Anderson Oconee Pickens

New CATT Tagline Reflects Dedication To Recruiting and Training Area Workforce

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 6/58/2007
CONTACT: BOBBY BROTHERS, 646-1442
(By Lisa Garrett)

PENDLETON --- Like his predecessors, new Area Director Bobby Brothers believes the Center for Accelerated Technology Training (CATT) stands out because of its continued commitment to providing customer-driven training at no cost for new and expanding industries.

National site consultants agree.  South Carolina stacks up fifth in the nation for quality of workforce training companies as reported by Expansion Management Magazine, whose editors cite CATT and its streamlined workforce training programs as a huge influence in the ranking.   The ranking is the result of a poll the magazine conducts every year with more than 80 national site-selection companies in every field from call-center operations to manufacturing-specific consultants to other general full-service companies, The poll consists of a single question in which the consultants are asked: “As you are investigating potential sites for your clients, what states in your experiences have the best workforce training programs?”

“We are the State’s greatest economic development resource, and in my opinion, the most understated and best-kept secret for economic development incentives packages.  That’s how we stand out,” Brothers said of the program, which is funded through the State to manage companies’ customized training from start to finish -- all at no cost to the company.

To better communicate its mission, CATT recently adopted a new tag line – readySC™.

“Although it’s an honor to be ranked fifth nationally, our goal is today, as always, to be number one.  readySC™ is still the official name, but we want to differentiate ourselves from other states that offer similar services.  Our services are different in that we provide more value to the training dollar.  We give a dedicated process to recruiting and training your workforce to give you an efficient and profitable start-up or expansion,” said Brothers.

That’s part of the incentive package the State offers to create jobs.  Classes include on-the-job and pre-employment training.  The program is supported 100 percent by State funds, which are appropriated and expended totally independent of the College's budget.

“Quality programs continued to be our mainstay, but our new marketing strategies reflect a change of the times,” said Brothers.

Forty-six years after its inception, readySC™ is still often the deciding factor for industries to locate new jobs in South Carolina.

Its most recent success story is the Walgreen’s Distribution Center located on Interstate 85 in Anderson County.

This is the first time Walgreens has committed to training and employing 30 percent of a distribution center’s workforce with persons who have cognitive and physical disabilities.   It’s also the first time in Anderson County that readySC™ at Tri-County, the Anderson County Economic Development Board, Anderson Disabilities and Special Needs Board, Vocational Rehabilitation, and several school districts have engaged in a collaborative training project.

“We are able to take on complex training projects, like Walgreens.    who is hiring a diverse workforce. They have a different philosophy to running a business.  We pulled together our resources to make that happen. We are committed to that partnership,” said Brothers.

The Anderson Disabilities Board and Anderson County Vocational Rehabilitation did the majority of the early training for this project. readySC™ helped to fund this training and helped to train the workers with typical abilities on campus in the College’s Economic Development Center.

In addition to recruiting and training an initial workforce, readySC™ staff helped to develop a training program. 

“We help companies to develop relationships with the College that can assist them with additional training through the Corporate & Community Education Division, credit courses and apprenticeships,” said Brothers. 

“The relationship continues after the last person is hired,” said Brothers.

Examples of training include lean manufacturing, SPC, basic math, team building and industrial safety.  Some companies need specific procedural training for machinery, while others need to document process and standardized operational procedures to be used to train operators and work processes.

Brothers urges companies to call on him for readySC™’s services.  There’s minimal paperwork and red tape to deal with.  There is no cost except the time you are willing to invest to work with readySC™.  The benefits are directly proportional to the amount of time invested up front as we discover your specific training needs.”

“If you are creating new jobs, we’re here for you.  So take advantage of our services,” urged Brothers.

For more information, contact Bobby Brothers at 646-1442 or bbrother@tctc.edu.