CLARENDON COUNTY, S.C. — A manufacturer of large metal components has purchased a 50,000-square-foot facility in Clarendon County and intends to create 200 jobs, South Carolina officials announced on Friday.
Verona, Wisconsin-based Latitude Corp. will be using the location on Jo Rogers Boulevard near Manning as part of its efforts to expand its U.S. footprint with a $29 million investment and establish its first South Carolina facility, the state said.
“We are pleased to be partnering with South Carolina and Clarendon County and look forward to joining the Manning community," Latitude Corp. President Tom Verbos said in a statement shared by the state. "Our new facility will allow us to better serve customers regionally and continue the growth story of Latitude Corp."
The company said it has customers in several business sectors, including agriculture, aerospace, defense, commercial and more while targeting growth in electric vehicles, energy and construction.
Verbos said the South Carolina team was "very supportive," and the existence of a spec building helped the company choose the location. The company also has a location in Tucson, Arizona.
"The readySC program, which helps to recruit and train potential employees, convinced us that South Carolina was the right location for our business expansion," Verbos said.
The state said the Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits for the project and a $400,000 Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to the county to help with the expense of building improvements.
And it's a move that is expected to pay off in the creation of an estimated 200 jobs, officials said.
"To be part of the largest single jobs announcement in the history of the county is truly extraordinary," Clarendon County Council Chairman Dwight L. Steward Jr. said in Friday's statement.
