Boeing suppliers could be 10-to-15

Boeing Co. won't be nailed down on the specific number of suppliers that could follow its 787 Dreamliner assembly plant to the Charleston area, but another Fortune 500 business that's almost certainly working to provide factory sites to those vendors has aired its own guesstimate.

During its latest earnings call with analysts, MeadWestvaco Corp. president Jim Buzzard gave listeners an update on the packaging giant's North Charleston-based real estate development arm.

'We unveiled the master plan for our large East Edisto property, which was met with a very positive reaction from the community in South Carolina,' he said. 'We're already working with local governments on long-term development agreements and infrastructure plans and we expect that work to continue through 2010.'

The talk then turned to the large industrial park near Summerville that MeadWestvaco is developing with the Rockefeller Group. Buzzard noted that the joint venture had landed its first tenant, tire importer TBC Corp.

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'We are actively pursuing prospective tenants for a second site on this property as well as other industrial and development projects,' he said. 'The long-term dynamics for these properties are very strong, especially with the recent announcement that Boeing will open a second assembly plant for their Dreamliner aircraft in the North Charleston area and bring as many as 10 to 15 suppliers to the region along with them.'

Three to one

A statewide trade group that represents 79 South Carolina credit unions is set to get a new boss. The S.C. Credit Union League has pared down its list of CEO candidates to three, with the final round of interviews set for today.

An announcement about the hire is expected this week, said a spokeswoman for Scott Woods, chairman of the league and CEO of North Charleston-based S.C. Federal Credit Union.

The group is seeking a full-time replacement for Garry Parks, who retired at the end of 2009.