INTRODUCING THE MANUFACTURING SOLUTIONS CENTER II

The MSC II, located in Conover, NC, is making space for the up-and-coming manufacturers of Catawba County.

“The central mission of the Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC) has always been to support US manufacturers and to help create and retain US manufacturing jobs,” says Jeff Neuville, Director of the Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC) at CVCC and longtime community partner.

From its first purpose as the Hosiery Technology Center in 1990, to its latest brick and-mortar location at the Conover Station, the Manufacturing Solutions Center has continued to fulfill this purpose. Although the original center was built to support hosiery textiles, it currently serves as the home base for many different manufacturing services— offering product testing and development, business incubation, company training, and other special services.

Through the years, the Manufacturing Solutions Center has developed a national reputation which has led many companies and their employees to move to Catawba County, NC, where they could create new jobs and receive expert industry advice within the MSC walls.

In recent years, four companies begun operations at the MSC—Clothing 2.0, InnovaKnits, YoU Apparel, and Evolved by Nature. Each business owner started their company (or a branch of their company) from various states to Catawba County, NC, just so they could innovate and grow in the Manufacturing Solutions Center. from the MSC’s existence.

They all took part in the MSC’s incubator program. Shortly, however, they ran into a dilemma: each company was growing so fast and running so well, they ran out of workspace at the MSC I.

That’s where the City of Conover and other founding partners stepped in with a major plan to build the new MSC II and complete stunning renovations to the long-established MSC I.

In March 2023, Catawba Valley Community College and the City of Conover proudly celebrated the public opening of the MSC II during a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The new MSC II is a 75,000-square foot facility which includes a $3 million, 45,000-square foot private sector-funded factory floorspace by Ingram Walters and his investment group Whiskbroom. As a spacious, innovative environment, the MSC II welcomed the incubator clients who graduated from the general Manufacturing Solutions Center programs and are looking for transformative growth in the near future. The facility’s conference areas are convenient spaces to hold networking events and meet with clients.

Additionally, MSC I renovations included a larger lab space and a personal protective equipment (PPE) testing and product development space.

Every incubator company moved their company (or a branch of a company) to the MSC II. As an incubator graduate, these companies can benefit from a professional manufacturing space so that their employees can have a safe place to work, build, and create.

The grand opening is a testament to the ways CVCC makes a large impact on a personal level, as many residents have benefitted from the MSC’s existence. According to Jeff Neuville, MSC clients have created or retained 250 jobs since 2019. The MSC has 973 unique customers and clients across North Carolina and attract 3,231 unique clients representing all 50 states across the country.

“The Manufacturing Solutions Center is such a huge asset, not only for Conover but also Catawba County, Western North Carolina... even beyond the state of North Carolina,” says Neuville. “We have a staff of dedicated people here, who are problem-solvers. Manufacturers or entrepreneurs come to us looking for answers, and we’ve got lab technicians and product engineers to assist them with that. We help them bring ideas into the marketplace.”

WHAT DO OUR CUSTOMERS HAVE TO SAY?

InnovaKnits: “As a textile-centric company, co-located at an incubator where they are textile-centric people, it’s just a perfect mesh...they are able to provide not just advice, but also insight, connections, supply chain solutions... all of the knowledge that (the MSC) has been able to impart to us has saved us so much time.” — Jason Wilkins, Founding Partner of InnovaKnits

YoU Apparel: “We produce medical compression products and create Made in America products, and we needed help from the MSC to get it off the ground. We started small with one machine, and we have 25 today. We went from Step 1, getting started, to Step 2, manufacturing, and Step 3 is our future growth.”

— Mark Bess, YoU Apparel