The South Carolina Department of Commerce and Greenville Area Development Corporation have announced that SAATI Americas Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Italy’s SAATI Group S.p.A., will establish its new U.S. Composites and Protection division operations and certain distribution operations in Greenville County. SAATI’s investment is expected to generate more than 80 new jobs within the next few years.
The company has purchased and plans to immediately begin renovations to a formerly vacant 260,000-square-foot facility, located at 201 Fairview Street Ext. in Fountain Inn, which was formerly owned by KEMET Electronics. Renovations will include extensive facility modifications and installation of new production and R&D equipment.
“This expansion is a critical component of SAATI’s global corporate strategy and symbolizes our commitment to bring SAATI’s world-class engineered materials and technical support to structural composite and protective armor product manufacturers in the Americas,” said Alberto Novarese, president of SAATI Group S.p.A. “Greenville County offers us a robust business environment and talented workforce to draw on, and Fountain Inn is a receptive community with a readily available building that is well suited to our needs. We look forward to beginning operations in the Upstate, and thank Greenville County, the Greenville Area Development Corporation (GADC), the city of Fountain Inn, and the South Carolina Department of Commerce. Their support helped make this important SAATI expansion in North America possible.”
“SAATI Americas is a global leader in the advanced materials sector specializing in producing materials used in a wide range of applications from medical to ballistic protection. This announcement strengthens our state’s reputation as a leader in attracting advanced manufacturing and serves as a testament that our skilled workforce and business-friendly climate are working to attract new investment and jobs for South Carolinians. We congratulate SAATI on its investment in South Carolina and wish the company much success in its endeavors here,” said Joe Taylor, Secretary of Commerce.
