October 16, 2014
Nearly 100 members of the Aiken Rotary Club dispensed with their usual downtown Monday lunch recently to tour the expanding MTU diesel-engine manufacturing facility recently cited by the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce as the Outstanding Small/Medium-sized Business of the Year.
After an introduction and briefing from Jens Baumeister, the MTU-Aiken director of operations, members saw the manufacturing process that produces a range of diesel engines for railroad locomotives, ships and fixed installations, such as hospitals and military applications. Baumeister told the audience that Aiken was selected over other sites in South Carolina because of its proximity to vital infrastructure, such as interstate highways and the nearby Charleston harbor, in addition to major cities in the Southeast.
Aiken Rotary Club president Barbara Morgan said, “One of the guiding precepts of Rotary from its founding has been business supporting business. Tours like this emphasize to our members the importance of economic development to our community.”