An Aiken County manufacturer, undergoing a multi-million dollar expansion, uses its unique relationships to find trained employees.
Representatives from Rolls-Royce Solutions America, formerly known as mtu, participated in a panel discussion sponsored by the North Augusta Chamber of Commerce.
Karson King, Mechanical Engineer, and A.J. Campbell, CNC Machine Operator, said working with schools like Aiken Technical College and USCA is vital during this period of growth.
“Really getting to expand on our young workforce coming in. It’s going to help with skilled workers joining our workforce,” King told ABD. “We need about 80 to 100 new employees, and in a small area like North Augusta/Aiken, it’s difficult. So, getting to train these kids to come in and learn these skills and get them right out of high school is fantastic.”
King and Campbell provided a unique perspective on opportunities for students selecting training programs for their career path.
Both men are former apprentices.
“It introduced me to a lot of adults, and it made me interact with people that are a lot older than me,” said Campbell. “So, it becomes one of those things where you hear their decisions that they made in life, some good and some bad, and you really learn from real-world experiences from these adults.”
King said that is where the relationship with schools, starting with high school students in the Aiken County Public School District’s Career and Technology Center, gets trained individuals into the local workforce pipeline.
“If we’re not getting students, we’re really having to reach out to other communities, even a different range of people for employment, and sometimes you just don’t have that opportunity,” added King. “So, getting to mold someone like me, I was an apprentice from a young age to now, it’s great.”
As the panel discussion ended, Mayor Briton Williams praised the chamber for selecting a timely subject. He added that it was important for parents to understand the value of training for technical careers.
Campbell agreed that technical education can lead to a successful career right out of school. He believes there remains a misconception that studying at a technical school isn’t as valuable as a four-year degree. It can, in fact, lead to pursuing a four-year degree, he said.
“It’s kind of a stereotype, if you go to the (Aiken County Public School District) Career Center, that’s where the not-so-smart kids go, it’s the blue collar dirty work, and that’s the biggest misconception,” he explained. “If anything, the Career Center actually led me to a four-year degree. Had I not gone to the Career Center, I wouldn’t have seen the opportunities, and I wouldn’t have learned about engineering, and I wouldn’t have gone and gotten a four-year degree.”
Rolls-Royce is committing $75 million to the expansion project, which is expected to be operational in 2027. The campus was originally 395,000 square feet when it opened in 2010 in the Sage Mill Industrial Park. It expanded by adding another facility in 2021. The company is now the sixth-largest employer in Aiken County.
The North Augusta Chamber said the discussion, Powerful Partnerships, was devised to put the spotlight on the critical collaboration between education and industry to develop workforce development pathways.
The remaining panel members were Travis Scott, Chief of the Savannah River Site Fire Department, and Andrew Hill, an apprentice. They were joined by John Neumar, Service Manager at Stokes-Hodges Ford, and apprentice Lathan Rearden.
