Are you ready? - Get a Kit, Make a Plan, Be Informed

With hurricane season upon us, are you ready? For National Hurricane Preparedness Week, make sure you and your family are ready to handle any disaster that might confront the North Charleston area.

Get a Kit, Make a Plan, Be Informed.

The Charleston County Emergency Management Department wants residents to get their family’s emergency plan in place and put their emergency supply kit together prior to a storm. 

Now is the time to get ready, and it’s easy with the help of the new 2013 Charleston County Hurricane Guide.

“Charleston County Government is always preparing for a storm and working with other local and state agencies to do so, but everyone has an individual responsibility to get prepared and make sure their family has a plan,” said Cathy Haynes, Charleston County Emergency Management Department’s Chief of Operations. “Churches and civic groups can also help by printing the guide for those who do not have access to the Internet. Our entire community needs to help spread the word.”

In anticipation of an evacuation order, which can only be given by the governor, Haynes also reminds the public that they should plan to leave town if at all possible, and everyone along the coast is strongly encouraged to make travel arrangements well in advance.

“Because of the low-lying areas in our county, we will never have enough safe shelter space for all of Charleston County’s residents,” said Jason Patno, Charleston County Emergency Management Director. “Therefore, we encourage everyone who has the means to leave town to do so and to consider shelters only as a last resort when they have nowhere else to go.”

Also, those who have the ability to leave should do so as early as possible.

“You don’t have to wait until an evacuation order is issued,” Patno said. “If you can, leave as early as possible to make your trip easier and to help relieve the traffic congestion on our roads.”

Citizens who do not have transportation should learn where their nearest evacuation pick-up point is located. The evacuation pick-up points are noted by blue signs with a hurricane and bus symbol, and are located across the county at many CARTA bus stops and popular areas like schools, churches and shopping centers. In the event of an evacuation order, buses will transport citizens from the 79 pick-up points to the nearest available Red Cross shelter.

“It is vital for residents in our community who don’t have transportation to know where their nearest pick-up point is before the next hurricane approaches our coast,” Haynes said. “It takes all of us working together to make sure our citizens and neighbors are prepared and safe.”

The procedures for opening shelters changed last year for the 2012 hurricane season. Rather than having a list of shelters in advance, emergency shelters are now determined with the approach of a hurricane to South Carolina. In the event of a hurricane or other major disaster, residents are asked to monitor local media outlets for a current list of open shelters. During an evacuation, listen for emergency alerts on the radio and look for road signs for shelter information.

Information in the 2013 Charleston County Hurricane Preparedness Guide includes:

     What to have in your emergency supplies kit
     Evacuation information and routes out of Charleston County
     Shelter procedures
     What to do if you don’t have transportation – look for pick-up point signs posted around the county!
     Definitions and what you need to do during hurricane watches, warnings and tropical storms
     Rules to know and items to bring if you and your pet need to stay at the pet shelter
     Preparations for your home and your family before the storm
     High wind procedures for briges
     What to do after a storm, including safety measures and handling debris
     A family communications plan form to fill out
     Important phone numbers, including ones that will be activated in the event of an emergency

Do You Know Your Evacuation Zone?

Be prepared -- learn what evacuation zone you are in before a storm hits!

Know Your Zone: http://www.charlestoncounty.org/departments/EmergencyMgmt/zones.htm

Know Your Zone is a public education campaign to inform the citizens and visitors South Carolina of the new hurricane evacuation zones and their vulnerability to storm surge. The campaign reflects the National Hurricane Center’s decision to separate the association of storm surge inundation from the category of storm.

The S.C. Emergency Management Department developed a webpage to provide information for residents and visitors along the entire South Carolina coast, and the Tri-County zones are available at: http://www.charlestoncounty.org/departments/EmergencyMgmt/zones.htm.

The Tri-County zones were a collaborative effort between Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester to provide the public with a unified and consistent message, no matter where one lives in the region.

“Dorchester County has seen some of the most significant changes to their evacuation zones as result of more sophisticated storm surge data,” said Mario Formisano, Dorchester County Emergency Management Director. “The new data proves that you don’t have to live along the immediate coast to be at risk to storm surge.”

National artists to present concurrent solo exhibitions in North Charleston June 3-30

"Tractor at Bayonet Farm" by Jimmy Leslie (right) and "Diver with yacht" by John A. Malveto (left)

The City of North Charleston’s Cultural Arts Department is pleased to announce that landscapes by Jimmy Leslie of Shrewsbury, New Jersey, and stain paintings by John A. Malveto of Walker, Louisiana, will be on exhibit at the North Charleston City Gallery from June 3-30, 2013.

Road Trip – Landscape Paintings by Jimmy Leslie
In an effort to continually push boundaries and experiment, Jimmy Leslie works with diverse modes of expression. His body of work includes landscapes, portraits, and collages in oil, acrylic, watercolor, and mixed media. This particular exhibit, Road Trip – Landscape Paintings by Jimmy Leslie, features scenes from the artist’s travels painted in oil and acrylic. “I love to get out of the studio whenever possible to take part in the tradition of plein air painting,” Leslie says. “There’s something about hitting the road with a small paint box in the same way the Impressionists did; just my supplies and a desire to connect with nature.” Jimmy’s landscape paintings capture scenes of places both near and far, many of which are visited due to the travel associated with his position as Resident Artist and Sr. Technical Services Director at Colart Americas, Inc. Sometimes the paintings made on location stand on their own and other times they form the basis for larger paintings that begin to push the boundaries of representation and even become non-representational images. The paintings that stem from these studies often share the qualities of topography and form becomes dictated by color, rather than the reverse. “Ultimately I look for these images to reference the locations they are based on rather than a strict verbatim translation; in this way they become a record which is much more personal,” he explains.

Jimmy Leslie received an MFA from the Graduate School of Figurative Art of the New York Academy of Art and owned and operated the Leslie Art Studio in 2006 and 2007. After almost 15 years of teaching in the Art & Design departments of Monmouth University, St John’s University, and Brookdale Community College, as well as working with gifted students in the Monmouth County Arts High School program, Jimmy left the academic world behind. In January 2009 he began his role as Resident Artist and Sr. Technical Services Director at Colart Americas, Inc., the North American distributor of Winsor & Newton and Liquitex paints. As an artist with ColArt, he is involved with product testing and development and runs the Artist Outreach program. His landscapes, figurative work, and mixed media collages have been exhibited throughout New Jersey, as well as New York, Oregon, Texas, Nebraska, Idaho, Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. His work has most recently been seen at The Currier Museum Art Center (Manchester, NH), The NJ Resources HQ, (Howell, NJ), The Limner Gallery (Hudson, NY), the new Joan and Robert Rechnitz Hall on the campus of Monmouth University (West Long Branch, NJ), and the Paper World Art Material Trade Show (Frankfurt, Germany).

Recent Paintings by John A. Malveto
In Recent Paintings by John A. Malveto, the artist presents a collection of abstract works involving the resiliency of humanity versus nature and their eternal conflict to coexist harmoniously. Malveto’s pieces are autobiographical in nature, thereby enabling him the opportunity to integrate personal iconography within the compositions. His works include a combination of visually energetic surfaces created through his own unique approach to “stain painting.” Malveto’s process involves applying multiple stages of poured and brushed acrylic paint to numerous sheets of glass. Stencils are used to cut out shapes from the paint once it has dried. The shapes correspond to a detailed pencil composition created on a canvas. The cut-out shapes of paint are glued to the canvas, section by section, resulting in a finished painting whose effect could not be achieved any other way. “This form of painting is so unusual that I know of no other contemporary artist who employs it,” Malveto says. “By utilizing this unique procedure I feel it has provided greater control of my visual expression. In addition this experience redefines the concept of stain painting.”

John Malveto received his Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Park College in Missouri in 1967. He studied painting and drawing at the University of Rhode Island in 1974, and received his Masters of Fine Arts in painting and sculpture from Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona in 1976. Malveto has taught at many universities from New York to California to China and has been a professor at the Louisiana State University School of Art since 1983. He has been represented by numerous galleries, and participated in many solo and group exhibitions, earning multiple awards. Presently he is showing with the Kodner Gallery in St. Louis, Missouri.

The North Charleston City Gallery is situated in the common areas of the Charleston Area Convention Center, located at 5001 Coliseum Drive in North Charleston. Parking and admission are free during regular Convention Center operating hours, 9:00am – 5:00pm daily. The gallery is staffed on Friday, Saturday, and Monday only. Inquiries regarding the artists or purchase information may be directed to the North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at (843) 740-5854. For information on additional exhibits, programs, and events, visit the Cultural Arts section of the City’s website at http://bit.ly/culturalarts.

Fire Museum announces free admission for active duty military personnel and their families

Today, the North Charleston and American LaFrance Fire Museum and Educational Center proudly announced its partnership with Blue Star Museums. Blue Star Museums offers free admission to all active duty military personnel and their families from Memorial Day, May 27, 2013, through Labor Day, September 2, 2013.

Blue Star Museums is a collaboration among the National Endowment for the Arts, Blue Star Families, the Department of Defense, and more than 2,000 museums across America.

Museum Coordinator Renee Frye stated, “We at the North Charleston and American LaFrance Fire Museum and Educational Center understand the sacrifices members of the military and their families make on a daily basis, and as a small token of our appreciation, we are proud to participate in this wonderful program.”

A complete list of participating museums is available at www.arts.gov/bluestarmuseums.

For more information, contact Max Sterling at (843)740-5550 or msterling@northcharleston.org

North Charleston Arts Festival Judged Fine Art & Photography Competition Winners Announced

Fine artists and amateur and professional photographers from across the state were invited to participate in the 2013 Judged Fine Art and Judged Photography Competitions & Exhibitions, organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department and presented May 3-11 as a component of the 2013 North Charleston Arts Festival. A total of 168 fine art entries were accepted in the categories of oil, acrylic, watercolor, drawing/pastel, and 2D mixed media. Cash awards totaling $3,250 were made at the sole discretion of the judge, Sara C. Arnold, Curator of Collections at the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston. After making her selections, Ms. Arnold stated, “The Lowcountry is fortunate to have such an event that displays the talents of our local artists.” She continued, “All the applicants should be commended for their entries. It is a pleasure to see such variety in both media and in style represented in the competition.”

A total of 230 entries were accepted in photography, which were split into the divisions of Professional/Advanced and Amateur and categorized as color or monochrome. Cash awards totaling $1,450 were awarded by a panel of three judges using the Photographic Society of America Print Guidelines. Each judge evaluated entries as a whole, considering the areas of impact, composition, and technique.

In addition to awards given by the judges, three fine art pieces were selected for City of North Charleston Purchase Awards. These pieces will be added to the City of North Charleston’s Permanent Public Art Collection, which is on display within North Charleston City Hall throughout most of the year.

Congratulations to the following winners:

Best in Show – Fine Art
In My Mother’s Arms by Nizar/Kelvin Blufton

City of North Charleston Purchase Awards
The Stretch by Bob Graham
Due South by Elliot B. West
Green Wave by Angela Smith

Fine Art - Acrylic
1st Place – Festival Fiddle by Brenda Gilliam
2nd place – Study in Public by Jean Spencer
3rd Place – Insomnia by David Helmerick
Honorable Mention – Play On by Pedro Rodriguez
Honorable Mention – Ishmael by Amanda McLenon
Honorable Mention – Against the Odds by Jack Vanderpol

Fine Art - Oil
1st Place – The Promise by Blaine Tailer-Kimball Dixon
2nd Place – Waiting by Sherri Bardsley
3rd Place – Gullah Woman by Denny Stevenson
Honorable Mention – Strolling the Gardens by Sandra J. Booker
Honorable Mention – Decelerating by Sally Accetta
Honorable Mention – A in Green by Judy McSween
Honorable Mention – Street Crossing by Peter Scala

Fine Art - Drawing/Pastel
1st place – Second Glance by Bob Graham
2nd Place – Blended Trees by Dolores Hayes Lott
3rd Place – Pitcher & Pine Cone by Sherry Bevins
Honorable Mention – Live Oak by Nancy Davidson
Honorable Mention – Fishing Spot by Mary Brigman

Fine Art - Watercolor 
1st Place – Kevina by Lynda Lawrence
2nd Place – Abandoned by Becky Taylor
3rd Place – Daybreak in the Town of Two Harbors by Dorothy Shromoff
Honorable Mention – Cosmos in Bloom by Becky Taylor
Honorable Mention – Evil Eye by Charlotte Holman

Fine Art - 2D Mixed Media
1st Place – Ship High in Transit by Denise Greer
2nd Place – All the Earth by Deborah Neal
3rd Place – Equilibrium at Risk by Lara Neece
Honorable Mention - Home Grown by Linda Wasielewski
Honorable Mention – City Jail by Shawn Allison
Honorable Mention – See Through by Paige Duvall
Honorable Mention – Resting in Style by Don Roberts

Professional Photography - Color
1st Place – Bride of Magnolia by Donnie Smith
2nd Place – Daughters of Confederacy Building by Vanessa Kauffmann
3rd Place – Forster’s (Tern) Flight 39 by Raymond Colin Murray
Honorable Mention – Relics of the Past by Raymond Colin Murray
Honorable Mention – Edwin S. Fishing Pier at Twilight by Raymond Colin Murray

Professional Photography - Monochrome
1st Place – Studebaker by Peter Ingrasselino
2nd Place – Got an Itch by Gloria Welch
3rd Place – Abandoned by Vanessa Kauffmann
Honorable Mention – Shem Creek – Rigged & Ready by Chris Rogers

Amateur Photography - Color
1st Place – Snow Ram by Rick Dandridge
2nd Place – Osprey #1 by Andy Reilly
3rd Place – Dolbadarn Castle by Rick Dandridge
Honorable Mention – Henpecked by Jim Miller
Honorable Mention – Bumper Pool by Jim Miller

Amateur Photography - Monochrome
1st Place – Racer by Andy Reilly
2nd Place – Girl with Cup by Mark Melcher
3rd Place – Remembering Italy: Tempi Passati by Gabi Simon
Honorable Mention – Carousel Horse by Kaitlin Carroll
Honorable Mention – French Hugenot Church at Dawn by Douglas A. Fraze
Honorable Mention – Hold on to Faith by Brenda Bihlear

For information about additional exhibition opportunities offered by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, call 843-740-5854, email culturalarts@northcharleston.org, or visit http://bit.lyculturalarts. For details on the North Charleston Arts Festival, visit NorthCharlestonArtsFestival.com.

SC Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition Winners Announced

Baseball Shoe High Top by Dennis Vernon (Best in Show)

Fine craft artists and artisans from across South Carolina were invited to participate in the 12th Annual South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition, the state’s only juried fine craft competition and exhibition. Organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, the show was presented May 3-11 as a component of the 2013North Charleston Arts Festival.

Following an extensive pre-jury process, 47 applicants were asked to participate and 120 entries were submitted in the categories of clay, fiber, metal, wood, and 3D mixed media. Cash awards totaling $6,500 were made at the sole discretion of the juror, Karen Derksen, Director of Winthrop University Galleries and lecturer for the Department of Fine Arts and the Department of Design at Winthrop.After making her selections, Ms. Derksen stated, “Jurying a show is one of the most gratifying undertakings of my position and also one of the most challenging. I enjoy the opportunity to view the inspiring work being created in our state and as expected the entries in this year’s Palmetto Hands exhibition demonstrate what accomplished artists and creative, high quality work is being produced in South Carolina.” She continued, “It is always exciting to see what is developing in fine craft, as it captures traditions and evolves into a modern contemporary context. Overall, I was impressed with the quality of the submissions. My heartfelt congratulations go to all included artists, and especially to the award winners.”

After awarding ribbons, Ms. Derksen also selected pieces from the show to assemble a South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Traveling Exhibition, which will tour the state through the South Carolina State Museum’s 2013/2014 Traveling Exhibitions Program. “One of my goals was to select a show that would express the diversity of the mediums and styles that I was observing,” Dersken said. “My purpose when selecting an exhibition is to be intentional about the relationship of one artwork to another and create an overall totality that tells a story.” The Traveling Exhibitions Program gives galleries, museums, and art centers across South Carolina the opportunity to request the exhibit to tour their facilities, thus providing additional exposure for the selected artists.

In addition to awards given by the juror, three pieces were selected for City of North Charleston Purchase Awards. These pieces will be added to the City of North Charleston’s Permanent Public Art Collection, which is on display within North Charleston City Hall throughout most of the year.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2013 SC Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition:

Best of Show
Baseball Shoe High Top (Mixed Media) by Dennis Vernon (Okatie, SC)

Outstanding Merit
A Smoked Salmon (Clay) by Patz Fowle (Hartsville, SC)
From Tuscaloosa to Timbuktu (Mixed Media) by Kim Keats (Okatie, SC)

City of North Charleston Purchase Awards
Upright Fish with Octopus (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
The Elegance of Grace (Mixed Media) by Georgette Willis Sanders (McClellanville, SC)
Hands Off! (Clay) by Pamela Steele (Gilbert, SC)

Honorable Mentions
A Price Greater Than Rubies (Mixed Media) by Dina Barron (Summerville, SC)
Within (Clay) by Fiorenzo Berardozzi (Charleston, SC)
Botanicals (Illustrations From My Garden) (Mixed Media) by Cynthia Colbert (Lexington, SC)
Beetle with Bumps (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
Hourglass Dulcimer (Wood) by Dean Eades (Seneca, SC)
Petals (Clay) by Sheri Farbstein (Hilton Head, SC)
Anonymous (Fiber) by Susan Lenz (Columbia, SC)
Red Coral (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
Original Tartan Design #1 (Large) (Fiber) by Beth Melton (Rock Hill, SC)
Glory (Mixed Media) by Georgette Willis Sanders (McClellanville, SC)
Enlightened Fish (Mixed Media) by Matt Wilson (North Charleston, SC)
The Potato Help (Mixed Media) by Michael Woodle (Conway, SC)

SC Palmetto Hands Traveling Exhibition Selections
Jughead (Clay) by Deborah Appleby (North Charleston, SC)
A Price Greater Than Rubies (Mixed Media) by Dina Barron (Summerville, SC)
Beachcombers (Mixed Media) by Margaret Bass (Eastover, SC)
Koi Pond (Mixed Media) by Margaret Bass (Eastover, SC)
Every Child Deserves a Home (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
A Place of Her Own (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
Doll House (Fiber) by Ellen Byrd (Mt. Pleasant, SC)
My Garden of Earthly Delights (Mixed Media) by Cynthia Colbert (Lexington, SC)
Beetle with Bumps (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
Serving Platter (Clay) by John Davis (North Charleston, SC)
Petals (Clay) by Sheri Farbstein (Hilton Head, SC)
Patz’s Picasso Pot (Clay) by Patz Fowle (Hartsville, SC)
Play – Circle No. 2 (Clay) by Miyako Fujiwara (Charleston, SC)
Play – Circle No. 7 (Clay) by Miyako Fujiwara (Charleston, SC)
Phillip Simmons Heart Gate (Fiber) by Arianne King Comer (North Charleston, SC)
My Life as a Tree Totem (Mixed Media) by Kim Keats (Okatie, SC)
Anonymous (Fiber) by Susan Lenz (Columbia, SC)
Red Coral (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
Tuned (Clay) by Deborah Mather (Murrel’s Inlet, SC)
Original Tartan Design #1 (Large) (Fiber) by Beth Melton (Rock Hill, SC)
Baseball Shoe High Top (Mixed Media) by Dennis Vernon (Okatie, SC)
The Potato Help (Mixed Media) by Michael Woodle (Conway, SC)

For more information about the South Carolina Palmetto Hands Fine Craft Competition & Exhibition and other exhibition opportunities, contact the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department at 843-740-5854, email culturalarts@northcharleston.org, or visit NorthCharlestonArtsFest.com. Organizations interested in hosting the traveling exhibition should contact Jeff Powley, South Carolina State Museum Outreach Manager, at 803-737-4159 or jeff.powley@scmuseum.org.

National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition Winners Announced

"Bunny" by Jeff Brewer (Best in Show)

Sculpture artists from across the nation applied to the 8th Annual National Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition, displayed at the picturesque North Charleston Riverfront Park and presented as a component of the 2013 North Charleston Arts Festival. Organized annually by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department, this unique, eleven month exhibition offers established and emerging artists the opportunity to display their thought provoking, extraordinary sculptures, as well as compete for up to $17,250 in honorariums and awards.

Nine out of 47 submissions were pre-juried into the exhibition by the juror, Janet Kagan, a Founding Principal of the Public Art Collaborative with more than three decades of experience in strategic planning with established and emergent art programs and management of projects representing both artists and agencies. Once installed at the exhibition site, Kagan then made her selections for Best in Show, Outstanding Merit, and Honorable Mentions.

“I am honored to jury the 2013 National Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition at Riverfront Park. It is a privilege to contribute to the appreciation of art in a landscaped, public context,” Kagan stated. She continued, “Each of the 2013 selections eloquently speak to us and elucidate how the artists’ ideas translated into material form, the works’ relationship to both physical and human nature, and our evoked impulses for interaction and surprise. These nine sculptures create surface tensions that play with angled voids and intersections. No two perspectives are the same as we walk toward, around and in the works. There is also a heft associated with these artworks – not just in their material, color, and scale, but in their aesthetic request for connection and dialogue. I hope you will mingle with, touch, and listen to the voices the works articulate.”

The nine sculptures selected for exhibition are by nine artists from six states. Congratulations to the winners of the 2013/4 National Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition:

Bunny (steel) by Jeff Brewer – Nacogdoches, TX (Best in Show)
Tier II (painted steel) by Anne Melanie – Greenville, NC (Outstanding Merit)
Transponder (steel) by Gary Gresko – Oriental, NC (Hon. Mention)
Life (painted steel) by Adam Walls – Lauvinburg, NC (Hon. Mention)
A Little Less Than Meets the Eye (steel) by Bill Wood – Fairfax, VA (Hon. Mention)
Ender’s Enigma (corten/painted steel) by Davis Whitfield IV – Mountain City, TN
The Burning (carved limestone) by Paris Alexander – Raleigh, NC
Cowl (oiled steel) by Carl Billingsley – Ayden, NC
Daddy Longlegs (steel) by John W. Parker – Glendside, PA

Sculpture sites are located throughout North Charleston Riverfront Park, located at 1001 Everglades Avenue on the former Charleston Naval Base. The park is set on the banks of the beautiful Cooper River. In addition the sculptures visitors may enjoy ten acres of walking paths, a performance pavilion, picnic shelter, a fishing pier and boardwalk, an oversized sandbox, and children’s play fountain. The historic site is centered in the Noisette District, the largest urban redevelopment project ever undertaken in the US.

The 2013/14 National Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition will be on display through March, 2014. For more information or to be added to the application mailing list for the 2014/15 Competition, please call 843-740-5854 or email culturalarts@northcharleston.org.

SKF Group expanding facility in North Charleston

SKF Group, a maker of precision bearings, today announced that it will expand its existing operations in North Charleston. The $3 million investment is expected to generate up to 25 new jobs over the next three years.

“It’s the SKF philosophy to try to have production close to its customers, and we have the sufficient volumes today to make these investments, with the prospects for good growth in the future,” said Jack Bellomo, general manager of the SKF North Charleston facility. “We expect to increase the number of shifts in the new channel within the next few years.”

SKF is expanding its North Charleston facility, and will operate as part of its recently established global business unit, known as Super Precision and Specialty Bearings. The company will invest in a new production channel for super precision angular contact bearings, and it will help meet the growing needs of the U.S. market with domestic production, rather than importing from its Italian factories.

“There is growing need for these products both in the original production and the repair of machine tool spindles and in medical equipment,” said Poul Jeppesen, CEO of SKF USA Inc. “The SKF Solution Factory concept, a technology and repair access point close to major customer locations, will have 15 regional locations in North America by 2016, and this new production channel will help supply the resulting demand. I am confident that the good local support from the state and the competent work force will allow us to continue the progress we have made in South Carolina over the past 10 years.” 

“We are sincerely grateful for SKF reinvesting in our city, bringing additional jobs and a sizeable capital investment that will have a great benefit to our community,” said North Charleston Mayor Keith Summey. “This commitment tells us that North Charleston continues to be a business friendly city with a workforce capable of performing in highly technical environments.”

“We work hard every day to recruit new companies to South Carolina, but it’s always exciting to see one of our existing businesses expand. When a firm like SKF chooses to grow here, it sends a message to other companies that South Carolina is a place where they can do well. We celebrate SKF’s decision to invest $3 million and create 25 new jobs in North Charleston,” said Gov. Nikki Haley.

Since January 2011, South Carolina has recruited more than $9 billion in capital investment and more than 23,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector.

“SKF has been a part of the South Carolina business community for more than a decade, and it’s great to see them choose to grow in South Carolina,” said Secretary of Commerce Bobby Hitt.

The company also has a second facility in the Charleston area, Venture Aerobearings LLC, which is a joint venture with GE.

“We congratulate SKF on its recent expansion,” said Charleston County Council Chairman Teddie Pryor. “Super precision bearings represents a promising new business niche for SKF, and we are honored that the company’s leadership has entrusted our local facility and workforce to see this new initiative to fruition. As the SKF-Charleston County relationship has grown and matured, our community has benefitted in numerous ways.”

For those interested in job opportunities with the company, please visit www.skf.com/us/career/.

SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems, and services which include technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has around 15,000 distributor locations worldwide. For more information about the company, please visit www.skf.com.