Manufacturing

Manufacturers Roundtable Benefits for Manufacturing Firms

The Greenville Chamber's Manufacturers Roundtable supports a competitive, world-class manufacturing region by providing a forum for plant managers from across various industry sectors to address issues impacting their operational competitiveness. The Roundtable value proposition includes:

• Developing a strong, networked leadership base of manufacturers in the region
• Sharing of best practices and learning experiences among this base
• Promoting a union-free environment
• Facilitating engagement with governmental and other leaders
• Providing training and information to support the manufacturing community

Based upon our experience with the Roundtable, the best potential members are those that either are or want to be involved in the following in their own facilities:

• Implementing Lean Manufacturing Processes and Quality/Six-Sigma Systems
• Promoting a Safety Culture
• Engaged in some form of Sustainability Initiatives
• Encouraging a Positive Employee Relations Environment

Manufacturers Roundtable events include monthly best practices meeting, plant tours, social events, a year-end event with SC Lean Alliance as well as three tickets to the annual Manufacturers BBQ Bash.

The Manufacturers Roundtable is guided by the Manufacturers Roundtable Steering Committee. Currently, this committee is composed of leadership from  Standard Motor Products, Solvay Polymers, ITW/Hartness, Action Research Corporation, Ashland Performance Materials, Morgan AM&T, and TBMC.

Certificates of Origin
The Chamber provides – at no cost - Certificates of Origin for companies exporting goods to countries requiring these documents.

Human Resources Support

• Human Resources Training
  Dedicated to bringing you the most current information in Human Resources Law, the Chamber partners with several leading law firms on hosting an annual, full-day HR Law Update as well as six partial-day sessions on various topics. Most of these events are eligible for continuing education credits through HRCI and discounted for Chamber members.
• Wage and Salary Survey
  All new members may receive upon request a copy of the most recent Upstate Wage and Salary Survey. This survey, conducted each July, has more than 150 companies participating and covers more than 180 occupations across the Upstate. 
• Benefits Survey
  All new members may receive upon request a copy of the most recent Upstate Benefits Survey, which is conducted every other year.
• Supervisory Certificate Program
  Members are eligible for a discounted rate for a 4-day new supervisor training program offered by Greenville Tech and developed for the Manufacturers Roundtable. The training is geared to individuals who have been promoted into supervisory roles, but who have had little or no formal training for this role.
• Talent Recruitment Assistance
  As a member, you will have access to a variety of no or low-cost tools to assist you in recruiting talent to the region. From the Think Greenville print piece to videos and PowerPoints, your firm will be able to use these professionally-developed marketing tools.  The Chamber also provides you with a substantial discount to www.nationjob.com, a leading provider of internet job search assistance. 
• Leadership Development
  As a member, your entire staff has access to LEAD Programs, including Leadership Greenville, Opportunity Greenville and the PULSE Young Professionals Group, all tools to help you retain the talent you need.

Legislative Access
The Chamber’s Public Policy initiatives are dedicated to ensuring that the Upstate has a world-class business environment. The Upstate Chamber Coalition represents more than 8,000 member businesses. As a Chamber member, you have access to various legislative events hosted by the Chamber, access to elected officials, including the ability to participate in task forces on various legislative topics (e.g., SUTA or Workers Comp).

SmartBuys Program                  
As a member, you have access to discounted services through our Smart Buys partners: Office Depot, Windstream Communications and Blue Cross/Blue Shield of SC.

Purchasing
The Chamber can provide access to suppliers of various locally-sourced goods and services as well as access to minority and women-owned vendors through our database of 2,100 members.

Manufacturers Roundtable Events & Sponsorship Opportunities

Monthly Roundtable Meetings
Manufacturing leaders meet at the Chamber on the first Wednesday of each month (except for July and December) to share best practices and build relationships with top manufacturing leaders in the region. Each meeting features an expert speaker and timely take-aways to improve operations.Click here to learn more.

Plant Tours
Several times a year, the Roundtable hosts plant tours so members can directly benchmark operations and share ideas.

Roundtable Socials
We bring together plant managers from the region twice a year for a light networking event. Click here to learn more.

BBQ Bash
This annual event honors our local community of manufacturers and their collective impact on our economy and quality of life. The BBQ Bash provides for a relaxing evening of great food, refreshments and fellowship for the region’s manufacturers and those that support them. A portion of the proceeds from this event fund an advanced manufacturing scholarship at Greenville Tech. Click here to learn more.

Eligibility for Participation in the Manufacturers Roundtable

Top leaders in regional manufacturing facilities are eligible to participate. This may include plant managers, CEOs, general managers, site leaders, etc. Some facilities choose to have their lead HR person or top Safety professional participate.

Manufacturers are defined as “establishments engaged in the mechanical, physical, or chemical transformation of materials, substances, or components into new products” with a market for these products outside of the Upstate region. These establishments are often described as plants, factories, or mills, and characteristically use power-driven machines and materials-handling equipment.

Based upon our experience with the Roundtable, the best potential members are those that are involved in the following in their own facilities:

• Implementing Lean Manufacturing Processes
• Implementing Quality/Six-Sigma Systems
• Promoting a Safety Culture
• Engaged in some form of Sustainability Initiatives
• Encouraging a Positive Employee Relations Environment

The Manufacturers Roundtable is guided by the Manufacturers Roundtable Steering Committee. Please contact Hank Hyatt at 864-239-3714 for additional information.