Bicycle Corporation of America, which is 100 percent owned by Kent International Inc., will host bicycle parts manufacturers from Asia at its new assembly plant in Manning, SC in September in hopes of persuading some to establish manufacturing operations in the United States.
During the Sept 21-22 event, the company will explain the benefits manufacturing high-volumes of components for low to medium range priced bicycles in the United States.
On Day 1, Sept. 21, Kent will hold tours of the BCA factory which produces over 20,000 bicycles per month and will increase that amount to 30,000 bicycles per month in 2016 and 40,000 bicycles per month in 2017. Several different divisions of the South Carolina State and Local Governments will also be in attendance to explain the benefits and incentives of moving to South Carolina.
On Day 2, Sept. 22, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, will visit the factory to meet and greet the delegation, which will depart later in the day for a tour of the Port of Charleston, about 80 mile away.
The port has played a crucial role in attracting manufacturers to the state, including Boeing, Mercedes-Benz first full van manufacturing plant in North America and BMW’s largest factory in the world, which has been operating near Greenville since the 19990s. Volvo has also recently announced plans to build its first North American plant in South Carolina.
Several professional translators, fluent in English and Mandarin, will be on hand at the event to help visitors if required. Kent CEO Arnold Kamler is also offering to show visitors some of the local real estate to get an idea of prices if they request to do so in advance.
The event will only be open to 40 companies, so Asian suppliers are advised to call Kamler at
