Economic Development
Case Studies of Renewable Energy Manufacturing
Microcell Corporation
What began as an idea nearly a decade ago is now a flagship example of a new generation of manufacturing in North Carolina. During October 2007, Martin County became the home of Microcell Corporation's pilot manufacturing facility. The facility, located in a building formerly used for manufacturing custom packaging cartons, is expected to employ 100 local people to be trained by the nearby Martin Community College.
Microcell Corp. is a N.C.-founded venture that develops and manufactures an innovative fuel cell polymer that can be integrated as a power source into applications ranging from residential to automotive and portable electronics.
PPG-Devold LLC
February of 2007 may be remembered as the month when Cleveland County got its first taste of the ‘new' clean tech economy. Wind power is responsible for bringing 50 jobs and a $5 million investment at the PPG Industries facility in Shelby, NC. While a 5.5% increase in employment at a single company is hardly an economic boon, this investment is significant arriving on the month following what may have been the dying gasp of a 10-year long cascade of announced layoffs at PPG during which 1,100 jobs (about 55%) were eliminated at the plant.
Founded to serve the rapidly growing North American wind market, the PPG-Devold joint venture combines glass fibers produced by PPG with stitching technology from Devold, and produces fiber-glass mats for use for reinforcement material in large composite wind turbine blades.
Foothills Biodiesel
A new industry may be on the verge of flourishing in North Carolina's fertile business environment. Currently the state's largest producer of biofuel, Foothills Bio-Energies has positioned itself as more than a provider of fuel in the western part of the state - the company is also nurturing their growing industry by serving as a test bed for new biodiesel production technology.
Foothills Bio-Energies is a true local fuel supplier. The company's business model is based on a complete regional energy cycle where a local company uses local feedstocks to produce fuel for the local market.
DuPont Corporation
DuPont has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions 72% below its 1990 levels and reduced its global energy use by 7% over the same period - from a company that earned over $3 billion in 2006. By 2015, the company will focus ever more on helping its customers be green - to the tune of developing $10 billion in new sustainability market revenue.
DuPont's polyvinyl fluoride polymer, Tedlar™, will be used as a protective film in PV-cell backing sheets. The company estimates the market for this material is growing at about 30% per year. The $50-million investment brings the company's total facility investment to $125 million.
