State of South Carolina
Office of the Governor
David M. Beasley
Governor
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | Contact: Gary Karr |
| May 8, 1997 | 803/734-9840 |
(Greenwood) -- Governor David M. Beasley today announced that Fuji Photo Film Inc. plans a $250 million expansion at its North American Manufacturing Complex in Greenwood. The Governor hailed Fuji as a "partner for life" with South Carolina.
The expansions, when completed, will bring Fujifilm's total investment in South Carolina to $1 billion and 1,200 jobs since the company first opened its first United States. manufacturing facility in Greenwood in 1989.
"Fuji has brought to South Carolina a long-term, big-time commitment," Governor Beasley said today in Greenwood. "With Fuji, we're a partner for life."
Fujifilm announced today that it will soon begin fully-integrated manufacturing of 35mm color film in Greenwood. The company also announced it would significantly expand the manufacturing capacity of color photographic paper in Greenwood.
"As a global-leader in photographic products, Fuji's announcements demonstrate that our positive business climate encourages industries to prosper," South Carolina Commerce Secretary Robert V. Royall said today. "Established companies like Fuji are the building blocks of our state's economy. South Carolina's future has never looked brighter and I'm very happy Fuji's plans include expansions here in South Carolina."
Greenwood is where every single Fuji VHS tape is made, home to the largest Fujifilm distribution center in the world, and the site of almost half of all Fuji's investment in the United States. When the most recent expansions are completed, Fuji will have more than 2 million square feet of manufacturing space in Greenwood.
"Fuji and South Carolina make a great team. It's just the kind of high-profile, high-quality and high-paying industry South Carolina is attracting," Governor Beasley said.
Fuji's expansion also shows how rural South Carolina continues to succeed, the Governor said. "We're spreading wealth to all corners of our state, bringing in the biggest names in business," Governor Beasley said.
Companies announced investments of $1.75 billion in South Carolina's rural areas last year, an increase of 26 percent from the year before, according to S.C. Department of Commerce figures.