Factories in South Carolina
South Carolina has 4,006 manufacturing establishments employing 257,989 people (Census County Business Patterns, 2023), 2.1% of US manufacturing jobs and the 18th most of any state. The largest industries by employment are vehicles, aircraft and parts, fabricated metal products and plastics and rubber. We track 51 new plant projects here, 3 under construction.
- Establishments
- 4,006
- Census 2023
- Manufacturing jobs
- 257,989
- Census 2023
- In EPA records
- 2,359
- Active, ECHO
- New plants
- 51
- 3 building
- Sheet
- SC
- Revised
- November 11, 2026
What is made in South Carolina
| Industry (NAICS subsector) | Establishments | Employees | In EPA records |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vehicles, aircraft and parts 336 | 205 | 55,405 | 156 |
| Fabricated metal products 332 | 753 | 27,195 | 272 |
| Plastics and rubber 326 | 207 | 25,719 | 151 |
| Machinery 333 | 289 | 24,659 | 148 |
| Chemicals 325 | 280 | 24,555 | 327 |
| Food 311 | 256 | 17,698 | 90 |
| Electrical equipment and appliances 335 | 90 | 14,191 | 75 |
| Textile mills 313 | 121 | 11,455 | 153 |
| Paper 322 | 78 | 10,501 | 56 |
| Wood products 321 | 234 | 9,010 | 124 |
| Glass, cement and stone 327 | 287 | 7,929 | 430 |
| Medical devices and other goods 339 | 330 | 6,026 | 56 |
| Primary metals 331 | 59 | 5,965 | 68 |
| Computers and electronics 334 | 74 | 4,746 | 52 |
| Printing 323 | 274 | 4,535 | 30 |
| Furniture 337 | 182 | 2,897 | 33 |
| Beverages and tobacco 312 | 117 | 2,310 | 14 |
| Textile products 314 | 88 | 2,205 | 17 |
| Apparel 315 | 44 | 534 * | 4 |
| Petroleum and coal products 324 | 28 | 412 | 98 |
| Leather goods 316 | 10 | 42 | 5 |
Establishments and employees: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2023, mid-March employment. * Census flags this figure as having high noise. "In EPA records" counts active facilities in EPA's ECHO database, a subset that excludes plants EPA doesn't regulate.
New plants in South Carolina
| Project | Industry | Status | Announced |
|---|---|---|---|
| BMW Plant Woodruff (high-voltage battery assembly)BMW Manufacturing Co., Woodruff | Batteries | Under construction | $700M300 jobs |
| Scout Motors Production CenterScout Motors (Volkswagen Group), Blythewood | Vehicles | Under construction(reported) | $2.0B4,000 jobs |
| Boeing South Carolina 787 site expansionThe Boeing Company, North Charleston | Aerospace and defense | Under construction | $1.0B500 jobs |
| Honea Path pine wood products plantAdeptus USA, Honea Path | Building materials | Announced | $216M217 jobs |
| North Augusta peptide API plant expansionAmbioPharm, Inc., North Augusta | Pharmaceuticals | Announced | $119M202 jobs |
| Orangeburg synthetic graphite plant (Tri-County Industrial Site)Birla Carbon, Orangeburg | Batteries | Announced | $1.0B124 jobs |
| North Charleston electric motor production expansionBosch, North Charleston | Auto parts | Announced | $260M350 jobs |
| Blythewood just-in-time seat plant (Scout Supplier Park)Brose Sitech, Blythewood | Auto parts | Announced | $30M330 jobs |
| Columbia lithium-ion battery recycling plant (Pineview Industrial Park)Cirba Solutions, Columbia | Batteries | Announced | $300M300 jobs |
| Bamberg recycled pallet components plantCircular Composite Solutions (Gibbs International), Bamberg | Plastics and packaging | Announced | $54M70 jobs |
| McBee rare earth and metals recycling plant (Alligator Industrial Park)Cyclic Materials, McBee | Steel and metals | Announced | $82M90 jobs |
| Easley plant expansion (cell contact systems)ElringKlinger, Easley | Auto parts | Announced | $69M294 jobs |
| Orangeburg County candy manufacturing plantFerrara Candy Company, Orangeburg | Food and beverage | Announced | $675M1,000 jobs |
| Gaffney Series 6 module finishing facilityFirst Solar, Inc., Gaffney | Solar | Announced | $330M600 jobs |
| Greenville steel solar roofing plant expansionFortified Solar, Greenville | Solar | Announced | $23M151 jobs |
| Sumter returnable plastic packaging plantGeorg Utz, Inc. (Utz Group), Sumter | Plastics and packaging | Announced | $40M50 jobs |
| Clarendon County wood fiberboard plantHomanit, Alcolu | Building materials | Announced | $250M300 jobs |
| Berkeley County golf cart and low-speed vehicle plantHonor LSV, Summerville | Vehicles | Announced | $34M65 jobs |
| Orangeburg solar panel plantHounen Solar, Orangeburg | Solar | Announced | $33M200 jobs |
| Piedmont drive shaft plant expansionJTEKT North America, Piedmont | Auto parts | Announced | $48M87 jobs |
| Spartanburg County coffee roasting and K-Cup manufacturing facility expansionKeurig Dr Pepper Inc., Moore | Food and beverage | Announced | $100M250 jobs |
| Manning precision metal components plantLatitude Corp., Manning | Steel and metals | Announced | $29M200 jobs |
| Piedmont automotive components facilities expansionMagna International, Piedmont | Auto parts | Announced | $200M200 jobs |
| Ridgeway copper wire plantMega Metal Inc., Ridgeway | Steel and metals | Announced | $34M135 jobs |
| Westminster poultry processing machinery plant expansionMeyn America, LLC, Westminster | Other manufacturing | Announced | $50M172 jobs |
| Westminster transmission line hardware plantMosdorfer LLC, Westminster | Electrical equipment | Announced | $45M107 jobs |
| Rock Hill plasma-derived medicines manufacturing siteOctapharma, Rock Hill | Pharmaceuticals | Announced | $1.5B1,500 jobs |
| Rock Hill silicon carbide wafer plant and headquartersPallidus, Rock Hill | Semiconductors | Announced | $443M405 jobs |
| Lexington optical fiber and cable plant expansionPrysmian North America, Lexington | Electrical equipment | Announced | $80M135 jobs |
| Walterboro water filtration systems plantQMP, Inc., Walterboro | Other manufacturing | Announced | $5M233 jobs |
| Rock Hill composites manufacturing expansionRe:Build, Rock Hill | Aerospace and defense | Announced | $20M150 jobs |
| North Charleston copper rod plantRed Metals, North Charleston | Steel and metals | Announced | $70M45 jobs |
| Sumter solar wafer and module plantsSEM Wafertech Inc. and Solar4America Technology, Inc. (SPI Energy), Sumter | Solar | Announced | $66M300 jobs |
| Easley refrigerated dips and spreads plantSignature Foods USA (Signature Foods), Easley | Food and beverage | Announced | $12M202 jobs |
| Anderson paper-based packaging plantSmurfit Kappa (now Smurfit Westrock), Anderson | Paper | Announced | $68M200 jobs |
| Orangeburg ladder frame plantSODECIA AAPICO Joint Venture, Orangeburg | Auto parts | Announced | $120M392 jobs |
| Columbia structural steel fabrication plant (Metso Way)SteelFab Inc., Columbia | Steel and metals | Announced | $30M100 jobs |
| Florence naval defense steel fabrication expansionSteelFab, Inc., Florence | Steel and metals | Announced | $39M108 jobs |
| Laurens solar cell plantSuniva, Inc., Laurens | Solar | Announced | $350M564 jobs |
| Orangeburg high-voltage cable plant expansionThe Okonite Company, Orangeburg | Electrical equipment | Announced | $400M105 jobs |
| Hardeeville carbon-core conductor plantTS Conductor, Hardeeville | Electrical equipment | Announced | $134M462 jobs |
| Gaffney wood packaging plantUFP Packaging, Gaffney | Plastics and packaging | Announced | $5M136 jobs |
| Cherokee County rare earth magnet and metals plant (Bailey Park)USA Rare Earth, Inc., Blacksburg | Other manufacturing | Announced | $1.2B490 jobs |
| Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility expansion (LEU+ fuel)Westinghouse Electric Company, Hopkins | Other manufacturing | Announced | $1.0Bjobs not stated |
| Lexington oral pouch contract manufacturing plantWiJo Pouches North America, Inc., Lexington | Other manufacturing | Announced | $14M170 jobs |
| Spartanburg County flight-control actuation plant (Smith Farms Industrial Park)Woodward, Inc., Greer | Aerospace and defense | Announced | $200M275 jobs |
| Andrews expansion tank and heat exchanger plantZilmet USA, Andrews | Appliances and HVAC | Announced | $33M50 jobs |
| Redwood Carolina campusRedwood Materials, Ridgeville | Batteries | Operating(reported) | $3.5B1,500 jobs |
| AESC Florence gigafactoryAESC (Envision AESC), Florence | Batteries | Paused(reported) | $810M1,170 jobs |
| Richburg mega-flex lithium hydroxide facilityAlbemarle Corporation, Richburg | Chemicals | Paused | $1.3B300 jobs |
| Fort Mill cell plantSilfab Solar, Fort Mill | Solar | Paused | $150M800 jobs |
Factory pages in South Carolina
45 South Carolina factories have their own page so far: the facilities that report to EPA's Toxics Release Inventory and hold the most detailed federal records. See all 45, grouped by industry.
Questions
What is made in South Carolina?
South Carolina has 4,006 manufacturing establishments employing 257,989 people (Census County Business Patterns, 2023), 2.1% of US manufacturing jobs and the 18th most of any state. The largest industries by employment are vehicles, aircraft and parts, fabricated metal products and plastics and rubber.
How many manufacturers are in South Carolina?
4,006 manufacturing establishments (Census, 2023). EPA's ECHO database lists 2,359 active manufacturing facilities in South Carolina that it regulates, 891 of which report to the Toxics Release Inventory.
Are new factories being built in South Carolina?
We track 51 large plant projects in South Carolina announced since 2021: 3 under construction, 44 announced, 1 operating and 3 paused, cancelled or closed.
Can you tour a factory in South Carolina?
Yes: BMW Plant Spartanburg iFACTORY Tour & Zentrum, Charleston Tea Garden Factory Tour, Six & Twenty Distillery Tour.