SCBIZ Daily Staff

SPARTANBURG -- Lear Corp., a supplier of automotive seating, electrical distribution and electronics products and a key BMW supplier, will expand its Spartanburg County operations.

The additional investment of $10.8 million is expected to generate 140 new jobs, according to a joint announcement by the South Carolina Department of Commerce, the Economic Futures Group of Spartanburg Area Chamber of Commerce and the Greer Development Corporation.

“We are pleased to move forward with an expansion at our plant in Spartanburg County to supply BMW,” said Lou Salvatore, a Lear Senior Vice President and president of Lear’s Global Seating business. “This new investment will allow us to expand the range of products made at our Duncan facility and better meet increasing customer demand.  Duncan and Spartanburg County provide a great combination of a strong workforce and a positive business environment.  We appreciate all the support we’ve received from state and local officials.”

Supplier companies such as Lear represent a large part of the economic impact that BMW’s operations have upon South Carolina.

BMW Manufacturing’s economic impact on South Carolina more than doubled in the six years between two studies by the University of South Carolina’s Moore School of Business, to $8.8 billion annually in the just-released report from $4.1 billion in a 2002 report.

The impact of Spartanburg County plant alone was $6.3 billion annually, according to the Moore School estimates.

The latest study, released last week by Moore School economists Douglas Woodward and Paulo Guimaraes, estimates that BMW’s South Carolina complex supports 23,050 jobs, compared with 16,691 jobs in the 2002 report. Annual wages and Salaries amounted to $1.2 billion in the latest study, compared with $691 million in 2002.

BMW’s more than 50 supplier companies in South Carolina are concentrated in the Upstate, but extend as far afield as Charleston and Berkeley counties.

Lear’s Spartanburg County expansion will include construction of a new building in Greer that will allow Lear to increase its automotive seat production capacity, the company said. Lear is a Tier 1 supplier of seats to BMW and employs 237 people at its Duncan plant.  

“The growth of the automotive sector in South Carolina and specifically the growth of BMW, continue to attract new investments that are resulting in more jobs for South Carolinians. Thanks to the team effort of state and local officials, Spartanburg County will benefit from this investment,” said Secretary of Commerce Joe Taylor.

Lear Corp. is one of the largest suppliers of automotive seating systems, electrical distribution systems and electronics products. The company’s world-class products are designed, engineered and manufactured by 91,000 employees at 215 facilities in 35 countries.  Lear is headquartered in Southfield, Mich.