The Greater Pee Dee Board of Realtors got a tour of the new Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SiMT) yesterday and boy was I impressed. After spending over 20 years in manufacturing, many with Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 companies, I walked away wowed by what they are creating with their world-class, futuristic facility for economic development activities.
From the moment you drive up to the main facility and see the impressive fountains and visual displays, you feel like you are at Epcot at Disney. And once inside, this feeling really hits you with the 3-D animation technology and 3-D modeling that they are doing. They even have the virtual screens like seen on the Super Tuesday political returns and on that Tom Cruise movie (Minority Report) where he stands in the room and pulls pictures from the computer and physically manipulates them all over the big screen.
The facility in place now is the showplace for the remaining 7 facilities planned for the 146 acre tract and is quite a showplace with 177,000 square feet including an 800 capacity theater and 900 capacity banquet room including 4 large screens and a full kitchen. Also, included in the facility are machining centers, modeling centers, audio visual centers and plenty of labs for companies to come in and develop new technologies all right in Florence, SC.
The institute was partly funded through some military ventures and is a 'for profit' business with partnerships with 6 international companies including EMCO and EON corporations. In the facility, you will find state-of-the-art technology that only exists in 6 countries throughout the world and the one one in the US at the present time.
The next facility planned will be the incubation facility that will house up to 8 businesses looking to develop a new concept to production that will have to location in the Florence/Darlington county area once fully production-ready. Additional facilities will house chemical engineering, management training, health and safety facilities, etc.
Also, if you have a concept that you would like to develop, give them a call! Let them put their technology and engineers on it to help you see if the concept will work and if it will sell. The initial investment here can save you thousands of dollars and can ensure your success.
So, if you were looking for a great place to relocate your business, Florence, SC is it with this tremendous asset available for your needs. Along with a great technical college and bright kids graduating all the time, the I95 corridor and I20 and AMtrak, freight rail and regional airport with flights daily to Charlotte and Atlanta, what else could you want?
Sorry for the blur on this picture!
If you do decide to relocate here, please feel free to contact me about the area and for all of your mortgage needs.
Sam Thompson, PHH Mortgage
Senior Advisor - Helping you GROW your business!
www.activerain.com./luckydog1 - SC
www.activerain.com/luckydog2 - NC
http://samthompson.phhmortgage.com/
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