Columbia Regional Business Report - November 22, 2021

VOLUME 14 NUMBER 17 ■ COLUMBIABUSINESSREPORT.COM

Part of the

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NOVEMBER 22-DECEMBER 5, 2021 ■ $2.25

IGNITING INTEREST Richland County seeking ways

European flair

Belgium aims to build on growing S.C. trade presence.

Page 3

to attract manufacturers

High water mark

Fiscal year 2022 off to record start for SC Ports Authority.

Page 4

Icon remembered Colleagues laud legacy of Sen. Hugh Leatherman.

Page 6

Illustration/File

Power List

SC Biz News ranks state’s most influential architects.

Page 26

INSIDE

Upfront................................. 2 SC Biz News Briefs................. 3 In Focus: Manufacturing.... 36 List: Manufacturers.............39 Bonus List: Largest Employers.40 At Work.............................. 45 Viewpoint............................47

By Christina Lee Knauss

T

Contributing Writer

he sprawling new Mark Anthony Brewing facility off Shop Road in Columbia represents what area leaders would like to see more of in Richland County – an influx of major manufacturers that will help the area catch up with other regions in the state that have become major manufacturing hubs.

The Mark Anthony project, located on 200 acres in the Pineview Industrial Park, is the second-largest development deal ever for

Richland County, bringing a $400 million investment to the area and 300 jobs. Chicago-based Mark Anthony’s new facility will help the company respond to an exploding national market for its hard seltzer products.

The Shop Road location will brew White Claw, Mark’s Hard Lemonade and Cayman Jack cocktails.

Mark Anthony came to the area as a result of aggressive promotion from both Richland County and the city of Columbia, as well as buy-in from local utilities such as Dominion Energy and the city’s water utility, which

Women of Influence

Meet the 22 leaders who are leaving their mark on the Midlands business scene and on their communities.

Page 13

offered bulk water and sewer rates that offer per-gallon discounts for large users. Mark Anthony, which will need 3 million gallons a day for its operations, will be the city’s largest water consumer.

Area economic development leaders say more of the same will be needed to continue to attract large manufacturing projects to an area that in the past 30 years has seen other large manufacturers like Michelin, BMW, Boeing and Volvo look to the Upstate and the See MANUFACTURING, Page 37

Upfront

BRIEFS | FACTS | STATEWIDE NEWS

A LA CARTE

W

hile Charleston gets all the accolades for being one of the nicest places on Earth, we know that the entire region contributes to that sentiment. Few tourists and visitors can differentiate whether they’re in Mount Pleasant, Charleston, North Charleston or parts in between when they come to visit our region of the South. They think it’s all

Photo/Provided

Where are the rudest drivers in SC? Cities with rudest drivers in the Southeast

Charleston.

To maintain our top position of politeness, it’s important that we help tourists who stop in the middle of the street or pull in front of us on the corner of King and Calhoun to ask for directions or recommendations for “a good place to eat.”

We understand those things are going to happen and are happy to do our part to fill our hospitality quota. That’s why we were quite surprised when a list of the rudest drivers in America showed that East Cooper was the worst in South Carolina.

The data comes from insurance comparison portal Insurify.com, which used records of 4 million drivers to consider instances of tailgating, street racing, hit-and-runs and failing to yield, stop and back up properly.

Not to quibble with data, perhaps it’s also noteworthy that South Carolina is not even close to having the rudest drivers in the U.S.

State

City

Cited for rudeness

Georgia

Hampton

62.35 per 1,000

Virginia

Petersburg

53.36 per 1,000

Florida

Winter Park

45.66 per 1,000

South Carolina

Mount Pleasant

31.55 per 1,000

Tennessee

Lebanon

29.41 per 1,000

to begin operations, but the company

Kentucky

Frankfort

27.64 per 1,000

already landed a contract to build more

North Carolina

Asheville

26.94 per 1,000

Alabama

Phenix City

24.48 per 1,000

Mississippi

Southaven

19.13 per 1,000

Louisiana

Metairie

17.94 per 1,000

County development.

Savannah Lakes Village is a private lakefront community off Lake Thurmond developed by the SLV Windfall Group.

Impresa in this development to bring much needed product to market,” Jim

State

Cited for rudeness

Virginia

43.26 per 1,000

Delaware

41.25 per 1,000

The community features two cham-

Idaho

39.97 per 1,000

pionship golf courses, four restaurants,

Georgia

39.53 per 1,000

a 23,000-square-foot recreation center,

Wyoming

38.53 per 1,000

and other amenities.

Ohio

37.67 per 1,000

Wisconsin

35.29 per 1,000

Nebraska

35.14 per 1,000

Iowa

34.80 per 1,000

Alaska

33.53 per 1,000

Source: Insurify.com

REPORT

than 100 homes a year for a McCormick

“We are thankful to be partnering with

States with the rudest drivers in America

HEARD IN THE

Greenwood’s Impresa Modular has yet

Walsh, CEO of SLV Windfall Group, said in a news release.

The first model is expected in the first quarter of 2022 after the manufacturer’s January launch, according to the release.

Components built offsite in Impresa’s 240,000-square-foot production facility are expected to reduce construction de-

“Students need to be aware that many of these jobs we are talking about are high-paying jobs, with salaries in the mid-70s, which is much higher than the average salary in South Carolina.”

lays due in part to the limited sub-contractor workforce in the region and to reduce the amount of construction time from site preparation to final certificate of occupancy, according to the release.

— Lou Kennedy, Nephron owner and CEO

WEBSITE: www.ColumbiaBusinessReport.com

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www.columbiabusinessreport.com 3

SC Biz News Briefs UPSTATE

GSA Business Report

An exhibit in London’s Tate Modern art museum uses technology from Greenville-based and Belgian-owned Pozyx to interact with viewers. Belgium is S.C.’s fifth-largest export partner. (Photo/Provided)

Belgium looking to build on growing trade presence in South Carolina While almost all of South Carolina’s trading partners saw a dip in S.C. exports in 2020, those containers headed to Belgium — the fifth-largest export partner based on value — were still going strong.

The European nation received about $1.4 billion in goods from the Palmetto State in 2020, according to data from the U.S. International Trade Database. A few years ago, Belgium surpassed the United Kingdom as an S.C. import partner and trails only Germany, Canada, China and Mexico.

And now, Yves Ghys, the newly appointed Belgian Chamber ambassador to the Southeast and head of Greenville’s Pozyx, says the pandemic has brought even more active interest from Belgian companies looking to do business in the state.

Ghys said he and the chamber team have already launched negotiations with several Belgian companies planning to announce a new presence this year.

These new arrivals will join some of the largest employers in the region that happen to be Belgian-owned: AGFA Healthcare Corp., Solvay Carbon Fibers and Composite Materials and TVH Parts Co., according to Commerce Department data.

“We are trying to build a solid base for a Greenville technology hub,” Ghys said. “And even more, a Belgian technology hub. We are currently talking at all levels, including the Pozyx board members and investors, since they have stakes and investments in several Belgian companies that are planning to come to the U.S. in the near future.”

Ghys, whose global positioning company moved to the Upstate to be near its partner company, Gemba Systems, sees added value in having companies with the same investors close by.

“Think about it: With the creation of such a technology hub, specific functions like HR or finance could even be shared,” he said.

Belgian companies are seeking out U.S. homes beyond previous forerunners like New York and Chicago. “We also looked at New York first, but I came to the conclusion that for a company like Pozyx it was too expensive and did not provide the kind of visibility we were looking for,” Ghys said.

With publications in the Upstate, Columbia and Charleston, as well as a statewide magazine, SC Biz News covers the pulse of business across South Carolina.

Above are excerpts from our other publications.

Local business news updates... as they happen!

@CRBR Follow us on Twitter for the inside scoop on local business news.

Follow @CRBR on twitter to get breaking news and information on businesses in the Midlands.

CHERYL BENNETT Owner Audacy Preschool

VOLUME 24 NUMBER 22 ■ GSABUSINESS.COM

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NOVEMBER 15 - NOVEMBER 28, 2021 ■ $2.25

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BMW eliminates touch screens due to semi-conductor shortage Employees protest mandate Workers walk off job in displeasure over vaccine requirement.

Page 6

County derails Greer plans

By Molly Hulsey

T

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

he U.S. Commerce Department expected players from across the semiconductor supply chain to put in a word on data gaps and bottle necks by Nov. 8.

The jury is still out on how responsive international suppliers were and what could be gleaned from the feed-

back, but it appears the chip chain is still on the fritz.

“It’s time to get more aggressive,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in a statement last month. “Fundamentally the solution is that we need to make more chips, and we need to make more chips in America, which is why the House See BMW, Page 12

By Teri Errico Griffis

Dangerous drones

Manufacturing showtime

The S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo was just getting underway as this edition of GSA Business Report went to press. For updated conference coverage, go our website, GSAbusiness.com.

Hartness Development’s Crescent Startup Community has been in the works since Furman’s Anthony Herrera broached the idea with site developer Sean Hartness in 2018. (Rendering/Provided)

Builders, designers and developers submit some of their best.

Page 25

Company receives a $6.7million contract to train troops on drone threats.

Page 13

Y

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

ears ago, when Micah Mallace walked through a warehouse at holiday time, he watched as container after container arrived filled with hover boards — a popular self-balancing scooter that burst onto the scene that holiday.

Retailers were preparing for an inundation

Officer Thomas Wallace surveys the waters from the Harbor Patrol boat. (Photo/Alexandria Ng)

Two 3.8-million-lb. cranes arrive at Wando Welch Terminal from Shanghai.

Page 10

A Clemson University alumnus returns to S.C. to become the new SCBIO CEO. Page 11

Triple sale

S.C. SCHOOLS USHER IN NEW INNOVATION CENTERS

By Molly Hulsey

F

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

urman University’s Anthony Herrera said he doesn’t want to be cliché, but he believes we’re headed into a new world order.

“The pandemic accelerated what was happening, but what it’s done is in a way is it’s torn down all the walls, all the barriers, all the zoning lines globally for innovation and entrepreneurship,” he told SC Biz News. “Meaning, we

For advertising information, contact Lucia Smith at (803) 726-7547 or lsmith@scbiznews.com

can recruit the headquarters for a company here in Greenville, yet never get any of the talent, because their talent could be all over the world. Or we could recruit all of the remote workers and never get the headquarters.”

On one hand, it’s a catch-22 for economic development. But he also sees it as an opportunity to try something new to keep both startups and their employees in the state.

Planting Greenville’s Fertile Crescent

When Herrera arrived to head Furman’s

Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship in 2018, he said the main focus had been on undergraduate ventures.

“We didn’t have a platform or resources on campus, and we certainly were not contributing into this space off campus,” he said.

Now, in 2021, 60% to 70% of high school students want to study or be exposed to innovation and entrepreneurship opportunities while in college, he said.

See INNOVATION, Page 13

The Power of Architecture

GSA Business Report names the state’s most influential architects.

Page 15

GSABusinessReport.com

A real estate company swoops up three King Street properties for $5.1 million.

Page 8

INSIDE

Upfront ................................ 2 SC Biz News Briefs ................ 3 Small Business Spotlight ....... 4 In Focus: Defense and Homeland Security............. 13 List: Defense Contractors ... 16 At Work ..............................27 Viewpoint ...........................29 Day in the Life ..................... 31

shipped to their doors in brown, carboard boxes.

But it seems shopping habits also have accelerated the sector of furniture and home furnishings as the fastest-growing commodity in Charleston and the country.

Year-over year, the U.S. has experienced a 50% increase in furniture imports, with See FURNITURE, Page 7

Paint supply drying up under pandemic push

By Alexandria Ng

W

Home sweet home

Next Hartness project to create place for entrepreneurs to gather.

Page 31

INSIDE

NOVEMBER 15 - 28, 2021 ■ $2.25

network

of orders.

“What predicts the next explosive thing, I think, 100% is our buying habits. We’re a consumption-driven economy,” the senior vice president of marketing and sales for the S.C. Ports Authority said.

For much of the pandemic, retail goods have been on the rise as consumers, hesitant of traveling and venturing out of the house, shopped online for a flow of tangible items

China to Chas.

Innovative crescent

Leading Off .......................... 2 SC Biz News Briefs ................ 3 C-Suite ................................ 4 In Focus: Architecture, Engineering & Construction.. 31 LIST: Heating & AC Firms ....33 At Work ............................. 36 Viewpoint ...........................39

Part of the

Capacity drives flow of furniture to Charleston

Elected officials disagree on proper use of FILOT plans.

Page 10

Upstate Under Construction

PAGE 4 VOLUME 27 NUMBER 23 ■ CHARLESTONBUSINESS.COM

CRUISE CONTROL

The North Charleston Police Department Harbor Patrol oversees a wide range of duties to ensure the safety of all things associated with Charleston’s waters.

Page 31

ang@scbiznews.com

hen the pandemic quarantine period kept millions of people looking at the interior of their homes, renovations around the house that would normally be placed on the back burner finally had their moment in the sun.

More than a year later, renovations remain strong as lingering effects of the pandemic have popularized the work-from-home model, in addition to other reasons as to why Americans may find themselves with more time and funds to allocate to home-office upgrades.

Across the country, paint suppliers are struggling to keep up with increased demand as products fly off the shelves with more customers taking on residential and commercial projects, and South Carolina is not the exception.

Jimmy Brooks is the owner of the 360 Painting Columbia franchise, part of a national brand with 133 locations across 40 states and D.C. For Brooks, a customer placing an order could mean a slew of follow-up phone calls to other stores to see if they have the specific paint in inventory.

See PAINT, Page 9

Architecture Power List

The most influential architects and design professionals in South Carolina.

Page 17

CharlestonBusiness.com

SCBIZmag.com

4

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

MIDLANDS NEWSROOM Editor - Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbiznews.com • 803.726.7542 MIDLANDS ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Senior Account Executive - Lucia Smith lsmith@scbiznews.com • 803.726.7547 MultiMedia Advertising Executive - Amanda Alford aalford@bridgetowermedia.com • 803.726.7540 LOWCOUNTRY NEWSROOM Executive Editor - Andy Owens aowens@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3142 Editor, Custom Publishing Division Steve McDaniel smcdaniel@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3123 News Editor - Alexandria Ng ang@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3124 Research Specialist - Paige Wills pwills@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3125 Staff Writer - Teri Errico Griffis tgriffis@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3144 Web Editor - Rob Lyle rlyle@scbiznews.com.com • 843.849.3119 UPSTATE NEWSROOM Editor - Ross Norton rnorton@scbiznews.com • 864.720.1222 Associate Editor, Custom Publishing Division Jim Tatum jtatum@scbiznews.com • 864.720.2269 Staff Writer - Molly Hulsey mhulsey@scbiznews.com • 864.720.1223

South Carolina’s Media Engine for Economic Growth Group Publisher - Rick Jenkins rjenkins@scbiznews.com • 864.720.1224 Director of Advertising - Robert Reilly rreilly@scbiznews.com • 843.849.3107

The S.C. Ports Authority closed out September with record numbers for both container and import volume. The SCPA’s record first quarter for fiscal year 2022 includes more retail and home goods handled by the Port of Charleston than ever before, according to Jim Newsome, the agency’s president and CEO. (Photo/Kim McManus)

SC Ports notches another record September

By Teri Errico Griffis tgriffis@scbiznews.com

The S.C. Ports Authority closed out the month with another record September for both container and import volume.

“S.C. Ports kicks off fiscal year 2022 with a record first quarter. The Port of Charleston is handling more retail goods, home goods, furniture, appliances and electronics than ever before,” SC Ports President and CEO Jim Newsome said.

The SCPA saw a 5% year-over-year increase in 20-foot equivalent units, moving 205,008 TEUs at Wando Welch Terminal, North Charleston Terminal and Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal. Combined, SCPA has handled 684,517 TEUs at its container terminals fiscal-year-todate which is a growth of nearly 18% from the same time a year ago.

September also saw a 9% increase in import volumes over year-over-year, with the SCPA handling 98,208 TEUs of loaded imports. The Port of Charleston also han-

“While the global supply chain remains under tremendous pressure, SC Ports is fortunate to have invested in the right port infrastructure at the right time.”

Jim Newsome SC Ports president and CEO

dled 61,705 TEUs of loaded exports during the same month, up 2% year-over-year.

For pier containers, which account for boxes of any size, the S.C. Ports Authority handled 113,486 during the month of September, and 381,373 pier containers fiscal-year-to-date.

“While the global supply chain remains under tremendous pressure, SC

Ports is fortunate to have invested in the right port infrastructure at the right time,” Newsome said. “We have the cargo capacity, berth availability and terminal fluidity that retailers need to quickly move their cargo as we head into the peak season.”

Fiscal year-to-date, the SCPA has handled 62,840 vehicles across the docks of Columbus Street Terminal, with 21,346 being handled in September alone.

Adding to the historic month, Inland Port Greer reported a record 13,064 rail moves for the month, while Inland Port Dillon handled 2,133 rail moves.

“As the slowdown in cargo velocity is felt throughout the global supply chain, S.C. Ports remains focused on providing customized solutions and efficient operations to keep freight moving,” Newsome said. “By investing more than $2 billion in port infrastructure in recent years, we have the capacity to handle the influx of imports we are seeing today.”

Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

Leatherman remembered by business colleagues

By Teri Errico Griffs

S

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

en. Hugh Leatherman, a business owner and South Carolina’s oldest-serving lawmaker, died Nov. 12 at the age of 90.

For decades, Leatherman has been a forceful proponent for the state’s economy, playing key roles in the advancement of the aerospace and logistics industries.

The Republican, who lived in Florence and served both Florence and Darlington counties, was considered to be one of the most influential financial, political leaders in the state, credited with facilitating large economic development deals such as Boeing Co. coming to South Carolina.

His name was synonymous with business, S.C. Commerce Department Secretary Harry M. Lightsey III said in a statement.

“In working with him over 20 years, his leadership and commitment to improving the quality of life for all South Carolinians never faltered,” Lightsey said.

“While we are saddened to lose such a strong economic development proponent, businessman and statesman, the impact of his vision will carry forward.”

Leatherman was one of the longest-serving members of the South Carolina Senate, serving since his election on Jan. 4, 1981, until the day he died. Leatherman was first elected as a Democrat in the 1980s, changing party affiliations in the 1990s. He also ran unsuccessfully for governor.

Shane Massey, majority leader for the S.C. Senate Republican Caucus, shared his condolences with the Leatherman’s wife Jean and the rest of the family.

“With four decades of service in the South Carolina Senate, Sen. Leatherman — better known to many as Mr. Chairman — will have a long legacy marked in every corner of the state and mirrored through the Senate chambers for decades to come,” Massey said in a statement. “His

“South Carolina is a better place because of Hugh Leatherman, and we thank him for his many years of public service.”

Bobby Hitt Former S.C. Commerce Secretary

Sen. Hugh Leatherman, who died Nov. 12 at age 90, attended the opening of the Leatherman Terminal earlier this year. Leatherman was joined by members of his family at the April opening, one of his last public appearances. (Photo/Kim McManus)

warm smile, commitment to the community, never-stop work ethic and resolute focus will forever be remembered.”

Leatherman was remembered during the Women in Manufacturing panel discussion Nov. 12 at the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo in Greenville.

Attendees shared a moment of silence in his honor.

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster said Leatherman was a “powerful force for the progress and prosperity of our people.”

“For over 50 years, Hugh Leatherman poured his life into our state and we are the better for it,” McMaster said in a statement. “He loved his work and kept his word. He never quit. We will miss him.”

As part of Leatherman’s role controlling the state budget, one of his biggest accomplishments was securing $300 million in state funding for the Charleston Harbor Deepening Project. Started in 2011, the project is set to conclude next spring, making Charleston the deepest harbor on the East Coast.

Another of his key achievements was

negotiating the deal that brought Boeing to North Charleston in 2009, which then-Commerce Secretary Bobby Hitt called the senator’s “crowning achievement.”

Hitt said that South Carolina had lost one of its economic champions with Leatherman’s death.

“Sen. Leatherman’s leadership, passion for progress and business acumen will leave a lasting legacy across the state,” Hitt said in a statement. “South Carolina is a better place because of Senator Leatherman, and we thank him for his many years of public service.”

Leatherman’s economic development legacy also will be remembered by SCPA terminal named in his honor.

Leatherman was a powerful proponent for building a new terminal at the Port of Charleston and a driving force for securing support and funding.

On April 12, the day the Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal opened, SCPA President and CEO Jim Newsome said the project could not have been more

aptly named.

“We wouldn’t be here today, we wouldn’t be doing this today, if it wasn’t for you. It’s as simple as that,” Newsome said as Leatherman christened the terminal.

The event was one of the last public appearances Leatherman made at the port, with wife Jean, daughter Amy and granddaughter Lula by his side.

Condolences poured in for Leatherman’s family throughout the weekend following his death.

S.C. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bob Morgan expressed his gratitude for Leatherman’s service.

“From bolstering the port, to bringing major companies to our state and the thousands of jobs that came with them, Sen. Leatherman understood what it would take to help our state grow and thrive, and he dedicated his life to making it happen,” Morgan said in a statement.

South Carolina Chamber of Commerce Chair Kim Wilkerson and Dan Ellzey, S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce executive director, said the state suffered a significant loss.

“Sen. Leatherman was a giant among men and a leader for not only the Pee Dee but the entire state of South Carolina,” Ellzey said. “The impact of his commitment to making our state a better place will be felt for generations to come.”

Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

Inpatient rehabilitation hospital planned for Irmo

By Melinda Waldrop

E

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

ncompass Health Corp., a health care provider with 145 hospitals nationwide, plans to build a 27-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Irmo.

Encompass offers both facility- and home-based patient care through its network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and home health and hospice agencies. It also has 249 home health and 95 hospice locations in 42 states and Puerto Rico.

The free-standing Irmo location will be at the corner of Evergreen Drive and Shady Lane and will be built with the capacity to expand to 50 beds, according to a news release from the company. Construction is slated to begin in the third quarter of 2022, with the hospital expected to begin providing inpatient rehabilitation services in the fourth quarter of 2023.

“We are excited to expand and grow our rehabilitation services in the Columbia, South Carolina area,” said Linda Wilder, president of Encompass Health’s

South Atlantic region. “Through the new inpatient rehabilitation hospital, we will provide our patients with coordinated and connected care that meets them where they are in their healthcare journeys and makes a positive difference in their lives.”

The hospital will serve patients recovering from illnesses and injuries including strokes and other neurological disorders, brain and spinal cord injuries, amputations and complex orthopedic conditions.

The hospital will offer 24-hour nursing

care as well as physical, occupational and speech therapies.

The facility’s patient rooms will all be private, and it will also feature a therapy gym, cafeteria, pharmacy and therapy courtyard.

Birmingham, Ala.-headquartered Encompass has eight inpatient rehabilitation hospitals in South Carolina, along with three home health locations and one hospice location.

Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 7

State invests $17M in scholarships to address labor shortage

By Teri Errico Griffis

T

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

o address South Carolina’s labor shortages, the state is investing $17 million to provide technical college scholarships to 15,000 adults or high school graduates.

Gov. Henry McMaster, joined by officials from the S.C. Chamber of Commerce, the S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce, the SC Technical College System and others, made the announcement earlier this month, saying the state has to be “proactive in addressing the labor

shortage.”

The $17 million investment will create a Workforce Scholarships for the Future pilot program, and McMaster is calling on the General Assembly to provide another $124 million in American Rescue Plan Act to keep the program running through June 30, 2024.

“This funding will take on the crisis head-on by providing thousands of South Carolinians with the skills needed to thrive in a number of high-demand careers,” McMaster said. “With this investment of $124 million into our most important resource — our people — we can ensure

that South Carolina will have the workforce needed to attract further jobs and investment from companies worldwide.”

Scholarships will cover the cost of tuition and required fees. They may only be used for associate degrees or industry credentials in high-demand careers, including manufacturing, health care, computer science and information technology, transportation distribution and logistics, or construction, the release said.

Providing scholarships to train in instrumental sectors will not only improve the state’s pipeline of skilled workers but will be essential to the state’s continued

success, said Sara Hazzard, president and CEO of the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance. “The success of any manufacturer starts with its workforce, and in this tight labor market, having the right credentials and skills are necessary to fill high-demand occupations,” she said.

Eligible recipients must be employed or complete either 100 hours of voluntary time at a nonprofit or public-service organization or take a financial literacy course offered at the technical college, the release said. Recipients also must maintain a 2.0 grade point average.

The program will go into effect Jan. 1.

Partnership aims to increase minority-owned business apprenticeships

By Melinda Waldrop

A

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

pprenticeship Carolina and the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs have signed an agreement aimed at increasing minority-owned business participation in statewide apprenticeship programs.

“We strive to provide innovative and constructive solutions in support of ethnic minority communities,” Delores

Dacosta, executive director of the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs, said in a news release. “This agreement will help connect minority-owned businesses with the many opportunities available through Apprenticeship Carolina as well as direct them to grants and other funding opportunities to help offset training costs.”

Apprenticeship Carolina, part of the SC Technical College System, promotes registered youth, adult and pre-appren-

ticeships. Since its inception in 2007, participation in internships statewide has grown from 90 organizations to more than 1,150, with the number of apprentices increasing from 777 to nearly 37,000, according to the release.

“Apprenticeship Carolina has worked diligently for more than a decade to expand the use of registered apprenticeship in the state. We are thrilled to partner with the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs to drive further growth

and diversity of programs across South Carolina,” Amy Firestone, vice president for Apprenticeship Carolina, said. “We know that a registered apprenticeship program is an effective and proven workforce development tool. It’s an opportunity to develop talent, enhance quality and build relationships that can benefit both the apprentice and the organization for years to come.”

Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

Revamped neighborhood grant program opens Dec. 1

By Melinda Waldrop

R

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

ichland County’s redesigned neighborhood grant program will begin accepting applications on

Dec. 1.

The Neighborhood Enrichment Grant program, which replaces the Neighborhood Matching Grants, was developed in response to community input. Grants of up to $2,500 will be awarded annually for projects that improve quality of life for all residents within the applicant’s neighborhood.

The revamped program removes the requirement of a monetary match by neighborhoods, according to a news release from the county. It also includes a larger pool of potential projects and separate, incomebased funding for certain neighborhoods.

“We saw a lot of confusion around how the match component of the grant worked,” said Brian Crooks, planning services manager for Richland County.

“By removing the required match to the grant, we feel this opens more opportunities to neighborhood groups wishing to apply. It helps simplify the process and

allows for smoother implementation and planning of projects from the grant.”

Potential applicants are encouraged to attend one of several upcoming training sessions beginning Nov. 17. Twice-daily sessions will take place at the County Administration Building at 2020 Hampton St. on Nov. 17, Dec. 1, Jan. 5 and Jan. 12.

“This new grant program is going to make funding more accessible to neighborhoods in the County,” said Councilwoman Yvonne McBride, who represents District 3.

“We hope these training sessions will

encourage residents to learn how they can apply to make their communities even better places to live.”

Grant projects must provide a public benefit to neighborhood residents, involve residents in all phases and be achievable

by June following the award year. Examples include neighborhood entrance signs, community festivals, after-school tutoring programs and community gardens.

To apply for grants, visit www.richlandcountysc.gov and navig Jamie Bumgarner ate to the grants webpage or email NIP@richlandcountysc.gov.

SCRA accepts 3 new member companies, funds 3 others

By Melinda Waldrop

T

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

he South Carolina Research Authority has accepted three new member companies, including a mobile health records provider relocating from Seattle to Anderson, and distributed new grant funding to three other startups throughout the state.

The three new SCRA members are: Bricolage Dynamics Inc., a Liberty-based startup that collects and turns household

glass into sustainable sand for re-use in local construction and landscaping industries; Mainstage Gaming Network, a Rock Hill-based event technology service that builds platforms to create inclusive gaming events and tournaments; and VYRTY Corp. (doing business as SyncMD), which also received a $50,000 relocation grant to assist its move from Seattle to Anderson. SyncMD is a secure mobile personal health record platform with an app that allows patients to share data and personal records with anyone at any time.

In addition, Maven Therapy LLC and PulManage Inc. received $50,000 acceleration grants, while Prewrite Inc. received a $25,000 project development fund grant.

Maven Therapy, based in Florence, is developing a physical therapy machine that can be used by patients who have suffered a spinal cord or brain injury or a stroke, whether seated or in bed. Chapin-based PulManage provides pulmonary diagnostic testing devices, supplies and training and partners with health care providers to improve pulmonary health management.

Prewrite, based in Greenville, provides a story development platform for writers, producers and content creators.

All SCRA Member Companies receive coaching, access to experts in SCRA’s Resource Partner Network, eligibility to apply for grant funding, and the potential to be considered for an investment from SCRA’s investment affiliate SC Launch Inc. Grant funding is made possible in part by contributions to the SCRA’s Industry Partnership Fund. Contributors receive a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit.

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 9

RIA awards $13 million in grant funding statewide

By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

M

ore than $13 million in grant funding for statewide municipal infrastructure projects has been awarded by the S.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority.

The grant recipients include, for the first time, two planning studies as part of a new effort to support utilities’ long-term viability, according to a news release.

“Strategic investments in water, sewer and storm drainage infrastructure help bridge the gap between a system’s most critical needs and projects that build capacity for the future,” Bonnie Ammons, RIA executive director, said in the release.

“These grants support both systems that require immediate attention as well as long-term projects that prepare utilities for changes in population, economic opportunities and regulatory requirements.”

Grants will be combined with more than $27 million in local and other funds to address health and environmental concerns and support economic development in 20 S.C. counties, benefiting more than 39,000 customers.

RIA grants are awarded twice a year through a competitive process that factors in project need, feasibility and impact. Recipients pay for non-construction or other activities and often provide additional construction funds.

The first-round 2022 recipients are: • City of Abbeville, water line improvements, $500,000 • City of Anderson, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Town of Awendaw, water system improvements, $157,500 • Charleston Water System, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Chester County, economic water and sewer infrastructure, $241,500 • City of Conway, sewer system improvements, $1,094,183

• Darlington County Water & Sewer Authority, water system improvements, $500,000 • City of Darlington, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Town of Edisto Beach, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • City of Florence, water line improvements, $487,982 • Greenville Water, water line extension, $147,640 • Town of Hollywood, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Horry County/Bucksport Water System Inc., water line improvements, $484,440 • Kershaw County & Lee County Regional Water Authority, water system improvements, $430,500 • Lancaster County Water and Sewer District, economic sewer infrastructure, $2,000,000 • Laurens County Water and Sewer Commission, economic sewer infrastructure, $500,000 • Lexington County, economic sewer infrastructure, $436,875 • City of Manning, water system improvements, $500,000 • Town of McBee, water system improvements, $500,000 • Metropolitan Sewer Subdistrict, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Town of Moncks Corner, drainage system upgrades, $379,503 • City of Orangeburg, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • City of Pickens, water line improvements, $500,000 • Town of Ridgeland, planning, $30,000 • City of Simpsonville, sewer system improvements, $500,000 • Starr-Iva Water & Sewer, water line extension, $300,000 • City of Union, planning, $100,000 Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

Clemson alumnus returns home to head SCBIO

By Molly Hulsey

I

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

n May, Sam Konduros stepped away from what he called a “four-year honeymoon” at the helm of SCBIO to lead the private cannabis treatment startup KOR Medical.

Since then, the life science development group has scoured the country for his successor and vetted 200 candidates: concluding with James Chappell, an executive with Louisiana Economic Development. He assumed the role of CEO starting Nov. 8.

“As a South Carolina native, I am thrilled to join SCBIO and return Chappell home,” Chappell said in a news release. “South Carolina has become an emerging leader in life sciences, and I am excited to continue SCBIO’s great work in helping to grow the life sciences industry.”

Chappell, whose career also includes time with Chartic Management Consulting in Boston, joined Louisiana Econom-

ic Development in 2013 and held positions of increasing responsibility at the organization, including executive director of state economic competitiveness, before being named the organization’s executive director of competitiveness and entrepreneurship in 2021, according to the release.

During his tenure at Louisiana Economic Development, Chappell designed and implemented the state’s $100 million venture capital and small business funds, developed strategies to recruit international companies to the state and joined the Louisiana MediFund board to develop strategies to foster the biosciences and health care industries in Louisiana.

Chappell earned his B.S. and M.S. in plant environmental sciences from Clemson University, his Ph.D. from Louisiana State University and a postdoctoral fellowship in stem cell biology focusing on cancer and diabetes from Harvard Medical School. A three-year varsity football letterman while at Clemson, he is married with two children. He will begin his new role with SCBIO on Nov. 8.

“Competition for the position was extremely strong but we unanimously

“As a South Carolina native, I am thrilled to join SCBIO and return home.”

James Chappell SCBIO CEO

felt that his credentials in both life sciences and economic development were the precise mix we sought as we continue to build, advance and grow the industry in South Carolina,” Lou Kennedy, board chair of SCBIO and CEO of Nephron Pharmaceuticals, said in the release.

Life sciences has a $12 billion economic impact in the Palmetto State, with more than 700 firms involved and more than 43,000 professionals employed in the research, development and commercialization of new health care, medical device, industrial, environmental and agricultural biotechnology products.

South Carolina life sciences has seen a near-doubling of firms and 40% increase in life sciences’ direct employment since 2017, which combine to make it the fast-

est growing industry sector in the state, according to data provided by Joseph Von Nessen, state research economist with the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina.

In April, Gov. Henry McMaster issued an executive order to strengthen the Commerce Department’s efforts to recruit and support life science companies in the state in partnership with SCBIO, according to a previous report.

Interim CEO Erin Ford will remain with SCBIO, where she has managed the organization on a day-to-day basis since 2017.

“Erin continued to do a strong and stellar job in leading the organization, charting the path, and maintaining the momentum without missing a beat during this national search, and our board and membership are grateful to her,” Kennedy said in the release. “The entire board and SCBIO membership are excited that she will remain a key part of the organization in her prior role of executive vice president and COO to add a steady and experienced hand to crafting an exciting new future.”

Reach Molly Hulsey at 864-720-1223.

Wando terminal receives last round of updated equipment

By Teri Errico Griffis

T

tgriffis@scbiznews.com

he set is complete.

After seven years, Wando Welch Terminal will now have 15 updated cranes after two more arrived yesterday from Shanghai.

The cranes docked at Columbus Street Terminal, where S.C. Ports Authority crew will spend a few days dropping sea fasteners and other rigging that hold the booms upright before the gear can be transported under the Ravenel Bridge.

Since redesigns began for the terminal in 2014, four of the former cranes have been renovated and raised. The others will all have been replaced with the arrival of these final two.

“It’s our duty to be an economic engine for the state,” said Ed Stehmeyer, SCPA general manager and projects and design manager. “As a part of that, we’re building the infrastructure needed to make sure we can handle the cargo demands in the future.”

The two new cranes cost nearly $11.5 million each. Coming in at 3.8 million pounds apiece, they have a lift height of 155 feet. The cranes are taller than the previous Wando set, but shorter than the Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal cranes because they were designed years ago when the projected ships were smaller

“We’re projecting far out, and we’re trying to make sure we have timely infrastructure for what’s coming ahead.”

Ed Stehmeyer General manager and projects and design manager, SCPA

Two cranes arrived at Columbus Street Terminal after a two-month voyage from Shanghai aboard the Zhen Hua 35. (Photo/Teri Errico Griffis)

than they are today, Stehmeyer said. HLT cranes clock in at 169 feet.

“We’re obviously not done improving these facilities and whatnot, but like I said, we started this in 2014, and it takes time,” Stehmeyer said. “We’re projecting far out, and we’re trying to make sure we have timely infrastructure for what’s com-

ing ahead.”

For Wando Welch Terminal, that’s getting the final two cranes up and running.

Once they arrive at the terminal, one berth will be shut down for a couple days while the parts are offloaded. The SCPA will need another four to five months to fully reassemble the equipment and get

everything working.

The SCPA is also looking into a wharf extension as part of a plan to use barges to transport cargo containers at Wando Welch Terminal to HLT. Wando currently has three parking spots for ships, but plans would extend the wharf 700 feet so that a barge can slip into a fourth spot.

“Since you’re putting things on the barge and taking it to a facility, then putting it directly on a rail, we’re taking all that traffic off the road,” Stehmeyer said.

The cranes arrived in Charleston after leaving Shanghai in mid-August. They were manufactured by ZPMC, who has made the previous cranes for Wando Welch Terminal and HLT.

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 11

Teasdel named deputy secretary of S.C. Department of Commerce

By Melinda Waldrop

A

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

shely Teasdel, director of the S.C. Department of Commerce’s business services division, has been promoted to deputy secretary of the organization.

In her six-plus years with the commerce department, Teasdel has led the team responsible for small business development, existing industry support, supplier outreach, emergency management and recycling market development. She also managed the agency’s COVID-19 response efforts, assisting more than 9,000

businesses during the pandemic, according to a news release from the department.

Under Teasdel’s leadership, the business services division expanded its cyberTeasdel security compliance assistance and launched a small business data intelligence tool that provides companies customer and supplier information. She also led the development of programs including the Local First Good Enterprise Initiative, a 12-week, hands-on training

course in business planning and management for startups and existing businesses.

“Ashely’s dedication to S.C. Commerce, our team and the industries we serve is beyond measure,” S.C. Secretary of Commerce Harry Lightsey said in the release. “She approaches every situation from a business perspective, with a distinctly inclusive and creative lens, to ensure the process, people and final product are first-class.

“I am excited for our collaborative work to keep pushing the South Carolina economy and business climate to the forefront of success.”

Before joining the commerce depart-

ment in 2015, Teasdel spent almost a decade working in the banking industry, focusing on small business support and development within South Carolina.

She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Charleston Southern University and a master’s degree in business administration from Southern Wesleyan University.

“I am honored to have this opportunity to serve South Carolina,” Teasdel said.

“Working with Secretary Lightsey, the Commerce team and our allies, we are committed to ensuring our state remains ahead of the curve and elevates opportunities for all businesses and citizens.”

CRBJ

Midlands, Lowcountry businesses honored for operational integrity

By Melinda Waldrop

A

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

Lexington County pet boarding service and two Lowcountry organizations have been recognized for operational integrity by the Better Business Bureau Serving Central SC and Charleston.

Chapin Pet Lodge was named the BBB’s Business of the Year Torch Award

recipient for small businesses, while Cohen Brand Management, a Charleston-based marketing agency, won the Torch Award for medium-sized businesses. The Charleston Animal Society, an animal protection organization based in North Charleston, was named the Torch Award recipient for large businesses.

Each year, the BBB presents the awards, open to all for-profit businesses

in the Midlands and Lowcountry, to companies that exemplify ethical behavior.

Nominees submit entries for review by a panel of judges from small business mentoring organization SCORE. “This is always an inspiring event,” Chris Hadley, president and CEO of the BBB Serving Central SC and Charleston, said in a news release. “BBB is committed to its principles of trust and ethics in the marketplace. We appreciate the ongoing support

from all our accredited businesses.”

Businesses also nominated charities for the Charity Challenge Champion award, determined by likes and shares on the BBB’s Facebook page. Special Olympics South Carolina received that award and a $500 donation from BBB. The BBB Serving Central SC and Charleston was founded in 1985.

CRBJ

Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

IA researcher named fellow of Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association Staff Report

K

gsanews@scbiznews.com

umar Venayagamoorthy of Clemson University is among the newest fellows of the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association.

Venayagamoorthy serves as Clemson’s Duke Energy Distinguished Professor of Power Engineering and professor of electrical and computer engineering.

AAIA’s fellows hail from some of the world’s leading universities, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and the California Institute of Technology.

The Hong Kong-incorporated association brings together top scientists from different disciplines to drive innovation, development and application of artificial intelligence, according to a news release from Clemson.

Venayagamoorthy’s research contributions have primarily focused on the development and implementation of advanced computational methods and artificial intelligence-based algorithms for smart grid applications, the release said. He has recently studied the development of synchrophasor applications and situational awareness and intelligence systems for electric power control center operations and management.

His other research activities include applications of computational methods in sensor networks, cybersecurity and signal

Kumar Venayagamoorthy’s research includes situational awareness and intelligence systems for electric power control center operations and management. The Clemson professor is among the newest fellows of the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association. (Photo/Provided)

processing.

Venayagamoorthy is fellow of three organizations in addition to AAIA: the Institution of Engineering and Technology, the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, to

which he was named a fellow earlier this year.

Hai Xiao, chair of the Holcombe Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, said Venayagamoorthy’s latest honor helps cement his position as a leading AI researcher.

“Dr. Venayagamoorthy’s election to fellow of the Asia-Pacific Artificial Intelligence Association is a testament to the high level of scholarship he brings to Clemson in a crucial area of study,” Xiao said in the release. “I congratulate him on this well-deserved honor.”

SC recognized as leader in K-12 computer science education

By Teri Errico Griffis tgriffis@scbiznews.com

South Carolina isn’t typically noted for its success in K-12 education, but continued focus on computer science as a future career over the past five years has put the state on the map in a positive way.

Code.org and its partners recognized the Palmetto State as a leader in K-12 computer science education with the highest rate of students — 21% — enrolled in foundational computer science courses in the nation. The state also tied Arkansas at the top with 92% of high schools offering foundational computer science coursework, based on data from 26,326 public U.S. high schools.

“Careers that require computer science knowledge and skills continue to grow in South Carolina and across our nation,” said S.C. Education Superintendent Molly Spearman in a statement. “I am proud of the foundation we have laid that has made us a national leader and is helping to prepare our graduates for future success in this field.”

Photo/File

The assessment was reported in Code. org’s 2021 State of Computer Science Education: Accelerating Action Through Advocacy. The annual report compiles one of the most comprehensive analyses of the nation’s progress in computer science education.

The S.C. Department of Education credits part of South Carolina’s success to the advocacy of local leaders, especially Gov. Henry McMaster, who serves as a member of the Governors’ Partnership for K-12 Computer Science.

McMaster has been an advocate for

increasing funding in the education field, recommending more money be allocated to computer science studies in each of his last three Executive Budgets, the department said.

“To prepare our children for an ever-changing, 21st century economy, it is imperative we actively adapt our curriculum to changes in technology, and that is exactly what we have done with computer science,” McMaster said in a statement.

According to the report, more than 70% of superintendents and principals believe that offering computer science courses is just as important as teaching English, math, history and science.

South Carolina currently is only one of three states with a full-year, one-credit graduation requirement in computer science, SCDE said. The hope is to fill the nearly 4,749 open computing jobs statewide, which is 2.4 times the state average demand rate, according to Code.org.

Within South Carolina, computer science salaries average around $77,383.

Reach Teri Errico Griffis at 843-849-3144.

MEET THE CLASS OF 2021 We’re excited to honor the 2021 Women of Influence!

The Columbia Regional Business Report selected 22 outstanding women from a range of professions for the 2021 Women of Influence. These women make the Midlands a better place to work and to live, bringing passion to their professional positions and commitment to their community causes. We will honor these women with a luncheon at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Columbia on Nov. 30.

Nominated by our readers and selected by a panel of judges, the nominees come from diverse backgrounds and are dedicated to a wide range of careers, but they all share a drive to excel in their individual pursuits while finding ways to lift others as they climb.

JOIN US FOR THE 2021 WOMEN OF INFLUENCE LUNCHEON Tuesday, Nov. 30 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Register at bit.ly/crbr21woitix DoubleTree by Hilton Columbia

NOV. 30 | 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM

oin us in honoring these Midlands businesswomen who are making significant contributions to the community through civic, nonprofit and philanthropic involvement.

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Sponsored by: Sponsored by:

bit.ly/crbr21woitix #CRBRWOI For sponsorship information, contact Lucia Smith at lsmith@scbiznews.com or 803-726-7547

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

AMY FIRESTONE City of birth: Fairfax, Va. Education: Doctorate in Spanish Sociolinguistics, University of Illinois; Master of Arts in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, University of Illinois; Bachelor of Arts in Hispanic Studies, the College of William and Mary My job: Vice President of Apprenticeship Carolina, South Carolina Technical College System The best thing about my job: I have a very diverse, talented, and driven team at Apprenticeship Carolina.

Community involvement: I lead initiatives that support low-income and minority community members and businesses with workforce needs. I am also working with my team to spearhead new initiatives to engage the Hispanic and Latino community.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: People and experiences can disappoint us, but we are in control of how we manage our thoughts and actions.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Mrs. Gerri Koser. Mrs. Koser was my mother’s best friend who passed away six years ago after battling cancer for a few decades. She was very ill most of her adult life but was the most generous and courageous soul I have ever met.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: I have learned not take a single person or experience for granted. The world is a much smaller place since COVID-19 started. Too many people and experiences no longer exist. I am reminded that we have to cherish every moment and embrace the unknown.

Something people may not know about me: My mother never had the chance to finish college. She passed away when I was in my early 20s. Her dream was to teach and change lives. I get to do this every day in a big way and never forget my mother’s dream.

Favorite quote: “Feet, what do I need them for if I have wings to fly.” - Frida Kahlo

2021 WOMAN OF INFLUENCE

Congratulations!

Ann Marie Stiertiz PRESIDENT & CEO LIBERTY FELLOWSHIP

libertyfellowshipsc.org

ANN MARIE STIERITZ City of birth: Xenia, Ohio Education: B.A., Xavier University; Certificat d’Etudes, Mention Bien, Université de Paris IV, la Sorbonne; M.A., New York University; M. Phil. (ABD for Ph.D.), New York University My job: President & CEO of Liberty Fellowship The best thing about my job: Working with the 300plus Liberty Fellows across the state who have made the lifelong commitment to create a better future for all people in South Carolina. We bring leaders together who may not otherwise sit in the same rooms.

Community involvement: I currently represent South Carolina on the Tiffany Circle National Council of the American Red Cross and serve as chair of the Central SC Region’s Red Cross Tiffany Circle Chapter. I am a founding governing board member of Apprenticeships for America.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: With Secretary of State Colin Powell’s recent death, his “Thirteen Rules of Leadership” have been high on my radar. The one I wish I’d been able to take to heart when I was younger is No. 12: “Don’t take counsel of your fears or naysayers.”

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My mother-in-law Mary Alice Farrell Carran, who passed away in 2018. She was an amazing woman whose life trajectory took a different path than she initially imagined.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: The pandemic clearly highlighted multiple inequities in our state, including disparities in health care, broadband access, and economic opportunity. It also has given us a real opportunity to think more ambitiously and creatively about where we want to be as a state 10 or 20 years from now.

Favorite quote: “Service is what prayer looks like when it gets up off its knees and walks around in the world.” — Fr. Michael J. Graham, S.J. (former president of Xavier University)

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 15

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

CYNTHIA GILES City of birth: Lancaster, Calif.

Education: Midlands Technical College Full Stack Programmer Certification.

My job: Owner/ Founding Partner of Cut Throat Marketing The best thing about my job: I get to help businesses grow and simplify technology needs for people.

Community involvement (please summarize): Sit on the board for the Greater Irmo Chamber of Commerce, volunteer as a non-voting commissioner for the Irmo Okra Strut Commission, volunteer marketing director for the Midlands Crimestoppers.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: You get what you pay for and if you didn’t pay for it you cannot complain about the quality of it. Basically, nothing in life is free and if you work hard for what you have, you appreciate it more.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Kerry Powers has been a mentor to me over the last five years. When I first moved to Irmo from California I was 28 years young and acted like a naïve youngster. Kerry helped me grow and gives me honest feedback to help me a better version of myself. Her leadership sets the example for me.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: I learned to recognize stress and say no to activities that caused me stress without providing me a return in my time investment. Many of us have a hard time saying no which adds undo stress to our lives.

But learning to say no but thanking someone for an invite doesn’t hurt our growth as individuals, it helps us grow in a healthy manner.

Something people may not know about me: I have a green thumb and love to grow herbs, and my favorite plan to grow are sunflowers.

Favorite quote: “No such thing as a life that is better than yours.” — J. Cole

ETHEL BUNCH City of birth: Columbia Education: B.A. and Master’s in Mass Communication, University of South Carolina My job: President and CEO, Sustain SC The best thing about my job: I get to work with people from all different sectors and discover the power of collaboration, breaking down assumptions and perceptions and realizing that we agree on more than we disagree on and can work towards a common vision.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Failure is part of the journey to success and leadership can be isolating. Do not let fear of these discomforts be obstacles to growing and trying to make a difference in the world.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Caroline McKissick Belser Dial, my great aunt and a woman of the millennium way before it was cool. She served as First Lady of the University of South Carolina (1936-44), founder of Palmetto Girls State (1947), Vice-Chair of the Democratic Party (1960-64) and had an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of South Carolina (1969).

Community involvement: Sustain SC has been my sole focus over the past three years. I served as a volunteer for the first two years in creating the organization that has now become a thriving 501(c)3 with the mission to connect the sustainability goals of businesses with local solutions to benefit the economy, environment and people.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Human connection is essential.

Something people may not know about me: I went to an all-girls boarding school, St. Catherine’s, for high school. St. Catherine’s instilled in us that anything is possible and anyone is capable as long as you are willing to take risks, lift others up while mentoring those coming behind you, and never give up on your dreams.

Congratulations to our CEO, Cynthia Giles for being a 2021 Woman Of Influence! We are so proud of you.

https://www.cutthroatmarketing.com

Congratulations Ethel Bunch

CEO, Sustain SC for being named a 2021 Woman Of Influence!

16

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Congratulations Congratulations,

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

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City of birth: Charleston Education: B.S., Accounting, University of South Carolina My job: Director of Finance, Select Health of South Carolina The best thing about my job: Working for a company whose mission I embrace: “To empower those in need, especially the underserved and the disabled, across their full life journey, from wellness to resilience, in order to reach their American Dream.”

Community involvement: My tendency is to jump in where I’m planted. At work that means being a part of the Select Health Sponsorship and Donation Committee, which helps local nonprofit organizations. At church, that means taking a leadership role in my Life Group, made up of active older singles. Each year I host either Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner at my home for seniors who would otherwise be alone on the holiday.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: There is something to be learned in every journey we take. Whether the road is straight and smooth, or filled with potholes and detours, joy can still be found.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My daughter.. ... She’s reminded me to see the world without prejudice, to be kind, to find laughter in times of stress, that someone is always watching to see if you are who you say you are, and most importantly, to love unconditionally.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: To be more thankful. I had the ability to work from home, when others didn’t have a job. I had family and friends that I could talk with on the phone, when others were watching loved ones dying and couldn’t be with them. My family recovered from cases of COVID, when others were not so fortunate.

Something people may not know about me: Fall is my favorite season and each year I stalk social media to learn when Starbucks will bring back pumpkin spice lattes.

JILL MOYLAN City of birth: Chester Education: B.A., English, Presbyterian College; M.A., English Literature, University of South Carolina My job: Owner/Founder/Broker, Home Advantage Realty The best thing about my job: Regularly meeting new people from all walks of life and from all over the world.

Community involvement: Habitat for Humanity, Women’s Rights Empowerment Network, Sister Care, The Cooperative Ministry and Animal Mission; board of trustees for Presbyterian College; board of directors of Consolidated Multiple Listing Service; former service on Central Carolina Association of Realtors board of directors.

Something I wish I had known earlier in life: More often than not, taking risks brings great satisfaction.

A woman who has had a major influence on my life: Back in the dark days when only men were allowed to attend law school in South Carolina, Frances Staples took matters into her own hands, sat for, and passed the bar exam. She served as the Honorable Donald Russell’s permanent law clerk. Frances excelled as a friend and mentor and introduced me to the wonders of bourbon when she held court at the Jefferson Hotel in Richmond.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Far too much energy is squandered rushing to and fro in relatively meaningless activities.

Something people may not know about me: A first-generation college graduate, I grew up on a cattle farm fully grounded in nature, with countless pets, a pond to fish in, and acres to roam. I can tell you where the sun will set no matter where I am, and I am still a bit of a hermit. I was kicked out of home economics for lack of skill and put in shop class, where I was “allowed” to build a doll house.

Favorite quote: “You had the power all along, my dear.” — Glinda the Good Witch, “The Wizard of Oz,” L. Frank Baum

November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

KENDRIA L. CARTLEDGE City of birth: Columbia Education: Bachelor of Science in Health Science with a concentration in Pre-professional Health Studies, Clemson University; Doctor of Optometry degree, Southern College of Optometry.

My job: Optometrist and Owner of Vista Vision Optometric Center The best thing about my job: I get to positively impact the quality of life of my patients by improving their vision and eye health. I also love that I am able to interact with so many different people on a daily basis.

Community involvement: I offer shadowing opportunities and serve as a presenter at career fairs at local schools as well as providing vision screenings. Also, I am a member of First Nazareth Baptist Church, where I am president of the Healthcare and Wellness Ministry.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: The future can’t be predicted with certainty, so live in the present.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Mrs. Cynthia Simpson-Obioha, my high school guidance counselor. She was very kind and nurturing and ensured that I was on the right track as I prepared for college. We remained in contact and over the years, she has become like a second mother to me.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Self-care is important! When the pandemic started, work and most community activities and events that I was active in came to a halt. This allowed me more time to focus on myself and practice self-care.

Something people may not know about me: I took piano lessons for 12 years and learned how to play all genres of music from classical to contemporary.

Favorite quote: “Life is like a camera. Focus on what’s important. Capture the good times.

And if things don’t work out, just take another shot.” — Ziad K. Abdelnour

KIARA STREATER

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 17

KIMBERLY LAJOIE TISSOT City of birth: Charleston Education: B.S., Human Development, Boston University, Wheelock College of Education; Master of Social Work, University of South Carolina.

My job: President and CEO, Able South Carolina The best thing about my job: Building systems change for people with disabilities.

Community involvement: I’ve successfully held several state-appointed board positions, served on many national boards and committees, serve on dozens of committees to promote disability rights and equity, and serve as president of the Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: To take time to celebrate success.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Ah, I have SO many women to list and can’t pick one. In addition to my mother, I’d have to say, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Kimberlé Crenshaw, Stacy Thompson, Jerri Davison, Sara Marin, Patricia Gibeaut, Patty VanHoy, Julie Shaffer, Debby Stephenson, my grandmothers, and my coven of nonprofit women leaders.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: I am an expert with adapting!

Something people may not know about me: I am a former punk rocker. Blue hair and all.

Favorite quote: “Fight for the things that you care about but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Congratulations to our CEO,

Kiara Streater

on being a 2021 Women of Influence!

City of birth: Lexington Education: Daniel’s Christian School; Greenville Technical College; Yale Executive Women’s Leadership My job: Founder and CEO, Extraordinary Headhunters LLC The best thing about my job: Having the ability to change lives.

Community involvement: S.C. Chamber of Commerce, Business Council; Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce board of trustees; Columbia Chamber of Commerce, Business Council; Daniel Christian School, senior board of directors; Benedict Women’s Business Center, advisory board member; United Way of the Midlands, Young Leaders Society and Women in Philanthropy; Forbes Business Council Member; City of Columbia OBO Business Spotlight Honoree 2021; 2021 S.C. Women in Business Honoree; Put-Back board of directors; International Professional Women’s Society; ConvrtX advisory board member; GuidePoint, senior consultant Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Everything always works out, so don’t stress!

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My mother, India Griffin, mother-in-law, Brenda P. Streater, and aunt Lisa Harris are my biggest inspirations.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: You can make it through anything, you just have to have faith and a Hall of Fame work ethic.

Something people may not know about me: I’m obsessed with self-improvement planners.

Favorite quote: “Your performance determines your destiny.”

— Dr. Danny Jagan

www.extraordinaryheadhuntersllc.com

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Congratulations

to Kristen Meetze, Owner, Capital Kitchen and Bath for being a 2021 Columbia Regional Business Report Woman Of Influence.

Congratulations Lila Anna!

2021 Columbia Regional Business Report Woman of Influence.

You are a game changer, a passionate advocate and an inspiration for women.

Now let's join Lila Anna in the fight to end family homelessness.

#LetsEndIt www.homelessnomoresc.org

November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

KRISTEN KAUFFELD MEETZE City of birth: New Port Richey, Fla. Education: University of South Carolina My job: Owner of Capital Kitchen & Bath The best thing about my job: Creating new, beautiful spaces that clients, who become friends, will love and enjoy for many years to come. I love creating future memories for families.

Community involvement: Fostering for Pawmetto Lifeline; chef volunteer for Lasagna Love; community events coordinator for Ballentine Village. Community blood and food drives, Boy and Girl Scouts of America, Irmo and Chapin Chamber of Commerce, Building Industry Association, and BIA Remodelers Council past chairwoman.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Not every person in life you meet will like you and that is OK. Authenticity is always more important.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My mother cannot fail to be mentioned. She is a pioneer ahead of her time; creative, intelligent, strong and nurturing, determined and led by example. I am also blessed to have an amazing tribe of women that I have known for 20-plus years — dear, close friends that all lead amazing lives filled with ups, downs and all matter of trials and tribulations.

But they’ve all influenced and inspired me by their resilience, strength, passion, power and kindness. We all need a great group of women in our corners!

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: I learned that my family needed to get back to the basics. We quickly learned that we needed to re-evaluate what we considered important. And we learned the importance of slowing down.

Something people may not know about me: I absolutely love to garden.

Favorite quote: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, rather in humility value others above yourselves.” — Philippians 2:3, Bible (NIV)

LILA ANNA SAULS City of birth: Springfield, rural Orangeburg County Education: Affordable Housing Finance Professional certification, NDC; B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communications, University of South Carolina; M.A. in Organizational Leadership, Columbia College; Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership and Systems, Northeastern University My job: President/CEO of Homeless No More and its programs – Family Shelter, St. Lawrence Place and Live Oak Place — and mama to five boys.

The best thing about my job: I get to build things – affordable housing projects, shelter programs, legislation for systemic change, and education centers for the children we serve in our programs.

Community involvement: Columbia’s Affordable Housing Task Force, the S.C. Association for Community Economic Development board of directors and the Community Impact Committee of the United Way of the Midlands; founding member of Women in Leadership.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: You can’t take everything personally.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: There have been so many who have walked with me at different stages and helped me become the leader I am today.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: The pandemic amplified issues that Homeless No More deals with every day. These include affordable housing, evictions, and children depending on schools for so many things other than just education.

The number of women of all income levels who have had to leave the workforce because of no affordable childcare or other supports is huge.

Favorite quote: “Whatever you choose to do, leave tracks. That means don’t do it just for yourself. You will want to leave the world a little better for your having lived.”

— Ruth Bader Ginsberg

November 22 - December 5, 2021

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WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

LINDSEY SPIRES GRIFFIN City of birth: Columbia Education: B.S., Political Science, Presbyterian College; The Washington Semester – Public Policy Institute, American University My job: Private Client Advisor, Senior Vice President, Bank of America Private Bank The best thing about my job: Helping clients reach their goals and getting to know their families, alongside the great team I work with. As chairwoman of the Bank of America Community Volunteers network, I also work on community outreach and service projects.

Community involvement: Board member, S.C. Philharmonic; Multiplying Good; Central Midlands Habitat for Humanity advisory board member; executive committee member of United Way of the Midlands’ Women in Philanthropy and event chair of its “Power of the Purse” fundraiser; Historic Columbia advisory council member; Bradley Elementary Lunch Buddies mentor; board member of Leadership Columbia Alumni Association; Leadership South Carolina board of trustees.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: You can do it all, but you cannot do it all at once!

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My closet friend, Meredith Jaggard, was diagnosed with progressive MS in her early 30s. I am in awe of how she navigates life as a mother to a young child, excels in her career and pours herself into relationships with her family members, friends and colleagues.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Relationships and community are so important, and family is everything.

Something people may not know about me: I am behind the popular hyper-local Instagram account called @ColaTownFoodieandFun, where I highlight the region’s blossoming food and beverage scene while sharing family-friendly activities.

GEORGIA MJARTAN City of birth: Little Rock, Ark. Education: B.A., English, B.A., Political Science, University of Arkansas; graduate of Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program. Received the George Mitchell Scholarship and completed M.Sc. in Public Affairs and Political Communications at the University of Ulster.

My job: Executive Director of South Carolina First Steps and Director of South Carolina’s Early Childhood Advisory Council.

The best thing about my job: The tens of thousands of children whose family stories will be happier, healthier, and fuller because of our work.

Community involvement: Commissioner, Columbia Housing; member, S.C. Education and Economic Development Act Coordinating Council; member, S.C. Department of Social Services Advisory Board; member, UofSC College of Education Dean’s Advisory Board.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Whether I’m testifying to legislators, working on a project with researchers, or learning from the lived experience of working parents, when I remember we are all just people, I can really listen, learn and connect.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Through the Aspen Institute’s Ascend Fellowship, I have had the privilege of learning from a group of transformative leaders from all over the country. From the Native American researcher who showed me a new way to think about our human interconnectedness to the entrepreneur who is using her gifts and drive to help low-wage workers enter highpaying, meaningful careers, the women in this fellowship have inspired and challenged me.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: As an extrovert, I had always filled my pot by being together in relationship with people. During the pandemic, I remembered the importance of filling my soul with nature, too.

TAKE A BOW. YOU’VE EARNED IT. Congratulations to Lindsey Griffin being honored by the Columbia Regional Business Report as one of their 2021 Women of Influence.

Lindsey Griffin Senior Vice President Private Client Advisor lindsey.griffin@bofa.com Bank of America Private Bank is a division of Bank of America, N.A., Member FDIC, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America Corporation.

Investment products:

Are Not FDIC Insured

Are Not Bank Guaranteed

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

LIZ MCCARY

Congratulations

Liz McCary

on being named a Woman of Influence

by Columbia Regional Business Report.

Liz H. McCary Vice President, Marketing | South Carolina

City of birth: Atlanta Education: B.S. in Business Administration, double major in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, Darla Moore School of Business, University of South Carolina My job: Vice President, Marketing, Colliers | South Carolina and Director of Marketing, LCK The best thing about my job: I am honored to work with people who are not only passionate about what they do but passionate about the people they work with.

Community involvement: board of directors, United Way of the Midlands; board of directors, Society for Marketing Professional Services-Palmetto Chapter Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Whether personally or professionally, you are your own best advocate.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Barbara Rogers, my mom’s and my best friend, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2006 and battled through chemotherapy, radiation and surgery with grace and perseverance.

When I was diagnosed in 2018 with metastatic breast cancer, I knew I wanted to fight with the same grace and perseverance that Barbara instilled in me so many years ago. I am pleased to say Barbara is a 17-year breast cancer survivor and I am going strong on three years thriving with metastatic disease.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Where there is a will, there is a way. In a time where we were forced apart, it was amazing to watch people find new and creative ways to connect with each other.

Something people may not know about me: Growing up, school was difficult for me. I struggled tremendously with reading, writing and spelling. I was blessed with parents who had the means and knowledge to send me to an amazing school, The Schenk School, that focused on my specific learning needs.

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

MICKEY LAYDEN City of birth: Hamlet, N.C. Education: Architectural Engineering Technology, Midlands Technical College My job: As President/CEO, LCK, I lead a project management services company. We serve as owners’ representatives for commercial/industrial real estate development and renovation projects.

The best thing about my job: The opportunity it provides for me to meet people and to work together with teams to accomplish something great.

Community involvement: board of directors of First Community Bank and a member of the Midlands Business Leadership Group; past chair of the board of Transitions, the Committee of 100 and Palmetto Center for Women.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: How to excel in the workplace while setting aside adequate time for my faith and my family.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Andrea Welch, for whom I worked in an administrative role early in my career. She was the first female I encountered who held an executive leadership position in a company.

She not only gave me personal opportunities for career growth, but she also enabled me to understand that there were no limits for me if I applied myself. And Cathy Novinger, who taught me the value of “connecting the dots” among female professionals in business and fostering relationships.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Working from home isn’t for me. I appreciate the office environment and being able to socialize in person with my colleagues and clients.

Favorite quote: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”

— Philippians 4:13

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Congratulations

Mickey Layden on being named a Woman of Influence

by Columbia Regional Business Report.

Mickey E. Layden, PMP CPM President / CEO

NEKKI SHUTT City of birth: Honolulu Education: Law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law My job: Civil litigation attorney. I am certified by the South Carolina Supreme Court as an expert in Labor and Employment Law. Employee Benefits law is my passion.

The best thing about my job: I get to help some of the most deserving people through the hardest times in their lives. An example is when an employer wrongfully terminates an employee because they are in a protected class. Helping folks navigate these situations and suing the bad guys is what keeps me coming to the office with a happy heart.

Community involvement: I’ve worked as an advocate for LGBTQ rights in South Carolina for 33 years on various national, state and local boards such as the Victory Fund and South Carolina Equality. I’ve also been very active in the South Carolina Bar Association, where I currently chair the new Civil Rights Section of the South Carolina Bar. Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Cheap high heels will hurt your feet.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My grandmother (my Pau-pau), Glennie Beanland King, who was the matriarch of our family and lived to be almost 101. I moved to South Carolina in 1986 to be near my grandparents.

My grandmother hailed from Prosper, Texas, where her father, Edgar Beanland, had a flour mill, and earned a master’s degree in library science.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: That we needed a Zoom background for our law firm so messy offices and cats sleeping on the bed behind you don’t show!

Favorite quote: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” — Maya Angelou

P A S S I O N AT E A B O U T M OV I N G OUR COMMUNITY & L AW F O R WA R D .

Congratulations to Nekki Shutt 2021 Women of Influence honoree Nekki has long fought for the rights of others, both in the courtroom and in the community. We celebrate all that she’s achieved in her remarkable career.

A skilled litigator, Nekki’s practice includes: - Employee benefits under ERISA and state law - Employment law - Civil rights law - Whistleblower/ Qui Tam cases - Complex civil litigation

912 LADY STREET, 2ND FLOOR | COLUMBIA, SC | 803.850.0912 BURNETTESHUTT.LAW

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Congratulations to Stephanie for being honored as one of the Columbia Regional Business Report’s 2021 Women of Influence

We are so very proud of you!

Love, Mom and Dad

November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

STEPHANIE DEFREESE City of birth: Columbia Education: Bachelor of Business Administration, St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame My job: Vice President of Agency Sales at BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina The best thing about my job: I love knowing we help people around our state get the coverage they need to take care of them and their families.

Community involvement: I have served on the EdVenture board, American Heart Association, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and Girl Scouts of America. I coach soccer, basketball and softball and sit on St Joseph Catholic School advisory board and Heathwood Hall’s board of trustees.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Listen more. Talk less.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: There are so many wonderful women I have been privileged to learn and grow from, including Judy Davis, former Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer at BlueCross BlueShield of SC. Judy not only climbed the ladder professionally, she was extremely involved in our community and always chose kindness and helping others.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: Don’t take family time for granted. Pre-COVID, we were running all over the place and barely had a weekly family meal. During COVID we had breakfast, lunch and dinner together EVERY DAY. Amazing! ...

We also learned to stock a six-month inventory of toilet paper in all bathrooms!

Something people may not know about me: I grew up wanting a large family with lots of kids! I have five children: four beautiful girls and the youngest of the family is a cute little boy. Also two male dogs, a French bulldog and a Goldendoodle.

Favorite quote: “The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me?”

— Ayn Rand

SARAH H. OSTERGAARD

Way to go!

Congratulations to Stephanie DeFreese, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina’s vice president of marketing and sales, for being named a Woman of Influence by the Columbia Regional Business Report.

Your leadership is an incredible asset to our company.

BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.

Name: Sarah H. Ostergaard City of birth: Manchester, Conn.

Education: B.A., Connecticut College; J.D., University of Virginia My job: Magnet Lead Teacher, Irmo High School The best thing about my job: My colleagues!

Community involvement: I love our community. Through either formal or informal opportunities to help others, I believe we can make a big difference when we pitch in together.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Wear sunscreen.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My daughter, who teaches me to see things in new ways.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: There are always ways to innovate and find a solution.

Something people may not know about me: My husband and I raised Dexter cattle, chickens and rabbits on a small farm in western North Carolina.

Favorite quote: “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I — I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”

— Robert Frost

November 22 - December 5, 2021

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WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

MICHELLE M. DICKERSON

LINDSEY CULLEY YARBOROUGH

City of birth: Chester Education: B.A., Wofford College; Juris Doctorate, University of South Carolina School of Law My job: Deputy City Administrator, City of West Columbia The best thing about my job: The best part of my job is working with the employees at the city of West Columbia.

It is wonderful to work with a group of people who love what they do and love each other.

Community involvement: School Improvement Council for Northside Middle School; board member of the Brookland-Cayce High School Bearcat Club; Personnel Committee for Holland Avenue Baptist Church; volunteer for the West Columbia Beautification Foundation Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: I wish I had learned earlier how to say no to things that do not bring me joy. If I am being honest, I am still working on this.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: Cathy Novinger was a long-time client, friend, and mentor. Cathy was a successful businesswoman and devoted her life to many community causes, such as ovarian cancer awareness and housing and services for the homeless. She was a devoted wife, mother, sister, and daughter and loved her family fiercely. Her life inspired me in so many ways and I am forever grateful to have called her my friend.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: I learned that canceled events and closed schools, while disappointing, can be a blessing in disguise. I learned to be grateful for the slowdown of life.

Something people may not know about me: After I graduated law school, I trained my golden retriever to be a certified therapy dog. We volunteered many hours in the Richland Children’s Hospital.

Favorite quote: “Just do the next right thing, one thing at a time.” — Glennon Melton

City of birth: West Columbia Education: Bachelor’s degree in Tourism Management, University of South Carolina; master’s degree in Public Administration, Clemson University My job(s): Director of Marketing and Communications, Mashburn Construction.

The best thing about my job: I help “Build Better Communities” across the state of South Carolina through impactful construction work.

Community involvement: I hold the honor of being a South Carolina Certified Economic Developer and currently sit on the board of directors for the Central SC Alliance Committee of 100 and CREW Midlands. I am also co-chair of the South Carolina Economic Developers’ Association Women’s group, co-chair for the C100 Membership Committee, and co-chair for the CREW Midlands Programs Committee.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: Ask your loved ones more questions about their lives. And record it.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My Nanny (grandmother) had a great impact on me growing up. She was a schoolteacher for more than half her life and was married to my granddaddy for 50 years. She always approached life with an open heart and mind, looking for the blessings within every challenge.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: We are all blessed to be granted the same amount of time in a single day. It is up to us on how we spend it.

Something people may not know about me: I don’t like pumpkin spice! Can you believe it?

Favorite quote: “How you do anything is how you do everything.” – Jess Sims, peloton instructor

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

WOMEN OF INFLUENCE

PAMELA BYNOE-REED City of birth: New York, N.Y. Education: B.A., Journalism and Mass Communications, University of South Carolina; M.A., Organizational Change and Leadership, Columbia College My job: I serve as the Director of Marketing and Community Affairs/Public Information Officer for the Central Midlands Regional Transit Authority.

The best thing about my job: The COMET staff, board of directors, bus operators and crew are a team who work together to move the Midlands forward as a connector for economic development as well as essential services.

Community involvement: I presently serve on the boards of: Midlands Area Consortium for the Homeless; WeGOJA Foundation; WTS International-SC Chapter (Women in Transportation); Columbia World Affairs Council; and Thomas Media Group/Black Expo Advisory Board.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: That I have everything I need inside me to achieve any goals or aspirations; just go for it!

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: My aunt, the late Ethel M. Bolden, took me under her wing as I started my career and taught me the importance of being involved in the community. She demonstrated by example that offering one’s time and talent by being a support and advocate builds a strong network and therefore a strong community.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: It’s important to be prepared and to be flexible. However, it’s most important to be creative in your preparation in order to perform at your best in the moment and as you navigate the unknown.

Something people may not know about me: As a child, when asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said “I want to be a nun, get married and have two children.” As a professional communicator, I’m an “evangelist” of sorts. I build and nurture relationships.

SHEILA MCNAIR ROBINSON City of birth: Barnwell Education: B.A., Furman University; J.D., University of South Carolina School of Law My job: Partner/Attorney with Moore Bradley Myers Law Firm, P.A. The best thing about my job: The people with whom I have the privilege of working, including the many clients I have the opportunity to help as well as the attorneys and staff with whom I work every day.

Community involvement: I have always been involved in church and in church-related activities and am extensively involved in community and school fundraisers.

Also, I believe strongly in providing meals to friends, neighbors and acquaintances in times of need.

Something I wish I’d known earlier in my life: To focus only on things that truly contribute to a happy life and to ignore the rest.

A woman (in addition to my mother) who has had a major influence on my life: As a law student, I clerked for the now Honorable Lisa A. Kinon, then a practicing attorney.

Judge Kinon profoundly influenced my approach to practicing family law. I learned from Judge Kinon many important lessons of life, love, and practicing law I continue to use and reflect upon quite often.

Here’s something I learned from the COVID-19 pandemic: The pandemic has taught me virtues such as patience, compassion and benevolence are critical in overcoming any adversities. Change of any kind is frequently unwelcome. Fortunately, we live during a time in history when communities come together to create options that make adaptation to a new world possible.

Favorite quote: “The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing but in rising every time we fall.” — Nelson Mandela

November 22 - December 5, 2021

2021 ARCHITECTS

POWER LIST

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PRESENTING THE 2021

ARCHITECTS POWER LIST

By Andy Owens

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aowens@scbiznews.com

othing can be built without architects first envisioning, drawing and designing the spaces where we live and work.

Architects are often thrown in with engineers and construction professionals when we talk about the sector, but while they do the initial critical work that engineers and builders follow, architects also do a lot more.

They are the glue in the middle that holds all of those parts together. They preserve our communities with strong public places that bring sense to the places we live, even when we don’t realize it. Good architecture doesn’t get in your way, but you often don’t recognize it until it’s pointed out. Today, we are pointing out some of the most influential and important individuals in the architecture profession.

These people and their supporting

firms provide the paths toward progress by mapping out not just one building but how structures fit into the landscape and context of our communities.

When the ribbon is cut on the spaces that we do business in, don’t overlook the contribution of the architect. They’re not always standing in the front of the line with the giant scissors, but development doesn’t happen without them.

We picked this Power List as a companion to Banking and Finance and Real Estate because architects provide the spark of inspiration that has helped our economy begin to emerge from one of the worst challenges since 2008.

Our editorial team analyzed industry data and considered the individuals who demonstrated vision and action in serving their profession, as well as the professional excellence that commitment provides to our places of work and life.

Please join me in congratulating these individuals in print and online.

TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. CINDY BENJAMIN

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2. C. DINOS LIOLLIO

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3. DOUG QUAKENBUSH

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4. HEATHER MITCHELL

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5. KEITH M. CLARKE

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HONOREES CONTINUED

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POWER LIST

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CINDY BENJAMIN LS3P

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indy Benjamin has been an architect and project manager at LS3P for the past 16 years. To each project, she brings focus to detail, team organization and technical knowledge. She has worked on a wide variety of project types, including health care, higher education and faith-based projects.

In 2019, Benjamin shifted her focus to strengthening LS3P’s cooperate commercial sector in the Upstate. Focusing on workplace strategies, she helps her clients’ shape their work place into environments that support their best work.

Energized by complex programs, existing conditions and fast paced schedules, she has a passion for renovating existing buildings and stitching together circulation patterns in built environments.

A graduate of Virginia Tech, she is a registered architect, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Building Design and Construction accredited professional, WELL Building Institute accredited professional and Green Globes professional.

Significant projects include the Clemson University Wilbur and Ann Powers College of Business, Tri-County Technical College, Student Success Center and Ruby Hicks Renovation, Greenville Tech, Center for Manufacturing Innovation, Clemson University,

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MBA at Greenville One, Bob Jones University, Health Professions, and Converse College, Senior Student Housing.

She is a graduate of Furman University Women’s Leadership Institute, a board member of the Urban Land Institute, Upstate, and president-elect of the Greenville Professional Women’s Forum.

She was named to the Building Design + Construction 40 Under 40 for 2013, Leadership Greenville Class 33, and Greenville Chamber of Commerce Young Professional of the Year in 2009.

C. DINOS LIOLLIO Liollio Architecture

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n Auburn University graduate, Dinos Liollio, FAIA, received a bachelor’s degree in architecture and a Bachelor of Science in environmental design. He served as president of the American Institute of Architects Student Chapter and was awarded the Alpha Rho Chi Medal of Honor in recognition of his leadership, service and future impact to the architectural profession.

Liollio has served on national, regional and state design award juries, led many community design charrettes, and has lectured on collaboration as the vehicle to realize remarkable buildings that inspire people to think of design as a collective body of work.

His leadership has been recognized by the South Carolina Chapter and Charleston Section AIA, Urban Land Institute, Furman University Riley Leadership Institute, city of Charleston, Rotary International, the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, Charleston National Aging in Place Council and others.

Based upon his preservation background, he was awarded a 2005 Study Abroad Scholarship in Verona, Italy, with 30 other architects from around the world focusing on the conservation of stone and marble. Liollio has received more than 120 international, national, regional, state and local design awards and was chosen to be a part of the design team for Fire Station 11 that’s contiguous to the Charleston 9 Memorial site.

He served on national, regional and state design award juries, lectured at national, state and local professional and trade conferences, and was keynote speaker at the National Architectural Precast Association Design Awards. He was elected to the AIA College of Fellows and was appointed to the City of Charleston Design Review Board in 2017. He received a National American Institute of Architects Design Award for Hampton County Health Clinic in 2020.

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“Entering our third generation of leadership, we remain a studio of civic-minded design professionals who value subtle & restrained design, rooted in context, culture & collaboration.” − C. Dinos Liollio, FAIA, Principal

liollio.com

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POWER LIST

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DOUG QUACKENBUSH

Quackenbush Architects & Planners

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Clemson University graduate, Doug Quackenbush has been practicing architecture in South Carolina for more than 37 years. He formed Quackenbush Architects & Planners in 2004, with a focus on educational, workplace and community projects. The firm has completed nearly 300 projects since its founding.

He currently serves as a member of the board of directors and Preservation Committee chair for Historic Columbia; member of the board of directors for the 701 Center for Contemporary Art; co-chair for the S.C. Architectural Foundation; and Regional Governor for the Southeast Region of the Association for Learning Environments. Quackenbush previously served on the Columbia Design League board, Community Design Center board and the Clemson Architectural Foundation.

His work has received more than 40 design awards and has been the subject of regional and national publications. He’s also served on design awards juries for both chapters of the American Institute of Architects and Historic Columbia. A licensed architect, he is certified by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. He is also a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited professional. He is a past president of the American Institute of Architects South Carolina Chapter

and recently served as chair for the S.C. Center for Architecture Steering Committee.

Quackenbush received the AIA SC Presidential Citation Award in 2019. He also received the Cathedral Building Award from City Year Columbia in 2018.

Congratulations, Doug! And a big thank you to our clients - for the opportunity to create unique spaces and buildings that support teaching, learning, working, and resiliency.

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POWER LIST

NovemberNovember 22 - December 5, 2021 2021 15 - 28,

HEATHER MITCHELL Boudreaux

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eather Mitchell, who has been with Boudreaux for 26 years and who has been president since 2006, has led design teams for notable and award-winning projects throughout the state, including USC’s School of Law and Campus Village, Clemson University’s Douthit Hills Student Community and Samuel J. Cadden Chapel, the Cathy Novinger Girl Scout Leadership Center, North Augusta’s Municipal Center, and the renovation of Richland Main Library.

Mitchell helped launch the Riley Mayors’ Design Fellowship, an annual program that helps mayors envision and implement projects that positively impact the built and natural environment, quality of life and economic development in their cities and towns.

Boudreaux designed its own studio as part of an award-winning historic rehabilitation which includes the boutique Hotel Trundle. Mitchell has spoken on tax incentives as a tool for downtown revitalization at the Municipal Elected Officials Institute at the Municipal Association of South Carolina, the S.C. Chapter of the American Planning Association Conference, and in many South Carolina towns and cities.

She serves on the executive committee and is chair elect of Columbia’s City Center Partnership. She was a founding and 11-year board member of One Columbia for Arts and Culture and is an executive committee member for the Columbia Chamber of Commerce.

She is a member of the Midlands Business Leadership Group, for

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which she helped create Capture Columbia, a Midlands talent retention program for summer interns.

She was a 2020 S.C. Women in Business Honoree, 2019 Columbia Regional Business Report Phenom and a member of the Liberty Fellowship Class of 2017. In addition, she received the Leadership Columbia Alumni Award 2008, was a member of Leadership South Carolina Class of 2008, and was in Leadership Columbia Class of 2006.

KEITH M. CLARKE MCA Architecture Inc.

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1987 graduate of Clemson University, Keith M. Clarke is now president and CEO of MCA Architecture. He joined MCA as an intern architect in 1987, was named a shareholder in 1994, and became president and CEO in 2000, responsible for executing the MCA business plan to achieve goals and objectives, as well as for overseeing the work of all company disciplines to ensure compliance with project scope, cost estimates and schedule requirements.

He has served as project architect for Red Rock Development since its inception, with more than 20 million square feet of industrial space built over a 12-state area. He has served as project architect for Dominion Energy, formerly SCANA Corp., since 2004 with more than 50 projects completed, including the design and master plan of their 500,000-squarefoot headquarters campus, providing office and support facilities for more

than 1,400 employees.

Some of his most recent projects include the ACL Airshop in Greenville, GE Advanced Manufacturing Works in Greenville, Absolute Haitian Manufacturing Facility in Mon-

cks Corner and Softbox Temperature Control Packaging in Greenville.

A Registered Professional Architect since 1993, he also serves as a member of the board of trustees for Claflin University.

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POWER LIST

JUDY DIXON

Rush Dixon Architects

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fter graduating from Virginia Tech in 1993 with a bachelor’s degree in architecture, Judy Dixon started her career a year later as an intern with Stubbs Muldrow Herin Architects, rising through the ranks to become a principal in the firm. She left SMHA to join forces with her husband, first with Rush3 Product Design Studio. In 2014, they then launched Rush Dixon Architects.

Dixon has built a diverse portfolio, with projects that include the Daniel Island Recreation Center, Firefly Distillery and Santee Cooper’s Camp Hall Village. A registered architect in South Carolina, Dixon also is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited by the U.S. Green Building Council. Throughout her career, she has served in a variety of leadership roles, including on the board of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce and as chair of Leadership Charleston. She also supports organizations like ACE Mentors, Turning Leaf Project, Fresh Future Farm and the Paul R. Williams

Student Scholarship. The latter honors the first licensed African-American member of the American Institute of Architects by supporting young African-American architecture students

SCOTT JOHNSTON Johnston Design Group

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cott Johnston is an established leader in restorative design with extensive experience in intergenerational town center mixed-use design, custom residential, office, retail, hospitality and health care design. He served as Architect of Record for the S.C. Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, Upstate Forever Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum Home Office and several highrise mixed-use developments in Greenville and Richmond, Va. Johnston was the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited professional in private practice in South Carolina, and his firm was the initial signatory of the Architecture 2030 commitment to a carbon-neutral

supporting workforce development...

future. The studio delivered the first Southface Institute EarthCraft Home, EarthCraft Multifamily Development and the first LEED Platinum building in South Carolina. Johnston Design Group also has created several net-zero buildings throughout the state. Johnston serves as guest faculty at Clemson and Furman Universities, the American College of Building Arts, Anderson University and the S.C. Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities. He has won the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Energy Star Award, Upstate Forever Innovator of the Year, as well as numerous national and regional design awards.

MICHAEL W. SPIVEY Spivey Architects Inc.

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Clemson University graduate, Michael W. Spivey interned with what is now LS3P Architects from 19731974 and 1976-1977 before becoming licensed in 1978. He co-founded George Cook Construction Inc. and for the first

five years, acted as contractor for every home he designed. In 1981, he founded Michael W. Spivey & Associates Inc., and then in 2000, Spivey and Grady Woods co-founded Spivey & Woods Architects Inc. Ten years later, Spivey bought out Woods and formed Spivey Architects Inc., taking on projects all over South Carolina, including high-end residential and master planning projects, country club and resort facilities, doctor and dental offices, financial institutions, office buildings, restaurants, leasehold improvements and commercial interior design projects. Spivey is a three-time winner of the Charleston Contractors’ Association for Architectural Excellence and a silver award recipient for Outstanding Project Worldwide by The Bomanite Co. He also was published in Pinnacle Publishing’s Luxury Homes of the Carolinas. Spivey is past president of Charleston Public Facilities Corp., past director of the Charleston Chapter of South Carolina American Institute of Architects, commodore of James Island Yacht Club and president of the Charleston Rotary Breakfast Club. He has been certified with the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards since 1982. He also holds two U.S. product patents and became a licensed pilot at age 50.

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GABLE STUBBS

SGA | NarmourWright Design

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prac t icing architect for more than 35 years, Gable Stubbs has extensive experience in planning, design and construction of institutional, education, corporate and commercial projects. He holds a Masters of Architecture, a Bachelor of Science in design from Clemson University and a bachelor’s in art history from the University of South Carolina. Throughout his career, Stubbs has been a principal, founder and partner in multiple architectural firms in the Upstate and has received a number of recognitions, including an American Institute of Architects merit award as class speaker for his Leadership Greenville class and being named to Greenville Business Magazine’s Best and Brightest 35 & Under list. Stubbs says his signature accomplishments are the impacts that his professional work and community engagement have made on clients, users and the community. As an architect, he

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POWER LIST is also proud to have been able to be a part of projects that have shaped and influenced individuals, organizations and communities across the state.

DOUGLAS E. FRASER JHS Architecture

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1979 graduate of Louisiana Tech University, Douglas E. Fraser has built a 43-year career in architecture — 32 of which have been with JHS Architecture. In 2007, he was named president of the firm, which is organized into teams specializing in corporate, educational, health care and resort multi-family projects. The team director is responsible for each project and is involved from initial concept design and programming through construction.

Since its founding, JHS Architecture has completed a diverse array of projects, including numerous medical/health care and educational facilities and complex projects like the Billy Graham Library and Hammock Beach. The latter, a 370-

unit mixed-use condominium resort located in Palm Coast, Fla., sits on the 18th green of a Jack Nicklaus golf course overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Fraser is married and has three children and four grandchildren.

LOUIS P. BATSON III Batson Associates Inc.

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Clemson graduate, Louis P. Batson III founded Batson Associates Inc. in Greenville in 1981. The firm’s first project a year later was a masonry retaining wall at the offices of C. Douglas Wilson & Company in Greenville. Since then, the firm has completed many major projects, including St. Francis Women’s Hospital in Greenville and Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center’s seven-level, 170,500-square-foot surgery tower in Charlotte, the McCall Hospice House in Simpsonville and the Clemson University School of Nursing. Batson Associates also led site selection and design for the

new Monastery of St. Clare in Travelers Rest, which earned a Silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, and was responsible for the master plan, historical renovation and expansion at Greenville High School.

The firm further donated the design and construction of the Treetop Clinic for Roper Mountain Science Center’s Out on a Limb treehouse competition. Batson Associates celebrates its 40-year anniversary with the completion of Presbyterian Village Athens, a 72-acre life plan community in Athens, Ga. Within the Southeast, Batson is the first architect to receive the National Council of Architectural Registration Board’s President’s Service Award and has served on and chaired the S.C. State Board of Architectural Examiners and the Southern Conference National Council of NCARB Architect Registration Examination Committee.

2021

Architects Power List Louis P. Batson III Chairman

L E A D E R S H I P

M A T T E R S

CONGRATULATIONS to Louis P. Batson III for being named one of the 30 most influential architects in South Carolina. Louis is committed to serving his clients with integrity and creative design solutions.

For over 40 years, Louis has cultivated this atmosphere at Batson Associates, Inc. Thank you, Louis, for your leadership!

MARC WARREN, AIA LEED AP BD+C Vice President, Architecture | Goodwyn Mills Cawood | Columbia, SC

Congratulations, Marc! We’re grateful for your leadership and passion for our company’s mission to build communities that thrive.

Architecture & Engineering ARCHITECTURE, PLANNING + INTERIORS

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November 15 - 28, 2021 November 22 - December 5, 2021

MARC MARCHANT LS3P

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a r c Marchant, a graduate of Clemson University and the Charles E. Daniel Center for Building Research and Urban Studies in Genoa, Italy, has been with LS3P since he first interned with them in 1996.

Today, he serves as the CEO. Marchant has worked on award-winning projects that include Trident Technical College’s S.C. Aeronautical Training Center, Medical University of South Carolina’s Children’s Health R. Keith Summey Medical Pavilion, Trident Technical College Nursing and Science Building, Roper St. Francis Mount Pleasant Medical Office, Roper St. Francis Support Service Office, MUSC Children’s Research Institute, MUSC Heart and Vascular Center and Palmetto Health Cancer Center and Brain Research MRI Suite. A frequent guest lecturer within the industry, community and academia on leadership and design, Marchant is a registered architect in the Carolinas and Georgia and holds numerous professional certifications and affiliations, including being a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited professional with the U.S. Green Building Council and a member of the American Institute of Architects and the National Council of Architectural Registration Board. He is the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce board chair and serves on the Charleston County Board of Zoning Appeals, Trident CEO Council, Clemson Architectural Foundation and Trident United Way Campaign. He also served with Charleston County’s Historic Preservation Commission, Clemson University’s Humanities Advancement board, AIA Academy of Architecture for Health board, AIA South Atlantic Region Conference and as an active member of St. John’s Lutheran Church.

EDWARD T. ZEIGLER JR. Craig Gaulden Davis Inc.

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dward T. Zeigler Jr. is the principal, president and CEO of Craig Gaulden Davis Inc., with whom he has worked for 38 years. Throughout his tenure, he has led project efforts throughout South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia. In 2018, Zei-

PP O OW W EE RR LL II SS TT gler opened an office in Baltimore. In April 2018, Mayor Knox White awarded Zeigler the Mayor’s Commendation in recognition of and appreciation for his outstanding contribution to the improvement of the community. Zeigler is known for community and civic involvement, working with Art in Public Places, Artisphere and Greenville’s Design Guidelines Steering Committee, City Park Steering Committee, Traffic Calming Task Force and Construction and Maintenance Board of Appeals. Zeigler served as a director for the Clemson Architectural Foundation and served on the boards of Greenville Theater and the S.C. Independent Colleges and Universities. He has participated at his children’s schools, working with the Parent Teacher Association at Augusta Circle and in other roles at Greenville High School. Zeigler has served in many leadership roles with the American Institute of Architects since 1980, and in 2014 was elevated to the AIA College of Fellows. Zeigler was in Leadership Greenville’s 15th class, serving in various leadership roles. He has been an active participant with the Chamber of Commerce since 1983 and is a member of Accelerate Greenville, driving economic momentum. In 2019, Zeigler received the Distinguished Leadership Greenville Alumni Award.

TARA B. HILE

SHLTR Architects LLC

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ara B. Hile knew she wanted a career in design and architecture and headed directly toward that goal at age 17 when she enrolled at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

In 2002, she graduated with a degree in architecture. Since then, Hile has focused on mixed-use, family urban development centers, first working in Charlotte before relocating to Greenville in 2009 to work with McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture. She remained there for several years before partnering with Chesley White to establish SHLTR Architects LLC in 2016, where she serves as principal today. Since its establishment, the firm has six full-time architects and is continuously growing.

Hile is currently working on several adaptive reuse projects, bringing historic buildings in the area back to life. She is a member of American Institute of Architects and the Urban Land Institute, as well as a founding board member for the Upstate chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women.

MARGIE LONGSHORE SMHa Inc.

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ince 2000, Margie Longshore has been practicing architecture in Charleston, following her graduation from Auburn University.

In 2019, she became a partner and principal with SMHa, Inc., and was named president in 2021.

During recent years, her work has more specifically focused on adaptive reuse, renovation and educational projects.

Longshore has received awards for projects that she worked on, including recognition for design excellence from the City of Charleston, local and state American Institute of Architects chapters, A4LE, the Preservation Society of Charleston and the Historic Charleston Foundation.

Longshore is a historic preservation commissioner for Charleston County and past president of AIA Charleston. She also has served on the AIA S.C. Board of Directors and as director of the Design Awards. Additionally, Longshore has held an ongoing role as a mentor for students in Clemson’s Architecture Center in Charleston.

MARC WARREN

Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood

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hough Marc Warren isn’t a South Carolina native, he has called Columbia his home for more than 26 years since beginning his career with a local firm. He became an associate of the firm in 2000 and a principal four years later.

In 2017, Warren opened the Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood’s Columbia office, and today he is vice president of architecture, overseeing offices in Columbia and Greenville. He helps develop practice standards and growth strategies firmwide. Warren has successfully designed and managed more than 3 million square feet of new construction and renovation projects across the Southeast. He has designed several award-winning projects throughout his career, most recently the Graniteville Elementary School addition and renovation project, which received an American Institute of Architects S.C. Design Award in 2020 for adaptive reuse, and an honor award from the S.C. Chapter of the Association for Learning Environments in 2021. He has worked with several university clients throughout his career and designed notable commercial

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and institutional facilities throughout the state. Warren has served in various leadership roles as AIA Greater Columbia past president, board member and design director; AIA South Carolina section director, board member and education committee chairman; Jeep Rogers YMCA board chairman and facility committee chairman and Columbia YMCA Metro board member. He currently serves on the City of Columbia Retention and Redevelopment Committee. He earned his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in architecture from State University of New York at Buffalo. He is Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited and National Council of Architectural Registration Boards certified.

RON SMITH

McMillan Pazdan Smith Architecture

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1983 Clemson University graduate, Ron Smith is an original founder of McMillan Smith & Partners — a predecessor of McMillan Pazdan Smith’s current firm — where he began building and maintaining client relationships. He has experience designing and delivering a wide variety of projects for various industries, and his work has been recognized with awards and featured publications.

Smith is a member of the Spartanburg Council of Architects, the S.C. American Institute of Architects, American Institute of Architects and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. He has received the Spartanburg Chamber of Commerce Small Business Person of the Year Award and the Wofford College Distinguished Citizen Award. Smith is an avid sports and recreation enthusiast, and has worked on more than 60 college campuses in the Southeast, in addition to his long list of civic, housing and K-12 projects. Two of his favorite projects include Spartanburg’s Barnet Park and Wofford College’s Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. Smith has served on the Spartanburg Convention and Visitors Bureau board, Spartanburg Downtown’s Rotary Club, the Leadership Spartanburg Board of Regents and as chairman of the Group of 100 in Spartanburg. He is a past chairman of the Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System’s Foundation Heart Center Board.

Smith served as a past member of the Presbyterian College School of Pharmacy Council of Mentors advisory committee.

He is a former president of the Spartanburg Country Club and a past member of the Spartanburg Regional Hospital Foundation Board of Directors.

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ROBBY AULL

SSOE | Stevens & Wilkinson

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ith 31 years’ experience, Robby Aull has accomplished numerous projects across the country.

Primarily focused on health care facilities, local projects include Prisma Health Heart Hospital and Prisma Health Bynoe Surgical Trauma Intensive Care Unit in Columbia, the Prisma Health Parkridge Ambulatory Building in Irmo and Medical University of South Carolina James E. Clyburn Research Center in Charleston, to name a few. Aull is principal and senior vice president of SSOE | Stevens & Wilkinson, a leading architectural and engineering firm with more than 1,000 employees and 18 offices worldwide. He earned his bachelor’s degree and Master of Architecture – Health Care Facilities Design, from Clemson University and studied at the European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies in Genoa, Italy. He is a member of American Institute of Architects’ South Carolina chapter, the Academy of Architecture for Health and is a founding member of American College of Healthcare Archi-

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POWER LIST tects. A former board member of the AIA Academy of Architecture for Health, Aull is recognized as an expert in the design of health care facilities.

SCOTT GARVIN

Garvin Design Group

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cott Garvin graduated from Clemson University in 1984 and two years later received his Masters in Architecture from the same college. He also spent a semester in Italy for overseas study. After working in Greenville for a few years, Garvin relocated to Columbia where he has practiced architecture in the region for three decades and established Garvin Design Group in 2003. He has been involved in more than $1 billion worth of projects since starting Garvin Design Group.

The firm has won more than 49 state, regional and national awards, including American Institute of Architects South Carolina’s Firm Award in 2019. GDC’s most recent accolades include awards for adaptive reuse and historic preservation from the S.C. Office of the Governor and the AIA South Atlantic Region. Last year,

Congratulations to Joel M. Carter on being selected as a Power List Architect!

the firm was named the Columbia Chamber’s Small Business of the Year. During his career, Garvin has been responsible for the adaptive reuse of many of Columbia’s historic buildings. He has served as a Clemson Architectural Foundation Trustee from 2007 to 2019 and as the group’s president in 2013. He and his wife made the lead gift for the new Kate L. Schwennsen Scholarship Endowment for Architectural Excellence in Clemson University’s School of Architecture. Garvin is a member of AIA and NCARB. He is also a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accredited professional.

MYLES GLICK

Glick Boehm and Associates Inc.

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yles Glick graduated in 1973 from the University of Cincinnati with a Bachelor of Science in architecture. Upon graduation, he worked as a design manager and became director of design and construction for the Kiawah Island Co. In March 1981, he opened Glick Boehm and Associates, Inc., serving as the firm’s president. In 1978, he won two of the honor awards for design excellence from the S.C. American Institute of Architects chapter for Beach Walker Park and the Sparrow Pond Cottages, both located on Kiawah Island. In 1999, he was named Architect of the Year by the Charleston Contractors Association. He won an honor award for design excellence for First Citizens Bank Building from SCAIA. In 2020, GBA was selected to design the Congressional Medal of Honor Museum at Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant. Since 1981, Glick has created an office environment to design award-winning architectural solutions and to achieve a 92% client repeat. In addition to the traditional practice of architecture, Glick has a reputation as a forensic architect throughout the Southeast region.

JOEL CARTER

Jumper Carter Sease Architects Joel M. Carter, AIA, Principal, Jumper Carter Sease Architects.

412 Meeting Street West Columbia, SC 29169 www.jhsarchitects.com

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pon graduation from Clemson University’s College of Architecture, Joel Carter joined Drafts & Jumper Architects as an associate.

In 1991, he then became a registered architect and partner in the firm when it was renamed to Jumper Carter Sease Architects. Since then, Carter and his partner, Todd Sease,

have strategically grown the firm from six to 23 employees. Jumper Carter Sease Architects has provided architectural services throughout the state and specializes in K-12 public school, medical, corporate and religious architectural design. The firm’s most notable recent projects include River Bluff High School, the Lexington Two Innovation Center, the St. Stephen Lutheran Church expansion, Nephron Pharmaceuticals, Riverbanks Zoo and Garden and Lexington Medical Center’s newest facility, Lexington Medical Center Northeast’s Urgent Care and Acute Surgery Center. Carter serves on Newberry College’s board of trustees and was recently honored with the Noah and Pansy Derrick Outstanding Friend of the College Award.

He also served as a trustee with the Clemson Architectural Foundation, co-chaired the Associated General Contractors of America and American Institute of Architects Joint Committee and served on various committees with AIA’s South Carolina chapter. Carter is a member of the Lexington County Board of Adjusters and the Lexington Chamber of Commerce.

J. MICHAEL TAYLOR DP3 Architects, Ltd.

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Clemson Un i v e r s i ty graduate and LEED-accredited professional, J. Michael Taylor founded DP3 Architects, Ltd., in 1984 with two Clemson classmates. He has worked with projects for colleges and universities, including Clemson University, Furman University, Winthrop University, Anderson University and the University of South Carolina Upstate. His work has included campus master planning, student centers, student housing facilities, administration buildings, auditoriums, distant learning centers, studies and renovations to existing historic buildings, athletic facilities, and campus visualization. Taylor also has worked with municipalities to build community centers, tennis centers, recreation and fitness centers, YMCAs, clubhouse facilities and historical monuments.

With Taylor’s involvement, DP3 Architects has developed a significant project approach to restaurant concept design and implementation. Taylor’s community service includes the City of Greenville Beautification and Design and Preservation Commissions, Rotary International and Clemson Architectural Foundation Board of Directors. He is a member of Tau Sigma Delta Honorary Fraternity for Architecture and the Allied Arts, American Institute of Architects’ South Carolina chapter, NCARB and the U.S. Green Building Council.

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In Focus

NEXT ISSUE’S FOCUS:

MANUFACTURING LISTS: Manufacturers, Page 37 | Largest Employers, Page 38

Architecture, Engineering and Construction

Event showcases manufacturing careers

By Christina Lee Knauss

S

Contributing Writer

tudents from around the Midlands learned about career opportunities in manufacturing last month through a special event on the campus of Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp. in West Columbia.

The Creators Wanted workforce development exhibition made its only South Carolina stop at the West Columbia plant. It is the brainchild of The National Association of Manufacturers and its workforce development and education partner The Manufacturing Institute. The touring exhibit was developed as a way to both showcase careers in manufacturing and inspire future creators.

One goal, organizers said, is for young people inspired by the exhibit to eventually help ease the ever-increasing national shortage of employees needed to fill a growing number of manufacturing jobs.

“We’re out here to inspire, educate and empower young people about choosing careers in manufacturing,” said Chrys Kefalas, vice president of brand strategy for the National Association of Manufacturers. “There are currently 900,000 open jobs in manufacturing in the U.S. — a record — and there’s going to be a need for 4 million manufacturing jobs here between now and 2030, and we want to show the students what these careers have to offer them.”

Representatives from area manufacturers such as Trane Technologies, Honda and Nephron were on hand for the three-day event Oct. 20-22 with information about their products and career opportunities. PTC, a software developer, also had a display showing how augmented reality can be used to help workers in the field access information to fix a wide variety of products.

The biggest feature of the exhibit showcased an RV set up with a series of “escape room”-type features centered around manufacturing. It worked just like the popular attractions of the same name that require participants to solve a riddle or mystery before they can leave a locked room, only in this case students had to use math, science and logic skills to solve manufacturing-related problems.

On the exhibit’s first day, more than 250 area students toured the event’s

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster talks with a group of high school students (above) and checks out an exhibit (left) at the Creators Wanted workforce development exhibition. The three-day event, held last month at Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp., aimed to educate young people about the benefits of careers in manufacturing.

(Photos/Christina Lee Knauss)

various features. S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster joined with Nephron owner and CEO Lou Kennedy to take the tour with a group of students from Brookland-Cayce and Airport high schools who study at the Innovation Center in Lexington School District 2. Many of the students who attended are juniors and seniors interested in science and technology who are beginning to seriously consider career paths.

Kennedy said the exhibition offers her company and others an important chance to let young people know just how much the manufacturing sector in South Carolina has to offer them.

“Students need to be aware that

many of these jobs we are talking about are high-paying jobs, with salaries in the mid-70s, which is much higher than the average salary in South Carolina,” Kennedy said. “There’s no need for our students to be looking out of state when we have these kinds of jobs right here in the Midlands. We encourage students to look at what we at Nephron have to offer — we’re hiring at all levels — and we encourage them look at what other companies have to offer, and use all the opportunities available to them.”

Kennedy said she also encourages other manufacturing companies to reach out to their local schools to promote career opportunities through

programs such as youth apprenticeships.

“I tell companies that if you’re not involved in your local schools, you’re missing out on opportunities to find future employees,” she said.

“Our goal in being out here is to make sure these students understand there are lots of opportunities for them with us,” said Gregg Krick, plant manager at Trane Technologies, which builds HVAC equipment at its plant off Interstate 77 in northeast Columbia near Blythewood. “We recently quadrupled our workforce and expanded our facility and we’re going to need even more employees in the near future. I’m impressed because I’ve already talked with several students who have a genuine interest in what we do.”

Kefalas estimated that 500 area students would have taken part in Creators Wanted by the time the exhibition closed.

November 22 - December 5, 2021

MANUFACTURING, from Page 1

Charleston area to locate new facilities.

In seeking new manufacturers, Richland County is hoping for a larger piece of the manufacturing pie which already directly or indirectly employs more than 700,000 South Carolinians at 6,000 facilities statewide, according to statistics compiled by the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.

In Richland County, manufacturing employs more than 8,000 residents.

Ryan Coleman, director of Columbia Economic Development, said 2020 was a banner year for manufacturing in the city with Mark Anthony’s announcement. The county received a record $638 million in new capital investment in 2020 and added a total of 1,377 jobs.

Other 2020 needle-movers included Xplor Boatworks’ $3.4 million manufacturing facility, which created 34 jobs, and a $2.3 million expansion by technology company Capgemini of its BullStreet District operations that added 150 jobs.

The challenge now, Coleman said, is attracting more companies to the area at a time when the city has a shortage of available facilities for them to move into.

Coleman said many manufacturers are looking for existing facilities that are “move-in ready” because the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused supply chain issues that in turn are driving up the costs of construction supplies as well as putting a premium on available industrial real estate.

“Some of the industrial market reports right now show that Columbia’s industrial occupancy is at about 96%, and that’s a downside because there’s a lot of demand out there and a lot of our product is leased up right now,” Coleman said. “The issue right now is to attract more manufacturers like Mark Anthony who want to build new facilities from scratch.”

One answer to the problem is to attract more attention to the area’s industrial parks like Pineview, also home to the China Jushi fiberglass facility which opened in 2016. Coleman said there is also plenty of acreage available in northeast Richland County near Blythewood, where the $26.2 million, 1,348-acre Blythewood Industrial Park is now open for business.

Jeff Ruble, director of economic development for Richland County, said the formula that worked to bring Mark Anthony to Columbia will be key in attracting future manufacturers’ interest.

Ruble recalled that when he first got into economic development in the early 1090s, many prospective manufacturers avoided the Richland County area because of a strong union presence at the Mack truck plant that was formerly located in Winnsboro in nearby Fairfield County.

“Consultants would kind of draw a circle around the whole area and say ‘We’re not going anywhere near there,’ and Rich-

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

land County fell behind because of that at no fault of its own,” Ruble said.

“I think we’re now catching up and we’re poised for steady, prolific growth in manufacturing growth over the next decade.”

Ruble said the industrial parks as well as the area’s utility system offer automatic incentives for companies seeking available real estate as well as resources to meet their needs.

He said another asset that Richland County offers manufacturers is “an abundance of talent,” including more than 50,000 college students in the immediate area as well as personnel emerging from service at Fort Jackson and Shaw Air Force Base in nearby Sumter.

“You’re looking at between 60 to 80 transitions from the military to the civilian work force a month. That kind of talent is hard to replicate,” Ruble said. “All in all, we’ve got a lot of good, smart young people who are ready to work and that number is growing.”

One thing that has kept some manufacturers away from the area in the past is the city of Columbia and Richland County’s higher taxes compared to other locations such as nearby Lexington County, as well as Greenville and Charleston. The higher tax rate is due in large part to the looming presence of two of its largest, tax-exempt

“The issue right now is to attract more manufacturers like Mark Anthony who want to build new facilities from scratch.”

Ryan Coleman Director, Columbia Economic Development

employers — state government and the University of South Carolina.

The county and city are finding ways around that, however, with incentive programs designed to attract large corporate investments.

In 2019, the city of Columbia and Richland County teamed up on an inventive program that offers a 50% tax reduction to businesses and developers on commercial projects worth more than $30 million.

Developers have until 2022 to apply for the tax incentive.

Ruble noted that state tax credits and infrastructure grants helped lure Mark Anthony, as well as a $1.5 million grant from Richland County.

While Mark Anthony is by far the largest new project to impact Richland

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 37

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster tours the expanded Trane manufacturing plant in northeast Columbia in 2019. The facility manufactures HVAC equipment. (Photo/File)

County in the past five years, other area manufacturers are also expanding their facilities and operations.

REI Automation recently cut the ribbon on a new headquarters building on Veterans Road in Columbia.

REI designs and builds assembly lines and robotics for manufacturers around the U.S. and worldwide, primarily serving customers in the medical, nuclear, consumer goods, electronics and automotive industries.

“We’ve experienced pretty tremendous growth over the past five years and we were out of room for our engineers and technicians,” said REI Automation CEO Grant Phillips. “The new headquarters doubles the amount of space for engineering and design groups, and also gives us new room for our research and development for new technologies.”

Trane, which makes HVAC equipment at its facility off Interstate 77 in northeast Richland County, has increased its workforce from 350 employees to more than 1,300.

Leaders in area industries and the community agree that one of the biggest challenges facing manufacturing is a hiring crunch, partially spurred by the pandemic and also by the difficulties of getting many younger workers to consider a career in manufacturing.

Part of it is an image problem, industry insiders say.

Many prospective employees grow up with older images of dirty, dangerous factories — an image not reflected in the high-tech, cleaner state-of-the-art facilities being built now, or in the salaries offered by manufacturing careers.

Chrys Kefalas, vice president of brand strategy for the National Association of Manufacturers, said hiring is a concern for the manufacturing sector nationwide.

He cited statistics which show 900,000 open manufacturing jobs in the U.S. as of October – an industry record – and anticipated needs for 4 million more between now and 2030.

As a result, manufacturers in Rich-

land County are doing whatever it takes to reach out to prospective new hires, relying on everything from social media campaigns and job fairs to online efforts such as the SC Future Makers (SCFuturemakers.com) project run by the South Carolina Manufacturers Association, which seeks to partner manufacturers and schools.

The initiative offers a one-stop online portal where companies can post information about their industry and how to apply for career opportunities.

REI currently employs about 80 people at the Veterans Road facility and will be hiring employees throughout the next year, Phillips said. He said the company maintains strong relationships with the University of South Carolina, Clemson University and Midlands Technical College to attract graduates to REI, and also has been expanding its outreach in the general job market.

The Trane plant is employing a multiprong plan to attract new talent, according to Arthur Dunn, human resources leader at the plant. He said Trane is doing everything from getting the company’s name out in the community through outreach programs to direct involvement in area schools.

Trane, for instance, has been a big donor to the National Association of Black Engineers’ chapter at Blythewood’s Westwood High School. The company is also using the latest technology to enable prospective employees to apply for positions by scanning a special QR code with their smartphones.

“We’re making sure that people understand there are a lot of opportunities here at Trane, whether it’s in production, engineering, safety and health. There are so many places to go within the company,” Dunn said. “Manufacturing is not what it used to be. We have a state-of-the art building and a clean working environment and it’s a fun place to come to work.

It’s all about building a strong pipeline for people to come here to grow and develop.”

38

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 22 - December 5, 2021

Internet exchange poised to ramp up South Carolina’s connectivity

By Melinda Waldrop

T

mwaldrop@scbiznews.com

he average internet user probably doesn’t give much thought to how information shared or requested arrives at its final destination.

But in South Carolina, that process is about to undergo a significant change.

DartPoints, an owner and operator of 11 edge colocation data centers in six states, is creating the Palmetto State’s first internet exchange. The exchange will allow internet infrastructure companies such as service providers and content delivery networks to connect with each other, shortening the routes data travels, increasing efficiency and potentially reducing costs.

“This is the first step in creating a state, in the state of South Carolina, that is internet-independent,” DartPoints CEO Scott Willis said during an announcement of the internet exchange, called Bridge IX, in Columbia on Nov. 10.

“The internet exchange is the central hub for all content and applications to reach businesses, schools and homes.

The internet exchange will allow companies of all sizes to bring their services into South Carolina, which will improve performance, increase access and lower costs to further bridge the digital divide across the state.”

An internet exchange allows a state to stop importing and exporting data, Willis said when a similar program was launched in Iowa in June.

Internet exchange points serve as a digital train conductor, routing traffic between different member networks.

ISPs and CDNs exist of the “edge” of networks and allow network providers to share transit outside of their individual networks. Inside an internet exchange point, those companies can talk directly to each other.

“We’re building a digital airport,” Willis said. “If I’m in Charleston and I want to fly to Greenville, digitally, I’ve got to fly to Charlotte, I’ve got to fly to Atlanta, I’ve got to fly to Northern Virginia, I’ve got to fly to Dallas, I’ve got to fly to Chicago to connect and then drop back into Greenville. We’re eliminating that.

“If you’re in Charleston, we’re going to make you digitally (able to) connect into Greenville, and we’re going to do it in a way that is more competitive, more cost-effective, and enables not only the businesses here but the businesses that are looking to come here to leverage that as they look to be more competitive for their customers inside the state.”

The new technology of Bridge IX will be coupled with DartPoints’ Liq-

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster addresses a crowd assembled at 701 Whaley Street in Columbia on Nov. 10 to learn details of DartPoints’ plans for South Carolina’s first internet exchange. (Photo/Melinda Waldrop)

uid Edge, the state’s first two-phase liquid immersion cloud solutions delivery platform, to further boost South Carolina’s internet efficacy.

A two-phase immersion cooling system submerges electronic components at data centers in a bath of dielectric heat transfer liquid, which conducts heat better than air, water or oil, and is nonflammable and environmentally friendly. No pumps or jets are required to cool the hardware, resulting in a 90% efficiency advantage compared to air cooling, according to technology website gigabtye.com.

In addition, eliminating heat sinks and cooling fans means computing parts can be closer together, which can increase computing power as much as tenfold.

Components not subject to temperature variations are also less likely to failure and require less maintenance.

All of those advantages can combine to decrease a company’s downtime, or latency, in tech terminology.

“Whether it’s artificial intelligence, whether it’s autonomous vehicles, whether it’s agricultural, whether it’s industrial — if you think about where businesses are going and the demands of those use cases, they’re far more latency-sensitive than what current uses cases are today,” Willis said.

“South Carolina has a heavy manufacturing base and infrastructure from a business perspective. Three, four, five and 10 years ago, in manufacturing, it was all about employees on a manufacturing floor handling that process. Today, and where it’s going in the future, it’s all about robotics.

“Robotics requires a quick turn.

“We’re building a digital airport. If I’m in Charleston and I want to fly to Greenville, digitally, I’ve got to fly to Charlotte, I’ve got to fly to Atlanta, I’ve got to fly to Northern Virginia, I’ve got to fly to Dallas, I’ve got to fly to Chicago to connect and then drop back into Greenville. We’re eliminating that.”

Scott Willis DartPoints CEO

They can’t afford much latency. The ability to enable this technology so that you don’t have to make a trip all the way up to Northern Virginia — we’re going to enable that flight here in the state — is a huge competitive advantage.”

Areas of the state dependent on rural internet providers also stand to benefit from the increased access and potential savings of an internet exchange, DartPoints executives said.

“South Carolina right now is a state that doesn’t have any direct connectivity to the internet,” said DartPoints Chief Technology Officer Brad Alexander, who has seen positive effects of internet exchanges in large cities.

“We’re trying to bring that rich technology and the ecosystem that comes with it to an entire state. So instead of it just being a regional or a city presence, we’re bringing that type of connectivity to the state. When we bring that kind of connectivity to a state, we can get regional and national influences — business people, technologies, technologists — into our state to help our innovation efforts.”

Danny Dorsel, president of the S.C. Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics, and Bob Quinn, executive director of the South Carolina Research Authority, were among those eager to reap the rewards of direct internet connectivity.

Quinn extolled the advantages connecting businesses directly to technology could have for the state’s advanced manufacturing industry, while Dorsel envisioned more reliable learning tools and increased access to them for the hundreds of on-campus and online students his school serves.

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster praised DartPoints, a Dallas-based company that acquired Greenville-based Immedion earlier this year, for bringing cutting-edge technology to the state.

“Things have changed so fast and it’s just going faster and faster, but fortunately, because of these kinds of investments and this kind of thinking and this kind of vision, we’re able to keep up with it and stay ahead,” McMaster said. “It’s like riding that wave in the ocean. If you miss it, you miss it, but if you catch it just right, it will take you way on up.

“We’ve got to keep catching those waves.”

Since moving into South Carolina, DartPoints has made capital investments totaling $120 million in its four data centers in Columbia, Charleston, Greenville and Spartanburg, with 70% of its employees now located in the Palmetto State, Willis said. He said DartPoints supports 275 clients statewide who represent 140,000 jobs and $60 billion in annual revenue.

“We want to support the growth and the ambitions of this state through the use of technology,” Willis said. “It (the internet exchange) is a win-win for both.

We’re investing in a way that creates a benefit to the state but it also creates a benefit for DartPoints, as we want to attract enterprise and higher education and users into our environment.”

Reach Melinda Waldrop at 803-726-7542.

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 39

Manufacturers

Ranked by No. of Employees in the Columbia Area 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, Nicole Kosinski, 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

Jamie Shuster

1,180

Generic respiratory meds, 503B outsourcing

Zeus Industrial Products 3740 Industrial Blvd.

Orangeburg, SC 29118

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

Jennifer McQuesten, Steve Peterson 1966

-

1,000

High performance polymer components

Pilgrim's 2050 S. Highway 15 Sumter, SC 29150

803-481-8555 www.pilgrims.com

2009

-

800

Poultry hatchery, processing and meat packing

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

803-936-3700 www.cmc.com

Greg Brandon 1960

Charles Rogers

430

Steel bar mini mill

Nucor Corp.

200 Whetstone Road Swansea, SC 29160

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

Matt Currie, Nathan Pranger 1965

-

375

Steel and steel products

Sleep Number Corp.

630 Western Lane Irmo, SC 29063

803-749-5746 www.sleepnumber.com

Hunter Mottel 1997

-

300

Manufacturer of the Sleep Number Smart Bed

Spirax Sarco Inc. 1150 Northpoint Blvd.

Blythewood, SC 29016

1-800-883-4411 www.spiraxsarco.com/global/en-us orders@spirax.com

Ivan Gottberg 1938

-

200

Steam traps; industrial pressure valves, regulator

Sumter Packaging Corp.

2341 Corporate Way Sumter, SC 29154

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

Benjamin DeSollar, Jim Baibak 1980

Doug Copeland

100

Custom corrugated boxes, POP displays, process print flexo and diecutting, 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.reco-usa.com info@reco-usa.com

Dan Krebs, Alex Arms, Todd Antonovich 1914

William Langley

40

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

The Greenhouse Co. of South Carolina LLC 161 Green Pines Road Columbia, SC 29212

803-798-4000 www.thegreenhousecompany.net info@thegreenhousecompany.net

Judy D. Moore 2014

Judy D. Moore

13

Manufacturer of commercial greenhouses and components used to grow plants and crops undercover; manufacture and design retail areas for plants

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

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

Harold Thompson, Joann S. Keisler, James D. Keisler 1975

James D. Keisler

7

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

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

4

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

Employees

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 research@scbiznews.com.

Products Manufactured

Researched by Paige Wills

40

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

www.columbiabusinessreport.com

November 22 - December 5, 2021

Largest Employers

Ranked by No. of Employees in the Columbia Area

•

Company

Phone / Website / Email

Top Local Official(s) / Year Founded

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

803-734-0380 www.sc.gov -

Henry McMaster 1788

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

803-777-7700 www.sc.edu admissions-ugrad@sc.edu

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

Employees: Local / Statewide / Worldwide

Headquarters

Description

25,035 -

Columbia

State government

Harris Pastides 1801

5,639 5,639 5,639

Columbia

Higher education

803-231-7000 www.richlandone.org -

Craig Witherspoon 1881

4,065 4,065 4,065

Columbia

Public education

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

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

Gregory D. Little 1952

4,000 4,000 4,000

Lexington

Sixth-largest school district in S.C.

Providence Health 1 2435 Forest Drive Columbia, SC 29204

803-256-5300 www.yourprovidencehealth.com terry.gunn@providencehospitals.com

Terry Gunn 1938

1,500 -

Columbia

Cardiovascular care; medical and surgical treatment of diseases and injuries of the bones, joints and spine; outpatient and general surgery; emergency care; women's services; cardiac and physical rehabilitation.

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

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

Benny Harmse, Nicole Kosinski, Larsen Cline 2011

1,300 2,100 193,000

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

1,180 1,180 1,180

West Columbia

Generic respiratory meds, 503B outsourcing

Zeus Industrial Products 3740 Industrial Blvd.

Orangeburg, SC 29118

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

Jennifer McQuesten, Steve Peterson 1966

1,000 1,000 1,700

Orangeburg

High performance polymer components

Midlands Technical College 316 S. Beltline Blvd.

Columbia, SC 29205

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

Ronald L. Rhames 1974

900 900 900

Columbia

6-campus, two-year public college

Pilgrim's 2050 S. Highway 15 Sumter, SC 29150

803-481-8555 www.pilgrims.com -

2009

800 -

Greeley, CO

Poultry hatchery, processing and meat packing

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. 1230 Main St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-771-8700 www.firstcitizens.com -

Sharon W. Bryant 1898

572 1,344 6,850

Raleigh, NC

Financial institution

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

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

Bruce Baldwin 1925

440 440 440

Newberry

Hospital

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

803-936-3700 www.cmc.com -

Greg Brandon 1960

430 -

Irving, TX

Steel bar mini mill

Columbia International University 7435 Monticello Road Columbia, SC 29203

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

Rob Hartman , Rick Christman , Mark A. Smith 1923

411 411 411

Columbia

On-campus and online undergraduate and graduate

The SEFA Group Inc. 217 Cedar Road Lexington, SC 29073

803-520-9000 www.sefagroup.com -

Gregg Hendrix, Jim Clayton 1976

400 450 585

Lexington

Recycling coal combustion residuals into environmentally sustainable products for concrete

South State Bank 520 Gervais St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-771-2265 www.southstatebank.com -

Jack Goettee, Montague Laffitte 1934

387 1,837 5,365

Columbia

Financial services company

Nucor Corp.

200 Whetstone Road Swansea, SC 29160

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

Matt Currie, Nathan Pranger 1965

375 2,400 27,000

Charlotte, NC

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

339 511 1,630

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

326 326 326

Sumter

Mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, mobile app

Claflin University 400 Magnolia St. Orangeburg, SC 29115

803-535-5000 www.claflin.edu communications@claflin.edu

Dwaun J. Warmack 1869

325 335 -

Orangeburg

Independent, four-year, liberal arts university

Doctors Care 2601 Rosewood Drive Columbia, SC 29205

803-782-4051 www.doctorscare.com -

Shelley Janssen 1981

300 1,000 1,000

Columbia

Urgent care, family care, virtual urgent care

Sleep Number Corp.

630 Western Lane Irmo, SC 29063

803-749-5746 www.sleepnumber.com -

Hunter Mottel 1997

300 300 5,400

Minneapolis, MN

Manufacturer of the Sleep Number Smart Bed

Seibels 1501 Lady St. Columbia, SC 29201

877-734-2357 www.seibels.com marketing@seibels.com

Nan Brunson, Rex Huggins, Brad Gipson 1869

243 -

-

Policy services, claims services, accounting services, financial services

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

230 230 230

Newberry

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

226 226 226

Columbia

Independent Episcopalian day school

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 research@scbiznews.com.

1 Additional location includes Providence Health - Northeast

Researched by Paige Wills

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 22 - December 5, 2021

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 41

Largest Employers

Ranked by No. of Employees in the Columbia Area Company

Phone / Website / Email

First Community Bank 5455 Sunset Blvd.

Lexington, SC 29072

803-951-2265 www.firstcommunitysc.com -

12,000 Year History Park 1120 Fort Congaree Trail Cayce, SC 29033

Top Local Official(s) / Year Founded

Employees: Local / Statewide / Worldwide

Headquarters

Description

Michael C. Crapps 1995

204 238 257

Lexington

Commercial banking; deposits and loans

803-550-9545 www.cayce12000years.com sharris@caycesc.gov

2019

200 -

Cayce

Tours

Spirax Sarco Inc. 1150 Northpoint Blvd.

Blythewood, SC 29016

1-800-883-4411 www.spiraxsarco.com/global/en-us orders@spirax.com

Ivan Gottberg 1938

Blythewood

Steam traps; industrial pressure valves, regulator

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

803-779-2300 www.mgclaw.com -

James R. Courie 1995

182 327 632

Columbia

Law firm

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

179 301 342

Columbia

General contracting, construction management

Clayton Properties Group dba Mungo Homes 441 Western Lane Irmo, SC 29063

803-749-9000 www.mungo.com mungo@mungo.com

Steve Johnson, Geoff Shiley, Steven Mungo 1954

175 302 491

-

Residential construction

Stanley Martin Homes 100 Executive Center Drive, Suite 100 Columbia, SC 29210

803-356-8301 www.stanleymartin.com newhomes@stanleymartin.com

Mike Cancilla, Karl Haslinger 1966

165 -

-

-

Hammond School 854 Galway Lane Columbia, SC 29209

803-776-0295 www.hammondschool.org webmaster@hammondschool.org

Andrew M. North 1965

158 158 158

Columbia

College prep school for PreK-12

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

803-771-8900 www.nexsenpruet.com -

Howard Janis, Leighton Lord 1945

156 259 383

Columbia

Represents businesses

Eurovia Atlantic Coast LLC dba Blythe 3176 Charleston Highway West Columbia, SC 29172

803-791-1295 www.blytheconstruction.com ronald.vanvlake@eurovia.us

Ronald Van Vlake 1921

155 185 44,425

Columbia

Highways, utility, bridges, streets and minor roads; turnkey site developments and remediation of existing sites

Synovus 1221 Main St. Columbia, SC 29201

803-929-2010 www.synovus.com info@synovus.com

John C. Griggs, C.W. "Chuck" W. Garnett 1905

154 335 5,500

Columbus, GA

Financial services company based in Columbus, GA

Segra 1500 Hampton St. Columbia, SC 29201

833-467-3472 www.segra.com marketing@segra.com

Timothy Biltz, Jason Campbell, Grey Humphrey 1984

150 250 1,200

Columbia

Owns and operates a fiber network and provides broadband and data security solutions

200 200 5,000

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 research@scbiznews.com.

Researched by Paige Wills

SC Biz News partners with a number of uniquely qualified organizations to provide video training opportunities for business leaders at all levels.

Training Courses

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IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 22 - December 5, 2021

Hitt honored for lifetime service to manufacturing

By Ross Norton

B

rnorton@scbiznews.com

obby Hitt was presented the Human Technologies Inc. Lifetime Achievement Award on Nov. 12 at the annual SCMEP Salute to Manufacturing Awards luncheon that caps off the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo.

The award winners were announced during a special luncheon following the two-day conference and a keynote address by Gov. Henry McMaster. The governor helped present the awards along with Rick Jenkins, group publisher of SC Biz News.

Hitt served as secretary of the S.C. Department of Commerce from the time he was appointed by former governor Nikki Haley until his retirement earlier this year. A former journalist, his work in economic development began when he went to work for Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, where he played a role in recruiting BMW Manufacturing to Spartanburg County and subsequently became one of the first BMW employees.

He served as manager of public affairs for the plant until his appointment to the Commerce Department. Much of the department’s focus during his tenure was on recruiting manufacturers to the Palmetto State and growing those companies already here.

Jenkins announced that, starting with next year’s Salute to Manufacturing luncheon, the award for lifetime achievement will be named for Chuck Spangler, the late executive director of the S.C. Manufacturing Extension Partnership.

Spangler and SCMEP annually played a significant role in the overall conference and the awards ceremony.

“It’s appropriate to name the lifetime achievement award in Chuck’s memory because he dedicated so much of his life to the service of manufacturing — to raising the industry to higher standards and bringing the rest of the state up with

Bobby Hitt, former S.C. Commerce Department Secretary, is the recipient of the Human Technologies Inc. Lifetime Achievement Award, presented Nov. 12 at the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo. (Photo/File)

it,” Jenkins said.

“It didn’t feel the same hosting this year’s conference without him, but the impression he and his colleagues at SCMEP made for this industry will not soon be forgotten.”

SCMEP plays a key role in the conference, offering training courses to help make manufacturers better.

“Every year from the stage I said manufacturers in this state have no better friend than Chuck and SCMEP, and I meant it,” Jenkins said.

Other awards presented during the conference’s capstone luncheon included: • Emerging Manufacturer of the Year Awards went to Samsung Electronics Home Appliances

America LLC for large businesses and Advanced Metalworks LLC for small businesses. Alimex Precision in Aluminum was a finalist in the category.

• Humimic Medical was named Innovator of the Year. Finalists for the honor were Stanley Black & Decker and Nucor Steel.

• The Outreach Award was taken home by South Atlantic Canners while Komatsu America Corp. and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions LLC were recognized as finalists.

• Smart Move New Plant Awards were given to Leisure Pools and Spas, Mark Anthony Brewing and Niagara Bottling. The honor recognizes those companies that

chose South Carolina over other locations to invest in new facilities.

• Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp., Santa Cruz Nutritionals and Techtronic Industries received the Smart Move SC Expansion Award.

The award recognizes companies already in South Carolina that chose to spend their growth resources in the state by expanding locally.

• Pleasurecraft Engine Group won the Transformation and Operational Excellence Award. Intertape Polymer Group and Savannah River Nuclear Solutions LLC were finalists in the category.

Reach Ross Norton at 864-720-1222.

Record-setting class completes Nephron apprentice program

By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbizews.com

F

ive graduates have completed Nephron Pharmaceuticals Corp.’s 2021 Pharmacy Technician Apprentice Program with the highest grade point average and completion rate in the history of the program, started in January 2018.

The class’s completion rate of 100% and its GPA of more than 3.5 set records for the program, a partnership between Nephron and Midlands Technical College.

“We could not be more excited about this bright group of future pharmacy technicians,” Nephron CEO Lou Kennedy said in a news release. “They demonstrated precisely the kind of hard work, determination and attention to detail it

takes to excel in an increasingly competitive professional field. We look forward to watching them as they flourish into the industry leaders of tomorrow.”

The program marked Nephron’s first official apprenticeship through Apprenticeship Carolina and the U.S. Department of Labor. Students are enrolled in MTC’s seven-month pharmacy technician certification program.

Each Nephron employee will contin-

ue to work full time while completing the MTC program, with all educational costs paid by Nephron, according to the release.

The 2021 Pharmacy Technician Apprenticeship class members are: • Yulander Brown • Hannelore Ignacio • Sha’Keela Shiggs • Gabriela Solla • Michelle Whetstone

November 22 - December 5, 2021

IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

www.columbiabusinessreport.com 43

SCBIO, Clemson drive state’s growing life science industry

By Molly Hulsey

B

mhulsey@scbiznews.com

efore leaving his post at Louisiana Economic Development, South Carolina native James Chappell was a skeptic.

“Every state thinks they are going to succeed in life sciences,” Chappell said, unsure at the time whether the Palmetto State would be one of those success stories. “I started kind of doing my research, and I was blown away with all the things that have happened in South Carolina since I left, specifically in the life sciences industry.

“I was even more blown away by the last few days here and meeting a lot of people on this stage and the companies that have had unbelievable success, some in just a couple of years. I knew I made the right decision.”

The new SCBIO chief gestured to other life science leaders from around the state on the stage with him Nov. 11 at the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo: Rymedi’s David Stefanich, Clemson University’s Cynthia Young and Diversified Medical Healthcare’s Austin Shirley.

“Do you remember when BMW came to South Carolina? Do you remember before Boeing?” Chappell asked. “That’s what’s happening now, but it’s in the life sciences. Let’s look at that trend. If we keep doing the job that we should be doing, we can look back in 10 or 20 years, and the way people think about those manufacturers, they’ll think about the life sciences.”

South Carolina’s growing workforce appears to be one of the most promising catalysts of life science development in the state, he said, especially since human capital is often the weakest link in the life science supply chain – and, on a national level, it’s only getting worse, according to

SCBIO’s Erin Ford introduces James Chappel, David Stefanich, Cynthia Young and Austin Shirley on a life science panel at the S.C. Manufacturing Conference and Expo. The conference was held Nov. 10-12 at the Greenville Convention Center. (Photo/Molly Hulsey)

Young, dean of Clemson’s College of Science.

“There’s a national huge enrollment cliff coming in 2026. South Carolina is going to weather that storm beautifully,” she said. “So we want to keep these students here because everyone else is going to be poaching these students.”

Clemson University has mitigated the brain drain – and provided additional learning opportunities for students to keep apace of industry trends outside of the academic sphere – by tuning into the apprenticeship and training needs of life science partners through economic development groups like SCBIO, she said.

The school has also put a stake in the ground for investment in the field.

“One of the things we have been talking about is how do we get relevant experience here, because we know if students work here or intern here, they’ll stay here,” Young said.

She also invited companies to direct-

ly voice workforce needs to schools like Clemson.

“Who are the matchmakers?” she asked. “First and foremost, SCBIO is the matchmaker in the hub. I’ve used y’all so many times to connect with someone you were looking for. The other hub – it doesn’t matter if you’re Clemson, USC or MUSC – all of us have certain titles of people: vice president of research is a really good title to contact if it’s a startup incubator kind of thing. If you’re looking for student talent, workforce talent, most of us are deans – the dean of science or dean of engineering – but that VPR can get you to anybody. They will connect you to any of us.”

Staying in step with the tech school system has also helped keep S.C. students close to home, she said, since tech students that bridge over to university science programs are much more likely to remain in state.

And so far, it seems to be working.

“The student demand for the life sciences has been over the top,” she said.

The genetics and biochemistry program at Clemson University has grown by 50% in five years, with biology ranking among most popular major at the school.

“They’re voting with their feet,” she said. “About half of kids go on to graduate school or medical schools – a lot of MDs and Ph.D.s – but really gravitating to bench science. One thing we do really well is research, and they are all doing research projects. What they are starting to do is internships and entrepreneurial experience.”

Companies like Greenville’s Rymedi and Diversified Medical Healthcare have taken notice, as the need for not only more talent but multi-faceted talent ramps up.

Diversified Medical Healthcare has offered diagnostic tests in the area since 1991, but COVID-19 pushed the company into another league altogether with automated testing throughput of about 3,000 tests a day during the height of the pandemic, according to Shirley, vice president of commercial operations at Diversified Medical Healthcare.

But more automation didn’t mean fewer employees. Quite the contrary.

“We went from about 150 employees to about 400,” he said. “There has been tremendous growth. Now, we’re looking beyond that. So, hopefully, we’ll get some of those talented students from Clemson over there, with the help of SCBIO and the ecosystem here for the life sciences.”

Stefanich said the industry and his company has a targeted need for employees with practical experience across a variety of disciplines.

“I want you to be a master of many, not limited by one,” he said.

Reach Molly Hulsey at 864-720-1223.

Water filtration design company expanding in Richland County

By Melinda Waldrop mwaldrop@scbizews.com

W

ater filtration system engineering and design company AVANTech LLC is expanding its Richland County operations with a $3.6 million investment expected to create 17 jobs.

AVANTech, founded in 1999 in South Carolina, provides technological services for its custom systems to improve operations in commercial nuclear, government and industrial applications. Its worldwide clients include nuclear energy customers such as the U.S. Department of Energy’s

Savannah River Site.

The expansion of the company’s 30-acre facility at 2050 American Italian Way in Columbia, which will increase support capacity for its design, engineering and fabrication services, will be completed in stages throughout 2025.

“South Carolina is a great place to start a small business,” Jim Braun, AVANTech president, said in a news release. Since Tracy Barker, my co-founder, and I started the business 22 years ago, we have grown to over 200 employees serving over 15 countries due to the support of the state.

“We have provided solutions to

many of the world’s toughest problems, including radioactive water treatment after the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan and the U.S. Department of Energy high-level radioactive liquid waste tanks.”

Employment information is available at the AVANTech’s careers webpage.

“AVANTech’s expansion in Richland County is a testament to our community as a wonderful place to operate a business,” Richland County Council Chair Paul Livingston said. “Council is pleased with the company’s decision to continue growing here with support from our tremendous workforce.”

“AVANTEch’s expansion in Richland County is a testament to our community as a wonderful place to operate a business.”

Paul Livingston Richland County Council Chair

44

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IN FOCUS: MANUFACTURING

November 22 - December 5, 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN CRUNCH Delays and backlogs causing complications both at sea and on land

By Christina Lee Knauss

I

Contributing Writer

mages of packed container ships waiting for weeks to get into ports on the west coast have been in the news for the past few months, highlighting an issue that is reaching into nearly every industry and home in the U.S.: a massive supply chain crunch as the Christmas holiday nears.

A multitude of factors is causing the supply chain issues. U.S. consumers are buying goods at record levels, many of them produced overseas. The continuing pandemic has resulted in employee shortages and slowdowns at many overseas factories, creating longer wait times for shipments of everything from consumer goods to products needed by manufacturers, high tech industries and other sectors.

Finally, when the goods do get here, ports on the West Coast are backed up because of a shortage of longshoremen to unload the ships and an even more drastic shortage of available trucks and drivers to transport the shipments.

The East Coast, South Carolina included, isn’t seeing the kind of backups being experienced at ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach, Calif., but

“Every sector of the economy is different, but the constant is the truck and the driver. ... Our economy is absolutely truckdependent, and that will not change.”

J. Richards Todd President and CEO, South Carolina Trucking Association

the effects are being felt here as well, according to those involved with shipping and transportation in the state.

Imports to the Port of Charleston were up 12% year-over-year in October as the port continues to take in more retail goods than ever before, according to Liz Crumley, manager of corporate communications for the South Carolina Ports Authority.

Recent reports show that furniture imports into Charleston are up 55% year over year, and SC Ports has handled record cargo volumes – both imports and exports combined – for the past eight months.

Crumley said the dramatic increase in workload at the port hasn’t caused any severe backups, largely because of a $2 billion investment in infrastructure in recent years that increased capacity. Some examples include

modernization efforts to enable the Wando Welch Terminal to handle more cargo and bigger ships and the expansion of Inland Port Greer, which is served by rail.

Charleston also has the advantage of being the only port in the U.S. with new terminal capacity, added with the opening of phase one of the Leatherman Terminal in 2021. The expansion added more than 700,000 TEUs of capacity — a measure of volume in units of 20-foot-long shipping containers — as well as an additional berth that can accommodate mega container ships.

With forecasts showing that consumer demand is likely to remain strong for months, the Charleston port is likely to continue to see record volumes, especially retail. That amount will increase even more when

Walmart opens a nearly 3-millionsquare-foot import distribution center in Ridgeville in early 2022, a project expected to create 1,000 jobs and boost import volumes at the port by 5%.

While things at the port are moving smoothly for the most part, another industry that works hand-in-hand with the import industry is facing the brunt of the supply chain crunch.

Trucking – the industry responsible for getting two-thirds of the country’s freight to where it needs to go – is facing the worst driver shortage on record, according to statistics released by the American Trucking Association. The country currently has a shortage of about 80,000 truck drivers, a figure that has increased about 30% from before the pandemic.

The shortage is caused by an increase in the number of trucker retirements as well as a significant number of drivers who have left the nationwide fleet for other careers.

Safety and salary concerns and the long stretches away from home that come with a lot of commercial trucking jobs are keeping many potential employees away, industry leaders say.

See SUPPLY CHAIN, Page 46

At Work

PEOPLE, PLACES AND HAPPENINGS ACROSS THE MIDLANDS

People in the News CONSTRUCTION

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Brennan Reeves has joined LCK’s Columbia office as a project manager.

Before joining LCK, Reeves performed in-house construction management services for a law firm with locations throughout the Southeast.

Two executives have moved up at AgFirst Farm Credit. Jamie Bumgarner is now chief administrative officer; he had been chief stakeholder relationship officer. Juan Silvera is now chief marketing officer, a newly created position; he had been executive director of marketing and product management. Bumgarner continues to serve on the Bumgarner bank’s executive committee, which Silvera has joined. Also on the AgFirst executive team are Will Brown, chief credit officer; Steve Ciambrone, chief information officer; Steve Gilbert, chief financial officer; Chad Toney, chief information security officer; Frances Griggs, general counsel; and Dan LaFreniere, chief audit executive.

Reeves

At Mashburn Construction, Brooks Wheeler is now culture coordinator and Cameron Wegrzyn is the new controller.

Wheeler organizes health and wellness activities for the company, plans and executes internal and external events, and guides new employees. Wegrzyn assists with strategic planning and accounting oversight, with responsibility for Wegrzyn overseeing the financial operations and updating accounting procedures, internal controls, and other specialized accounting projects.

DESIGN Watson Tate Savory Architects, with offices in Columbia and Charlotte, has merged with McMillan Pazdan Smith.

Watson Tate Savory is a former AIA South Carolina Firm Award recipient; McMillan Pazdan Smith was Engineering News-Record’s Southeast Firm of the Year in 2019.

Under the agreement, McMillan Pazdan Smith will be expanding Watson Tate Savory’s Columbia office.

GOVERNMENT SERVICES Synithia Williams, general manager for Richland County Stormwater Management, is also serving as secretary/treasurer for the Southeast Stormwater Association. Williams has been a member of the association for more than 10 years, during which time she presented at many of the group’s conferences and workshops.

LAW Ben Gooding, a member of Robinson Gray law firm, has been elected to the John Belton O’Neall Inn of Court, an organization that fosters professionalism,

ethics, civility, and legal skills and mentors young attorneys. Gooding holds a bachelor of business administration in finance, magna cum laude, from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business and a juris doctor, cum laude, from the University of South Carolina School of Law. He focuses his practice on appellate advocacy, professional negligence, and commercial litigation.

In addition, Robinson Gray’s La’Jessica Stringfellow has been named to the Leadership Columbia class of 2022. Stringfellow, an associate who focuses on business and commercial litigation, did her undergraduate Stringfellow work at Virginia State University and received her JD from the University of South Carolina School of Law. Before joining Robinson Gray, she was an assistant solicitor in the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s office and served as a law clerk to Justice John Cannon Few with the South Carolina Court of Appeals and the South Carolina Supreme Court.

New to Robinson Gray is Brandon Rattray, an associate focusing on workers’ compensation.

He holds a bachelor of arts, magna cum laude, with a major in criminology and criminal justice and minors in Spanish and business administration from the Rattray University of South Carolina and received his JD from the university’s School of Law.

Gooding

REAL ESTATE Brittany Hutcherson has joined Colliers | South Carolina as a property administrator in real estate management services.

In addition to a bachelor of science from Winthrop University, Hutcherson holds Hutcherson International Code Council certifications as a permit technician, zoning inspector, and property maintenance & housing inspector. She is also a South Carolina notary public. In addition, John Gressette has joined the firm as a brokerage associate in retail services.

Gressette is a recent Gressette graduate of Clemson University with a bachelor of arts in economics.

TECHNOLOGY Savannah River National Laboratory has given James “Jim” Klein its 2021 Donald Orth Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor given by the laboratoKlein ry for technical excellence and leadership. Klein has led research and development activities and life-cycle support for tritium system and facility design, start-up, operations, and decommissioning as well as the implementation of the tritium In-Bed Accountability (Calorimetry) technique for large metal hydride beds, now the internationally accepted measurement method for this technology.

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

Pall Corp. plans 300 hires for Upstate manufacturing plant

By Ross Norton

P

rnorton@scbiznews.com

all Corp., a company in the filtration, separation and purification space of the biotechnology sector, plans to hire 300 people to staff a new 220,000-squarefoot manufacturing facility in Spartanburg County.

The newly opened site in Duncan will

make mostly single-use bioprocessing equipment, according to a news release.

“We’re excited to join the Duncan community and welcome new associates to our growing team,” Joseph Repp, president of Pall Life Sciences, said in the news release.

“Pall has a proud 75-year history of supporting development of life-saving vaccines and therapeutics.

“The important products we make here

in South Carolina are used by customers around the world and critical to Pall’s global expansion plans as we increase production globally.”

Products made at the site, including products from the company’s Allegro platform, are used in essential manufacturing steps for biotechnology and pharmaceutical products such as antibiotics, antibodies and vaccines, including COVID-19 vaccines.

Pall Corp. is headquarted in Port Washington, N.Y. In July 2021, Pall and Cytiva, companies within Danaher Corp., announced plans to invest $1.5 billion over two years to expand their operations to meet both short-term demand as well as long-term projected growth.

Reach Ross Norton at 864-720-1222.

46

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

SUPPLY CHAIN, from Page 44

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

DECEMBER 6 ARCHITECTURE, ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION (AEC) List: Engineering Companies

Advertising Deadline: November 22

DECEMBER 20 BOOK OF LISTS Advertising Deadline: November 5

JANUARY 24 2022: THE YEAR AHEAD List: Hospitals Bonus List: Urgent Care Centers

Advertising Deadline: January 10

FEBRUARY 14 ARCHITECTURE, ENGINEERING AND

“Every sector of the economy is different, but the constant is the truck and the driver,” said J. Richards Todd, president and CEO of the South Carolina Trucking Association. “When we are short drivers, plus technicians and component parts to keep them running, that equates to a shortage of trucking capacity. Our economy is absolutely truck-dependent, and that will not change.”

Leaders at Forward Air, one of the largest trucking companies transporting freight from the Charleston port, would like to grow its presence in the Charleston area because of the smooth operations at the port, but the driver shortage is preventing desired expansion, according to CEO Thomas Schmitt.

As a result, the company is doing everything possible to attract new drivers and keep its current ones, including forming a 12-member Drivers’ Board which meets quarterly to address the concerns of the company’s drivers.

“We’re doing everything we can to be more creative and safely onboard more employees, but I’m afraid the war for talent is going to be a long war, and it’s not going to get easier any time soon,” Schmitt said.

Trucking, like other industries, is finding that a hands-on approach can work to attract employees. The industry in South Carolina, through the Associated Industries of South Carolina Foundation, has formed

a workforce development program called “Be Pro Be Proud” to draw high school students and other job seekers to trucking and other skilled professions.

The SCTA has provided a tractor and custom-built trailer fitted with virtual reality stations and simulators representing the different skilled trades involved in the trucking industry. The mobile workshop travels to high schools, tech schools and other job development facilities around the state to promote the careers, and is often booked more than a year out.

Todd said the SCTA is also working to help build a high school curriculum that could be called CDL Prep, with coursework that would help prepare students for the trucking industry before they turn 18.

“If this is a career they want to pursue, we want them to get a head start,” he said.

Getting young people excited about the trucking industry is one of the primary goals of Tra Williams, CEO of Fleetforce Trucking Schools, which currently operate in Florida. Williams said he also hopes to open Fleetforce’s first school in South Carolina in the Charleston area by 2022.

“The main challenge for the industry is to remove the stigma that being a professional driver is a low-skill, low-education and low-wage opportunity,” Williams said.

“Nothing could be further from the truth. The demand for experienced professional drives cannot be overstated.”

“We’re doing everything we can to be more creative and safely onboard more employees, but I’m afraid the war for talent is going to be a long war, and it’s not going to get easier any time soon.”

Thomas Schmitt CEO, Forward Air

CONSTRUCTION (AEC) List: Engineering Companies

Advertising Deadline: January 31

DAILY REPORT

Sign up today for the Daily Report email newsletter at www.ColumbiaBusinessReport.com

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

Get your message in front of Columbia’s top CEOs, executives, business owners and decision-makers every afternoon.

For advertising information, contact Lucia Smith at (803) 726-7547 or lsmith@scbiznews.com

Viewpoint

VIEWS, PERSPECTIVES AND READERS’ LETTERS

Insurance changes give small business owners more options

T

he recently released Consumer Price Index shows that inflation is at a 30-year high.

While there are good reasons for the current inflation rate, such as supply and demand, that does not make paying higher prices on almost everything any easier on the family budget.

FRANK However, there KNAPP JR. is one dramatic exception to higher costs. An exception that can provide huge savings on the one thing that everyone should have—health insurance.

But it is not all health insurance that is costing less. Premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance continues to rise for employers and employees as it does every year.

The health insurance cost exception is on premiums paid for plans obtained through the federal Health Insurance Marketplace.

In South Carolina, individuals are now saving an average 40% on quality health insurance policies.

Nationally, four out of five consumers are now paying $10 or less a month for full coverage plans.

In fact, individuals who are barely keeping their head above water with incomes of between 100% and 150% of the federal poverty level are now paying zero premiums on great-benefit health insurance through the federal Marketplace.

Small business owners and higher income employees are also finding that they can pay less for comprehensive individual policies, plans that they could not afford before.

All this good news is the result of two federal rule changes that went into effect in March of this year.

First, the income cap for receiving premium assistance in the federal Marketplace has been lifted. Prior to this year, to qualify for any premium subsidies that make policies more affordable one could not have an income over 400% of the federal poverty level.

As a result, many small business owners have turned to low-benefit, short-term policies. They paid less in premiums but found out that the policies had little benefit except for hospitalizations.

That income limit is now gone.

Photo/File

The second rule change was a significant increase in the premium subsidies themselves, which has resulted in consumers paying far less for good policies as described above.

My organization, in a partnership with the SC Primary Health Care Association (SCPHCA), is educating small business owners about their opportunity to save on health insurance through the federal Marketplace.

While neither the SC Small Business Chamber of Commerce or SCPHCA sells health insurance, we are both dedicated to helping all South Carolinians become aware of the new access to premium assistance and dramatic decrease in what they will pay for individual policies.

Small business owners are also being encouraged to educate their employees about the now no-cost or low-cost health insurance through the Marketplace. These entrepreneurs understand that a healthy employee is a more productive employee. Having health insurance is an important way of achieving this outcome.

Assistance to understand the feder-

al Health Insurance Marketplace, compare a variety of plans available, and enroll can be obtained in two ways.

The SCPHCA is funding sixteen navigators across the state thanks to a federal grant. These navigators work for non-profit community health centers and are helping consumers review health insurance plans available to them in the federal Marketplace and assisting with enrollment. There is no cost for the service.

Consumers can also receive assistance from insurance agents/brokers registered with the federal government to enroll in these policies. Consumers opting for this help need to make sure that they are working with someone who is going to show them plans from all four insurance companies with policies on the Marketplace, not just policies offered by only one company. Most of these professionals do not charge for their services since they are compensated by commissions from the insurance companies.

Navigators and registered agents/ brokers in South Carolina can be found on HealthCare.gov.

Small business owners can also call the SC Small Business Chamber of Commerce at 803-252-5733 to have questions answered and be connected with a navigator. Membership is not required nor is there a fee for the service.

The open enrollment period for the Marketplace runs until Jan. 15. Enrollment after this date is limited to only those who have experienced some significant change in their life.

While inflation is impacting all of us, obtaining a health insurance policy through the federal Marketplace just might save you enough money to cover all your other higher costs ... and then some.

Frank Knapp is the President and CEO of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce.

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

T:10" 48

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November 22 - December 5, 2021

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AT&T Internet for Business helps protect you from cute videos that are actually malware.

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