Manufacturer’s planned $29M Manning facility is first in South Carolina

A contract manufacturer of precision metal manufacturing solutions is setting up shop in South Carolina.

Latitude Corp. plans to expand its U.S. footprint by establishing operations in Clarendon County, according to a news release.  The company’s $29 million investment, in its first South Carolina facility, will create 200 new jobs.

The company is purchasing a 50,000-square-foot facility located at 2414 Joe Rogers Blvd. in Manning, the release stated. This location will manufacture large metal components.

“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 the release. “Our new facility will allow us to better serve customers regionally and continue the growth story of Latitude Corp. The South Carolina team was very supportive through the due diligence process and Santee Electric, having constructed a spec building suitable to our needs, helped us to narrow down our facility choice.

“The readySC program, which helps to recruit and train potential employees, convinced us that South Carolina was the right location for our business expansion.”

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Latitude Corp. started in 1990 as a machine shop in Middleton, Wisconsin, the release stated. Consistent growth prompted the company to expand and diversify into metal fabrication, welding and powder coating services.

Today, Latitude Corp. is headquartered in Verona, Wisconsin, and works with customers in numerous industries including agriculture, aerospace and defense, commercial appliances, government, health care, and is targeting growth in electric vehicles, energy and construction, the release stated. The company has an additional operation in Tucson, Arizona.

Operations are expected to be online by June 2024.

The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to this project. The council also awarded a $400,000 Rural Infrastructure Fund grant to Clarendon County to assist with the costs of building improvements.

“On behalf of Clarendon County Council, we would like to welcome Latitude Corp. to our growing list of successful companies that call Clarendon County home,” Clarendon County Council Chairman Dwight L. Steward Jr. said in the release. “To be part of the largest single jobs announcement in the history of the county is truly extraordinary. Welcome to Clarendon County, and we wish you many years of success.”