Continental Tire the Americas opened its new sustainably designed facility in Fort Mill, S.C., last week with local and state officials, key building project representatives, and corporate social responsibility partners.
The state-of-the-art, 90,000 sq.-ft., building, which sits on 33 acres in northern Lancaster County, has capacity for 350 employees and is designed and built for future expansion potential.
“Another great moment for Continental and for the State of South Carolina,” says Jochen Etzel, CEO Continental Tire the Americas. “Who would have imagined when we moved to the Palmetto state in 2009, that we would have invested over $800 million in our facilities across the state. The U.S. is a strategic growth market for Continental and particularly for our Tire business.” It is with the dedicated support and assistance of the Lancaster County Economic Development Corporation and the State of South Carolina Department of Commerce that this facility is built steps away from the current headquarters building.
Continental states involving employees, managers as well as executives from the project inception allowed every aspect of the facility to be purposefully ideated: from the selection of the architect to the details of the colors and furniture.
“This new structure is so much more than the typical office building,” says Etzel. “In the past, the office was a place you had to come to — our objective for this building was to create a workplace destination that you want to come to.”
From the site layout to the building designed to attain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification, to the incorporation of energy-saving and efficient materials, the project was carefully planned to be an example of Continental’s sustainability ambitions. LEED is the most widely used green building rating system in the world.
Continental says the project incorporated key LEED building standards including sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality. The open office layout incorporates natural materials installed by local artisans that creates a unique and collaborative environment. The building utilizes LED lighting for cost savings and contains recycled content carpet tiles and low VOC paint.
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On the exterior, the parking area, optimized for a decreased heat signature, includes 10 EV charging stations that may be used for electric vehicles or motorcycles. Continental says a total of 840 solar panels are located on the roof and in the parking area. These panels contribute up to 25 percent offset of the building’s total energy consumption. Rainwater harvesting will be utilized for irrigation of the plantings and lawn area. The project was designed by Gresham Smith and constructed by Edifice, the company adds.
Continental considers safety to be a top priority for employees, visitors and workers at our facilities. With over 135,000 person-hours invested during construction, there were zero recordable incidents during that time, the company states.
“I want to personally recognize the countless hours by all of the trades who made this vision a reality. On behalf of the executive team and the entire Continental family, I want to again thank the project team, the building partners, the county, and the state of South Carolina,” says Etzel.
