Business View Civil and Municipal | March 2021

110 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL MARCH 2021 HI CKORY , NORTH CAROL INA own metro area.” Hickory has an ideal location on Interstate 40, which spans eight states from North Carolina to California and is the third longest highway system in the U.S. And Charlotte Douglas International Airport is a short drive from Hickory, another advantage for residents and visitors to the area. With the tagline ‘Life. Well Crafted’, the City of Hickory gives a nod to its long history of entrepreneurial spirit. Many of the community’s major corporations are homegrown, along with a variety of small businesses within the city. Family-owned Hickory Springs Manufacturing (HSM), a leading supplier to the bed industry, has been a part of Hickory since 1944. For many years, the city relied heavily on manufacturing, which made up 50 percent of its employment base. With intentional effort, Hickory has diversified its workforce, which is now 28 percent manufacturing based, still four times the national average. Trivium Corporate Center, an advanced manufacturing business park in the city, has recently announced the addition of American Fuji Seal. The manufacturers of shrink sleeve labels for consumer products are investing $52 million into their new facility, employing more than 100 people. Other Trivium tenants include ITM, manufacturers of radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment; Cataler, a Japanese company specializing in automotive catalysts; and Corning Incorporated, manufacturers of optical cable systems. While these projects are in various stages of development in the Trivium location, there is continued interest and growth expected. Wood admits, “The problem is going to be, now that we have three or four parcels left, we are going to have to start thinking about expansion. That means either buying additional property or recreating that concept somewhere else.” Aside from manufacturing, Hickory has other large companies who bring employment to the city, including the corporate headquarters of CommScope, a fortune 250 company, specializing in communications technology. Logistics management specialists, Transportation Insight, is one of the largest privately owned companies in North Carolina. They are based in Hickory, along with Merchant Distributers Incorporated (MDI), a grocery store distribution company. “MDI is one of the largest companies in the state, and they are doing $120 million expansion, which is the largest single economic development project