VOLUME 24 NUMBER 22 ■ GSABUSINESS.COM
Part of the
NOVEMBER 15 - NOVEMBER 28, 2021 ■ $2.25
network
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
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)
Elected officials disagree on proper use of FILOT plans. Page 10
Innovative crescent
Next Hartness project to create place for entrepreneurs to gather. Page 31
Upstate Under Construction
Builders, designers and developers submit some of their best. Page 25
INSIDE
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
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
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
The Power of Architecture
GSA Business Report names the state’s most influential architects. Page 15
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
