 neutral due to energy-saving processes that would not be possible without today’s intelligent monitoring systems, according to Kai Woerner, vice president and technical plant manager at Robert Bosch. “Technology is not our limitation at the moment,” he said. “It’s the skill sets of our associates.” Still, Woerner admitted that the adoption of 4.0 technologies must be intentionally married to an overarching business plan to be impactful and effective, something the company is working toward with the creation of an i4.0 and AI implementation and steering committee. Richard Phillips, director of smart manufacturing solutions for Polytron Inc., echoed that companies often make the mistake of adopting 4.0 technologies just for its own sake without first identifying the problems these tools are supposed to solve. “There’s several studies and surveys that 80% of these pilots, in terms of industry 4.0 or smart factories, fail or don’t move forward,” said Phillips. “And they fail or don’t move forward because some of these best business practices aren’t focused — again, the business driver, aligning the stakeholder to make sure it’s successful, making sure they pick the right pilot, making sure the technology is the result of your engineering assessment to determine the best tool.”

People in the News PEOPLE, from Page 20

Ashley Cady, Flock and Rally (vice chair strategic initiatives); A. J. Hernandez, YMCA of Columbia (vice chair operations); Anne Langley, South Carolina Education Lottery (treasurer); Carrie Walker, South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation (secretary); and Briana Batemen, Office of U.S. Senator Tim Scott (immediate past chair and development chair). Committee chairs are Ray Brown, Coldwell Banker (membership); Kelsey Carmichael, Experience Columbia SC (talent retention); Jack Garrick, Career Concepts (volunteer-

Together SC, the state’s network of nonprofit organizations and their allies, has four new board members, elected by its member organizations: Nicole Echols, executive director of the Pee Dee Branch of Harvest Hope Food Bank in Florence; John Hart III, executive director of Good Samaritan Medical Clinic, in Chester; Amanda Lawrence, vice president for Community Impact

at Trident United Way serving Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkley counties; and Ann Warner, chief executive officer of Women’s Rights & Empowerment Network (WREN), in Columbia. New board officers are Monroe Free, president of Habitat for Humanity of Greenville County (chair); Sherrie Snipes-Williams, head of Charleston Promise Neighborhood (vice chair); Nate Barber, senior vice president of Community Development for South State Bank (treasurer); and Melanie Huggins, executive director of Richland County Public Library (immediate past chair).

Viewpoint

VIEWS, PERSPECTIVES AND READERS’ LETTERS

Manufacturing can be ticket to rural prosperity A s a White House Proclamation stated last month, “On National Manufacturing Day, we celebrate our dedicated American workers who carry on this legacy, recognizing that manufacturing is a cornerstone of our economic prosperity and national security.” Manufacturing businesses are essential contributors to our NORDBERG economic health and wellbeing, infusing $2.38 trillion annually into the national economy. Manufacturing is especially important in rural America, where manufacturing plants and busiGREENE nesses can thrive due to generally lower property taxes, more reasonable land prices, and a unique quality of life. During a time when the coronavirus pandemic has created many challenges, rural economies are looking for new industry options, expanded manufacturing, and enhanced exporting avenues. New policies implemented by President Trump’s Administration combined with U.S. Small Business Administration resources may provide rural America a boost for what it needs to regain revenues and support communities. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, rural communities experienced an economic surge as manufacturing increased, creating new jobs and attracting top talent. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement signed into law earlier this year further bolstered their ability to export across North America. Throughout the negotiations, SBA had a seat at the table, giving small businesses an amplified voice in crafting the policy that will drive continental trade for decades to come. With manufacturing infusing new life into rural areas, streamlined export processes and SBA’s program resources, rural small businesses may now more easily act on their exporting goals. SBA has made a concerted effort to increase

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trade opportunities, ensuring small businesses access to international markets and the vitality of American manufacturing exports. Created intentionally to assist small business exporters, SBA’s Office of International Trade offers financial assistance to businesses looking to expand trade opportunities. Through a suite of finance programs, including revolving lines of credit and loans that can be used for working capital, fixed assets, and debt refinancing, these programs are geared toward helping businesses increase their profits, reduce market dependence, and stabilize seasonal sales. Small businesses looking to export can apply for these products by contacting a local SBA Export Finance Manager. The State Trade Expansion Program is another way the SBA assists small businesses. Through STEP, small businesses looking to export goods and products can use the grant funds to participate in foreign trade missions, develop and design international marketing campaigns, translate marketing materials into other languages, and more. Since its creation in 2010 as part of the Small Business Jobs Act, STEP has recorded more than $3.8 billion in exports and awarded approximately

$157 million in grants to fund export opportunities, increasing the footprint of American small businesses in countries worldwide. Furthermore, the SBA’s Office of International Trade can help any small business that faces barriers in accessing international markets. The office publicizes the small business benefits of U.S. trade agreements and helps protect the rights of small businesses under these agreements. Small business manufacturers and other rural businesses looking for information and assistance on how to connect with more international customers can explore resources from SBA OIT and its partners at sba.gov/tradetools. The SBA has worked diligently to direct financial support to manufacturing businesses critical to rural America throughout the COVID-19 pandemic response. Through the Paycheck Protection Program, manufacturing businesses received $54 billion, assisting more than 238,000 small businesses and retaining countless jobs. The impact of this aid was clear in September’s jobs report, which reported growth of 66,000 manufacturing jobs. The industry is bouncing back and driving job creation. With 95% of the world’s consumers

living outside our borders, American products have more potential than ever before when businesses venture into international markets. Now is the time for community leaders to further invest in manufacturing and small businesses to tap into the exporting resources to grow hometown businesses and communities. To talk with someone about your exporting potential or manufacturing idea, visit sba.gov/oit, or to find more resources available for small businesses in rural America, visit sba.gov/rural. Dan Nordberg serves as SBA’s National Director for Rural Affairs and Region 8 Administrator based in Denver. He oversees the agency’s programs and services in Colorado, Montana, Utah, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming. Loretta Solon Greene is the Associate Administrator for the SBA’s Office of International Trade. She works to increase the number of small business exporters as well as the volume of exports by American small businesses.

We want to hear from you Write: Melinda Waldrop, Editor Columbia Regional Business Report, 1612 Marion St., Suite 301 Columbia, SC 29201 Email: mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 9 - 22, 2020

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