Get to know new SC Aerospace Director Stephen Astemborski and learn a little more about what drew him to the Council, and what he’s jamming to currently. What are you most excited about as Director of SC Aerospace? I am most excited to work with each of our aerospace companies, non-profits, and educational institutions in […]
October 1, 2020 This morning, the SC Council on Competitiveness (the Council) released the 2020 SC Logistics Economic Impact Study, which highlighted the logistics sector’s role in South Carolina’s economy and its growth over the past decade. A major study finding was the increased interconnectivity of advanced manufacturing, logistics, and technology – advanced manufacturers are […]
South Carolina was recently ranked by PwC as the 17th best state in the nation for aerospace companies. According to PwC’s latest aerospace manufacturing attractiveness rankings report, South Carolina’s relatively low set-up costs and generous tax policies make it a business-friendly location for aerospace companies. South Carolina’s more than 400 aerospace companies are responsible for 100,000 […]
SC Aerospace Director Adrianne Beasley was featured today on South Carolina Business Review to talk about the upcoming SC Aerospace Conference and Expo Aug. 29-31 in Columbia. Beasley gave host Mike Switzer a preview of the sessions available at this year’s conference, including a session on unmanned aircraft systems and the economic benefits of using […]
How do you inspire children to explore the wonder of flight? That’s the question Marc Drews, director of education and partnerships for EdVenture, has been asking himself since 2014. “We want to inspire that sense of wonder,” Drews explained. “Wonder inspires kids to ask questions and a joy of learning.” The exhibit, aptly titled FLIGHT, […]
By Adrianne Beasley, Director of Aerospace Initiatives Last month, SC Aerospace landed in Paris for the Paris Air Show (PAS), one of the industry’s largest trade shows. With more than 300,000 attendees and more than 2,300 exhibitors, preparing for the show takes about a year of cooperative planning between SC Aerospace and the SC Department […]
SC Aerospace and the South Carolina Department of Education visited R.B. Stall High School in North Charleston on May 18. Stall is one of five South Carolina high schools implementing an aerospace engineering curriculum this fall. One additional high school will begin offering the courses in the fall of 2018. The curriculum was developed by […]
Earlier this month, members of the Council’s staff had the opportunity to be on-hand as the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner took its inaugural flight in North Charleston. The flight marked a significant milestone for South Carolina –the 787-10 is the first Boeing aircraft to be manufactured entirely at Boeing’s North Charleston facility. SC Aerospace Director Adrianne […]
South Carolina’s aerospace industry cluster accounts for 17,000 private sector jobs with an average total compensation rate of $71,000 per year. Greenville Technical College offers training to provide the necessary workforce through its aircraft maintenance technology program, located at the S.C. Technology and Aviation Center (SCTAC). Students may pursue one of three certificates, an associate’s […]
Greenville Technical College’s Center for Manufacturing Innovation has launched a Manufacturing Business Incubator. The first participating companies at the site are Medical Beam Laboratories and Constructis LLC. The incubator is intended to help firms make use of the nearly $7 million in advanced manufacturing equipment and hardware at the Center for Manufacturing Innovation, collaborate with […]
Cameron steps down after three years Adrianne Beasley has been tapped to replace Deborah Cameron as director of aerospace initiatives for the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness effective March 31, 2017. After three years leading the Council’s SC Aerospace initiative, Cameron is resigning the position and relocating to Colorado. Beasley most recently served as program […]
SC Aerospace held its winter quarterly networking event at the Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology (SiMT) in Florence on Feb. 15. The event was sponsored by MTorres America which is headquartered in Bothell, WA. Vice President of Business Development Mark Cumm provided a presentation about the company’s future plans. Each SC Aerospace quarterly event includes […]
SC Biz Magazine featured the Council’s research on the aerospace industry cluster in the Fall issue, highlighting the initiative’s recently released research on the cluster’s development, involvement in July’s Farnborough Air Show and a letter from the editor, Licia Jackson, discussing the importance of aerospace to the state.
Steve Prout of Solar Atmospheres, Todd Sharpley of GKN, and Paul V. Kumler of KTM Solutions have joined the Advisory Board for SC Aerospace. The Board is comprised of industry leaders representing aerospace-related firms of all sizes from across South Carolina. “I welcome my fellow business leaders from across the state to become an active […]
Economic impact grows to $19 billion Columbia, SC (August 24, 2016) – According to two new studies released today at the SC Aerospace Conference & Expo, South Carolina’s aerospace industry continues to drive economic growth. An economic impact study released by the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness shows that the impact of aerospace on South […]
Aerospace Industry Continues to Diversify as it Moves Towards Sustainable Growth Columbia, SC (August 23, 2016) – The third annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo opens this Wed., Aug. 24 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center in Columbia, S.C. The event will connect industry, academia and government to showcase the increasing diversification and sustainable […]
A Clemson University researcher will use a $2 million award to work with peers on lowering the cost of high-tech materials that right now make airplanes and luxury cars, two of South Carolina’s most active industry clusters, both more fuel efficient and expensive. Amod Ogale will collaborate with peers at Drexel and Virginia Tech universities […]
South Carolina’s aerospace industry was a hot topic in this month’s issues of Greenville Business Magazine and Columbia Business Monthly. Both magazines featured a column by SC Aerospace Chairman Steve Townes on the industry’s explosive growth in South Carolina and the Southeast. There are also several articles featuring the aviation sector’s rapid expansion in both […]
The South Carolina Council on Competitiveness and the industry cluster SC Aerospace are teaming with Penton’s Aviation Week Network to conduct the state’s first aerospace and defense manufacturing workforce study. The study will be conducted in collaboration with North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida to develop the Southeast region’s first deep-dive report on the state of […]
SC Aerospace partnered with the Grand Strand Technology Council and other economic development organizations in the Grand Strand region to hold its quarterly event in Myrtle Beach on April 27. More than 150 people attended the daylong event that featured aerospace and technology speakers, panels, breakout sessions and tours of regional assets relevant to both the aerospace and […]
The McNAIR Center for Aerospace Innovation and Research of the University of South Carolina is excited to announce its new initiative McNAIR Advance. The initiative is a professional education program of the McNAIR Center dedicated to excellence in industrial training and certification. The McNAIR Advance initiative will kick-off by offering training and certification in CATIA. […]
The South Carolina Technical College System Board of Directors approved an aerospace training pilot program in the fall of 2015. The training consists of five courses including a composites overview, FOD/5S, structures assembly, systems installation and sealant applications. The courses have been offered in Charleston, Orangeburg and Greenville. Several companies have sent employees to participate and technical […]
The Council was represented at the US-EU Cluster Convening in DC, SC Aerospace delegation attended the Aviation High School Symposium, iTs|SC graduates second class of Leadership Insurance, TransformSC event recaps and Spring Conference Keynote announcement, and more in this month’s newsletter.
SC Aerospace convened aerospace-related companies on October 14th at the SC Army Aviation Support Center located at the South Carolina Technology and Aviation Center (SCTAC) in Greenville. SC Aerospace Chairman and Ranger Aerospace CEO, Steve Townes, opened the event and introduced Bill Beard of GKN Aerospace (Orangeburg, SC) for the company spotlight presentation. GKN’s existing […]
Council announces aerospace advisory board and aerospace cluster research,TransformSC updates Profile of the Graduate and more in this month’s newsletter.
Unveils new logo Aerospace industry leaders have joined an Advisory Board to advance and market South Carolina’s aerospace cluster on the global stage. Chairman of the Advisory Board and President of Ranger Aerospace, Steve Townes, announced the new Board members and unveiled the cluster’s logo at the SC Aerospace Conference and Expo on August 27th in […]
President & CEO of the SC Council on Competitiveness, Ann Marie Stieritz, participated in The Real Economy Forum – a two-hour event hosted by WLTX, Wells Fargo and USA Today focusing on the economic conditions of South Carolina. Senator Tim Scott delivered opening remarks followed by a panel discussion on the findings of the […]
Columbia, SC (August 27, 2015) – South Carolina is outpacing North Carolina, Georgia and Alabama in private sector aerospace employment and revenue growth, according to Dr. Joseph Von Nessen, a research economist with the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business. In partnership with the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness and the Harvard […]
The South Carolina Aviation Association (SCAA) and the South Carolina Aeronautics Commission announce that Scott Thompson, U.S. Aerospace and Defense Assurance Leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers, will be the keynote speaker for the fourth annual South Carolina Aerospace Dinner. The dinner will be held in the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center Ballroom at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 26, […]
Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration and the NextGen Air Transportation Program based at North Carolina State University will address the topic of unmanned aerial systems at the second annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo, which will be held on Aug. 26-27, 2015. Kyle Snyder, Director of the NextGen Air Transportation Program at NC […]
The second annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo announces that Don Myers of Toray Composites Inc. and David Reese of IBM have been added to the speaker lineup for the conference, which will be held on Aug. 26-27, 2015 in Columbia, S.C. Don Myers, a native South Carolinian, is the Senior Manager of Aerospace […]
The second annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo announces that National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) member Robert Sumwalt will be one of the keynote speakers for the conference, which will be held on Aug. 26-27, 2015. Sumwalt, a native South Carolinian and inductee in the South Carolina Aviation Hall of Fame, will speak at […]
Lots of Good News: The summertime temperature is not the only thing hot in South Carolina. The aerospace industry here continues its steady growth. In the month of June, key legislation was passed, a Boeing supplier announced South Carolina as its new home and the State Department of Commerce promoted South Carolina at the Paris […]
The second annual South Carolina Aerospace Conference and Expo, which will be held on Aug. 26-27, 2015 at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center, announces that The Boeing Company will be the title sponsor for the event, and Gov. Nikki R. Haley will deliver opening remarks. “We are very excited to have Gov. Haley and Boeing […]
Lotta Keller is a rising senior at the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science and Math, where she participates in extracurricular activities ranging from athletics to Student Council. Lotta was born in Bogotá, Colombia, and raised in Germany and the United States. She has traveled extensively, which has created her passion for political science. “I […]
Supporters anticipate more capital investment and jobs COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley has signed a bill into law removing the state’s seven percent sales tax from owner operator aircraft parts referred to as “FAA Part 91.” The change is expected to make South Carolina’s aviation maintenance and repair operations (MROs) more competitive […]
Townes named chairman of SCAerospace, life sciences industry cluster announces innovation campus, SC ranks 11th in 4K access and 40th in funding, TransformSC School featured on Palmetto Scene, other news and events
Aerospace firms from across the state gathered on April 29 at the new offices of the South Carolina Research Authority in Summerville. Attendees enjoyed lunch and networking time before being welcomed by Steve Townes of Ranger Aerospace, who was recently announced as the Chairman of SC Aerospace. Townes spoke about the purpose of the newly organized […]
The South Carolina Council on Competitiveness convened over 20 representatives of the SC Aerospace support chain on April 23 to tour the USC Ronald E. McNAIR Center for Aerospace Innovation & Research. The McNAIR Center is one of the newest and exciting assets in South Carolina’s growing aerospace ecosystem. McNAIR was launched with the generous […]
Columbia, SC (April 13, 2015) – Steve Townes has been named chairman of SCAerospace, a private-sector leadership group organized by the South Carolina Council on Competitiveness and the South Carolina Department of Commerce. He will serve a two-year term as chairman. “Businesses serving a common industry naturally cluster in a geographic location, and that’s exactly […]
An update written from the SC Aerospace team to the SC Aerospace cluster Our team at the SC Council on Competitiveness and the SC Department of Commerce gets more excited each day about how fast the aerospace industry is growing in South Carolina. Wayne and I have visited 30 existing aerospace firms in our state […]
The South Carolina State Museum recently opened a 75,000 square foot state-of-the-art renovation and expansion project known as, “Windows to New Worlds.” The new features of this project include an observatory with distance learning capabilities, one of the largest planetariums in the Southeast, an expansive collection of antique telescopes and a multisensory 4D theater. The […]
Aerospace is an emerging industry cluster in South Carolina. The SC Council on Competitiveness entered a partnership agreement in 2014 with the SC Department of Commerce to develop and strengthen the cluster. I recently sat down with our Director of Aerospace Initiatives, Deborah Cameron, to discuss her work so far. She recapped an eventful year and […]
