Editorial: Much-needed job generation comes to Edgefield County

Source: Aiken Standard

It was a good week for Will Williams, president and CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of Aiken, Edgefield, McCormick and Saluda counties. In addition to the Generac news, he was recently listed among the top Economic Developers in North America.

“A job is the greatest change agent in the world,” said Williams, who has noted before that every manufacturing job creates two more jobs in an ancillary business.

There have been notable expansions of area industries during his tenure, including those at Autoneum, Kimberly-Clark and Owens-Corning. Now he can add Generac to the list of EDP’s success stories.

Recruiting businesses and industries is often referred to as the “long game.” It takes much work and behind-the-scenes maneuvering to land these companies, and sometimes the process goes on for years. For every home run like Bridgestone or Generac, there are dozens of strikeouts.

Aiken County has plenty going for it with multiple industrial parks and easy access to major transportation routes. Let’s hope that the Economic Development Partnership can build on the Generac announcement and generate even more jobs for the area.

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