Samsung is set to expand its US operations with the planned opening of a new $380m home appliance manufacturing plant in South Carolina.
The plant will produce a variety of the trademark Samsung home appliances and will generate 954 local jobs by 2020.
The new facility is expected to begin manufacturing later this year and is the latest in a series of investments which are expanding Samsung’s US holdings and operations.
The company envisions the new South Carolina facility, which will be based in Newberry County, will serve as the US hub for home appliance manufacturing across the business unit.
The South Korean-based manufacturing giant chose to base the new plant in South Carolina due to the state’s highly-skilled workforce and strong track record of successfully attracting and retaining other global businesses, such as Amazon, Boeing and Honda.
The plant will also help Samsung place its manufacturing operations closer to US consumers, who also represent the company’s fastest growing home appliance market.
Samsung Electronics CEO B.K Yoon said the new plant would deliver home appliances more efficiently.
“We aspire to be the global leader in premium home appliances,” he said. “This new investment will enable Samsung to increase the speed with which we can deliver premium home appliances that reflect the regional preferences of our fastest growing and most important consumer market.”
The $380m plant is the latest in a series of recent investments by Samsung in the US over the last 18 months, totalling over $10bn.
They include the acquisition of electronics company HARMAN International for $8bn, a commitment of $1.2bn to the Internet of Things R&D and investments, the commitment of $1bn to its Austin Semiconductor facility, and the acquisition of luxury home appliance company Dacor.
Samsung currently employs more than 18,500 people in the US, with the upcoming opening of the South Carolina set to add to its US operations, which include operations in Silicon Valley, Austin and New York.