Saxe Gotha Industrial Park is this German company’s first South Carolina home

Job seekers can reach out now to snag 1 of the 130 jobs this adhesives company is promising Lexington County

ALLTAPE Adhesive Manufacturing Inc. can officially get the ball rolling on its promise to bring the Midlands — Lexington County in particular — 130 jobs and a $70 million investment.

The item has been on Lexington County Council agendas under the name Project Aqua for a few meetings now but underwent its third and final go-around with the council on March 11.

With unanimous approval, the German company, which “specializes in developing and manufacturing sustainable and solvent-free adhesive products,” according to a release from the office of Gov. Henry McMaster, will call Lot 9 of Saxe Gotha Industrial Park its home.

“ALLTAPE Adhesive Manufacturing’s decision to invest and create 130 jobs in the Midlands will have a major impact on South Carolina,” McMaster said in the release. “Our business-friendly environment and skilled workforce make Lexington County the perfect location for ALLTAPE’s new manufacturing facility, and we look forward to the company’s success in our state.”

The company would be joining a number of other businesses in the county-owned park located off Interstate 77 near the Interstate 26 interchange, including Nephron Pharmaceuticals, Nephron Nitrile, Dominion Energy, Amazon facilities, Chick-fil-A Supply and the future site of Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, according to the county.

This Saxe Gotha Industrial Park economic development project that the council voted on comes just a few months after also welcoming a beverage manufacturing company to the park.

December 2024 reporting from the Chronicle details Cardiff Products USA LLC promising 94 jobs and a minimum investment of $99.6 million to Lexington County over the next five years.

There are more empty lots in the park that could soon be home to more local economic development projects.

“Launching our first production site in Lexington County, South Carolina, marks a significant milestone in our expansion into the U.S. market,” ATP Group CEO Daniel Heini said in the release from the governor’s office. “This substantial investment reflects ATP’s commitment to growth and innovation, and we are excited to commence operations in the South Carolina region.”

Local job seekers can contact Heini at daniel.heini@atp-ag.ch if interested in joining the ATP team.

With operations expected to launch in July 2026, employees will work in a new 125,000-square-foot facility in the Lexington County industrial park.

“The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to the project,” according to the release. “The council also awarded a $600,000 Set-Aside grant to Lexington County to assist with the costs of site preparation and building construction.”

Essentially, the council in this case is made up of state agencies working closely with South Carolina’s economic development. This can include the state’s Department of Commerce, the state’s technical college system and more, according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce website.

As for the job development credits as they relate to Project Aqua, the council of state agencies essentially made it so ATP’s move to Saxe Gotha Industrial Park is cheaper, while the Set-Aside grant helps with site improvements for the facility.

“The Job Development Credit effectively uses the personal withholding taxes of new employees to reimburse qualified, approved companies that add value to South Carolina and the community in which they locate,” according to the South Carolina Department of Commerce website. “These reimbursements are for eligible capital expenditures (land, building, site development, pollution control equipment or infrastructure) associated with projects creating new full-time jobs that also provide health care benefits for South Carolina citizens.”

State leaders say ATP’s presence in the Midlands will positively impact a variety of other industries.

“The company’s water-based adhesives are used in a variety of industry segments including automotive, transportation, foam, plastics and more,” according to the release from the governor’s office.