March 2, 2015
GRANITEVILLE — A recycling company invited S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley and several other legislators and community officials to the grand opening of its $40.6 million de-manufacturing plant in the heart of Graniteville.
Recleim, a next-generation recycling services provider, currently employs about 70 workers at the plant located at 118 Hard St.
By the end of the year, that number is expected to reach 200 workers.
According to a press release, Recleim de-manufacturers household appliances, HVAC systems, vending machines and related electronics into commodities such as plastic, aluminum, copper, steel and pelletized foam, which are then sold for reuse.
Haley said the business is not only offering jobs, but helping the environment by reducing landfill waste by recovering 95 percent of the components in appliances.
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“Recycling just one freezer is like taking two cars off the road for a year,” Haley said. “So this is a company that’s going to get lot of attention.”
Douglas Huffer, the president and general manager of Recleim, said companies are becoming more aware of their environmental impact and are taking steps to ensure appliances are responsibly recycled.
“We have the best technology to do that. We thank Gov. Haley for her leadership and making South Carolina a hospitable place for companies like Recleim to do business and create jobs,” Huffer added.
Before the official ribbon-cutting and tour of the facility, several legislators had an opportunity to talk about the economic and motivational impacts of Recleim.
S.C. Rep. Chris Corley, R-Ganiteville, the newest member of the Aiken County Legislative Delegation, said seeing Recleim is an incredible moment for him.
The Graniteville Republican said he grew up less than a mile from the facility and that it’s reminiscent of the days before the Graniteville train wreck.
“The parking lots were full, smoke was coming out of the chimneys and even further down, there were the other two mills,” Corley said. “To see us coming back and having something like this, it makes me feel very good about what’s happening here in Graniteville.”
According to Recleim, the facility is the first in North America to feature an entirely closed-loop resource recovery process.
The company already has announced several key agreements with companies to process their equipment, including BSH Home Appliances Corporation, Pepsi Bottling Ventures and the South Carolina Association of Heating and Air Conditioning Contractors.
Will Williams, the president and CEO of the Economic Development Partnership, said the move is important for the area to increase the local employment rate.
“This will be the start of that, which means people will go back to work, make money, and can provide for their families,” Williams said. “We’ve been in discussions with them for a long time, and so it’s a been a very positive relationship.”
Derrek Asberry is the SRS beat reporter for the Aiken Standard and has been with the paper since June 2013. He is originally from Vidalia, Ga., and a graduate of Georgia Southern University. Follow him on Twitter @DerrekAsberry.