After months of work, the nearly empty warehouse we originally profiled has become a full-fledged, state-of-the-art solar panel manufacturing facility.
The $330 million project in Gaffney, South Carolina, is being completed by GEM Inc. for First Solar. The facility now features hundreds of machines and conveyors working together to produce high-quality solar panels that will help power the future of renewable energy in the South.
“Every single piece of equipment in here, we set online,” said SRCC millwright Frankie Baker. “From start to finish, off the truck, out of the crates. We stood it up, set it online, set the elevations and connected it to our conveyors.”
Baker worked with a team of as many as ten SRCC union millwrights during the first phase of construction.
Two millwright apprentices from Local 1263 have been at the site since work began.
“We started at the front door,” said millwright apprentice Antonio Mills. “Our laydown area used to be at the front door, where you first walk in. Now, when you walk in, you see machines, equipment and people everywhere.”
Since the project began, the team has moved its laydown area at least three times, each time farther back into the building.
“For me, it feels great knowing that I’ve had an opportunity to put my hands on every piece of equipment in here,” Mills said. “It’s fun for me to see, and I feel really proud of the work we’ve been doing.”
With the first phase nearing completion, the project is expected to ramp up again. More millwrights will be needed for the second phase of construction, which is scheduled to continue through approximately May 2027.