“World shaking news” is how Boeing Aircraft Lead Project Manager Bret Coffman described the airplane manufacturer’s decision to locate the second production line of its 787 Dreamliner in North Charleston.

“It will be a final assembly for the 787 Program,” Coffman told Orangeburg Kiwanians Monday afternoon at the Orangeburg Country Club. “This is one of the most exciting engineering events I have ever been a part of.”

Coffman said the company’s move to North Charleston will help make it more successful.

“It is healthier for the company, it gives us a chance to diversify and to move work forward,” he said.

Ground has been broken on the 240-acre site, which will include a final assembly facility and bay, delivery center, administration building, fin and rudder shop, equipment shop, central utilities building and site utilities.

Coffman estimates that of the 3,500 employees the plant expects to directly employ, about 30 to 40 percent are projected to live within 100 miles of the plant.

That would put Orangeburg County within the projected employment radius.

Orangeburg County Development Commission Executive Director Gregg Robinson spoke in generalities about the local impact of the Boeing announcement, saying there have been more inquiries about the county’s available buildings, industrial sites and infrastructure.

“We have had an increase for requests for proposals,” Robinson said. “We are ready and we are hoping more will come. It is about getting the product and infrastructure there. It is a tremendous opportunity and it is about the different clusters. This is a whole new aviation component for us — us being in the right location and the right time with the infrastructure will lead to dividends in the community.”

The county has a number of areas for industries to consider, including the Jafza Magna Park-Santee project, the John Matthews Industrial Park and the Orangeburg County-City Industrial Park.

Coffman said Boeing will construct two planes — the 787-8 and the 787-9 — at the North Charleston facility.

The 787-8 seats 250 passengers and the 787-9 seats 290 passengers. Currently, Boeing has a couple hundred orders for the 787-8.

Airplane parts will be brought in from Italy, Japan, Wichita and Seattle, with assembly in North Charleston.

Coffman said, “When we get the full rate ... our goal is one airplane will roll out of those front doors every three days. Week in and week out.”

Coffman said the 787 is lighter and quieter than similar airplanes, meaning it will have fewer emissions and less noise pollution.

He estimates fuel consumption is about 20 percent less than with similar airplanes. And its service time is reduced, enabling the plane to have 52 additional flights every 12 years. The planes are in service about 30 years before being decommissioned.

Boeing announced its plans to locate the line in North Charleston in October. It already operates a factory in North Charleston that makes 787 parts and owns a 50 percent stake in another plant there that also makes sections of the plane.

T&D Staff Writer Gene Zaleski can be reached by e-mail at gzaleski@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5551. Discuss this and other stories at TheTandD.com.

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