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A look at a legacy: The Upstate’s evolving automotive cluster |
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PRESENT
“Modern competition depends on productivity. Companies can be highly productive in any industry — shoes, agriculture or semiconductors — if they employ sophisticated methods, use advanced technology, and offer unique products and services.” —Michael Porter
In 2006, CU-ICAR began a different kind of manufacturing — that of highly educated professionals — with the first students in Clemson’s graduate program in automotive research. Program director Thomas Kurfess, BMW Endowed Chair in Manufacturing Integration, said that at full production, the program will graduate approximately 30 students with master’s degrees and five to 10 with doctoral degrees each year.
“Graduates of our program will not only receive first-class technical training from our faculty and industrial experts, but they will also be educated in management, business and policy issues that are critical in modern global corporate operations. The automotive sector is important to our global economy, with new vehicles accounting for an international annual market of over $1.5 trillion.”
Kurfess is just one of the four endowed chairs at CU-ICAR. Michelin and Timken have sponsored two others and the fourth is waiting to be filled. Barker asserts that research is under way on systems integration, manufacturing automotive design and development, and vehicle electronics.
FUTURE
“Clusters affect competition in three broad ways: first, by increasing the productivity of companies based in the area; second, by driving the direction and pace of innovation, which underpins future productivity growth; and third, by stimulating the formation of new businesses, which expands and strengthens the cluster itself.” —Michael Porter
One of the ways the legacy has played out is employment. As headlines about closing textile mills gave way to news about CU-ICAR, and BMW and Michelin expansions, Barker affirms, “500 jobs have been created at CU-ICAR. I saw figures recently that said there are 125 automotive suppliers and related companies in the 10-county Upstate region.”
Kevin Landmesser, vice president of the Greenville Area Development Corporation said, “The Upstate’s marketability has gone up 10-fold if not more. It’s talked about in many key circles, including the auto industry, research/academia, by site selection consultants, and even other industry circles such as information technology.” The GADC acts as the single source contact for economic development in the greater Greenville area. As such, Landmesser said, “We are easily getting at least five serious looks per year, likely more, and this rate is increasing over time.”
Warner said he believes the journey has just begun. “The next project is to build an advanced material research lab in Anderson,” he said. “We had focused on industrial recruiting and branch manufacturing. Now there is a different paradigm. Not that we are abandoning manufacturing, but we are seeing the first step of something that is going to play out over the next 40 to 50 years.”
Barker agreed.
“The Southeast is the U.S. center of the global automotive industry. CU-ICAR exists to be the premier automotive and motorsports research and education facility in the world. We expect more companies to sign on as partners and to locate research facilities there,” he said
“As our graduate engineering students work on research projects with faculty and industry partners they will come up with their own innovative ideas. Some of these will lead to job opportunities, new products and start-up companies,” said Barker. “As this critical mass of expertise, brainpower and entrepreneurial activity increases, more transportation companies will choose to locate nearby.
“This is a long-term strategy that does not have the immediacy of a big plant announcement, but the payoff is ultimately greater.”
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