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A California-based biotech company is opening its first facility in South Carolina in Union County.

MycoWorks, which creates luxury-quality leather alternatives using the trademarked Fine Mycelium, has selected Stream Realty Partners, CH Realty Partners, and Gray to help develop its first full-scale production facility in Union, S.C., according to a news release.

CH Realty Partners LLC, a Los Angeles-based developer — in conjunction with Ascendant Capital Partners, a Los Angeles-based real estate investment firm — will invest more than $50 million to expand and improve an existing warehouse at 260 Midway Drive in Union, South Carolina, the release stated. The facility, which MycoWorks will lease with a long-term commitment, will accommodate 135,000 square feet for the company’s first full-scale Fine Mycelium production manufacturing facility

MycoWorks’ new facility will offer approximately 50,000 square feet of manufacturing space, the release stated. It will include controlled environments for mixing, filling, and sterilization; work cells for tending the product as it grows; and areas for product harvesting and finishing.

Within the existing footprint, the facility will utilize approximately 40,000 square feet for an Automated Storage Retrieval System in a highly controlled environment that will house trays of the product as it grows into sheets, the release stated. A two-story expansion of 35,000 square feet for offices will be built adjacent to the existing warehouse. The remaining footprint will be used for storage, utilities, and maintenance areas.

Stream’s National Program Management team will work with CH Realty Partners to manage all aspects of the delivery of the facility, from conceptual design through equipment installation and startup, the release stated. Stream Vice President Tom Porter, who specializes in manufacturing, will lead the project. Stream is a national real estate services, development, and investment firm with a growing office in Charlotte that services the Carolinas.

“We’ve taken a deep dive to understand MycoWorks’ business needs and created a path forward that is critical to their success as an organization,” Porter said in the release. “Together, with our partners, we have developed a strategic approach to fast-track this project and help this unique, innovative client become the world’s first commercially scaled Fine Mycelium™ platform.”

Recognized as a leader in the manufacturing industry, Lexington, Ky.-based Gray will design and build the project, according to the release.

“Gray is excited to play a pivotal role on such an innovative and technologically advanced project,” said Brian Jones, Gray president and CEO, in the release. “This unique facility is a chance not only to advance MycoWorks but also move the industry forward, and that's an incredible opportunity."

Additional exterior improvements will include a bulk unloading area for dry raw materials, storage tanks for liquid raw materials, an expanded parking lot, and a new employee entrance, according to the release.

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The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the union in its fight for jobs at Leatherman terminal

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - As the U.S. Supreme Court decides if it will hear arguments in the ongoing dispute over 270 South Carolina port jobs and a $1.5 million port, several lawmakers and organizations are weighing in and urging the court to take up the case.

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation on Friday filed an amicus brief in support of overturning the ruling from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals that sided with the International Longshoreman’s Association allowing them to fill every role at the $1.5 billion facility.

South Carolina has long run on a hybrid model that allows state employees to operate the cranes at state port facilities while other jobs are filled by union workers.

The NRWF in the brief argues that handing the crane jobs to the union would have continued consequences beyond the initial job loss of the state employees and violates secondary boycott rules.

They argue that even if the state employees were to join a contractor with a union contract those employees would be passed over in favor of union members with longer seniority.

The labor dispute began when the ILA sued the United States Maritime Alliance for sending shipping lines to Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal shortly after the completion of its first phase two years ago. The union alleged the move violated the terms of a master contract prohibiting the use of newly constructed terminals where ILA dockworkers do not perform all unloading tasks.

For years, the ILA union held master contracts with major shipping companies along the coast and those contracts are updated over time. The most recent contract states that at any newly-opened port, unless all the jobs from the ship to the gate are performed by union members, the shipping companies will not use the new port. That’s what’s been happening at the Hugh Leatherman terminal since it opened.

Shipping line containers subsequently called off. The South Carolina State Ports Authority viewed the move as an illegal strong-arm tactic to grab new lines of work and argued a solely unionized staff would increase operational costs. The state favored a narrow definition of the jobs entitled to ILA members that excluded “lift-equipment jobs” like cranes operation.

However, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit endorsed a broader definition. Two of the three judges affirmed the National Labor Relations Board’s conclusion that “work” involved “the loading and unloading generally at East and Gulf Coast ports.”

The South Carolina Ports Association has called the practice a violation of secondary boycott laws. Because of the threat of lawsuits from the ILA, U.S. Maritime Association carriers will not use Leatherman.

“In their effort to maintain and expand their stranglehold on port employment all across the East Coast, ILA union bosses are putting the livelihoods of hundreds of Leatherman employees in jeopardy – employees who work side-by-side with unionized workers at Leatherman and have done nothing wrong,” National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix said. “The Supreme Court must reverse the Biden NLRB’s erroneous ruling letting this union gambit move forward, bearing in mind that the real victims here are the nonunion port workers whose jobs ILA officials want to seize.”

The nonprofit isn’t the only one to fill a brief in support of overturning the ruling.

Gov. Henry McMaster and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp filed a brief in support of the SCSPA arguing the appellate court’s decision expanded the scope of the work-preservation doctrine beyond what was allowed under the National Labor Relations Act.

“The Leatherman Terminal is a state-of-the-art facility and a critical part of South Carolina’s economic-development portfolio and continued competitive advantage,” McMaster said. “I will not stand idly by and allow unions and their unlawful boycotts to hold our State’s resources, jobs, and supply chain hostage as out-of-state labor bosses seek to advance their own interests at the expense of state employees. South Carolinians have worked hard to earn our prosperity, and we must continue to preserve it and enhance it, not bargain it away under threats of labor union boycotts and coercive pressure campaigns. Particularly at a time when the Southeast is leading the nation in both population and job growth, I appreciate Governor Kemp joining me in this fight to maintain and advance our States’ shared interests in protecting our ports and enhancing our regional supply chain.”

“The Fourth Circuit’s decision creates a roadmap for unions to erode the equal dignity and sovereignty of the States,” the governors argue.

Ultimately, the decision will also impact Georgia’s Port of Savannah and North Carolina’s Port of Wilmington which both operate under hybrid models.

“The success of the Georgia Ports Authority speaks for itself, with the ports supporting hundreds of thousands of Georgia jobs and billions of dollars in revenues statewide,” Brian Kemp said. “To continue that momentum, it’s essential the port retains the authority to decide the appropriate operating model that secures long-term performance and benefits the consumer. By taking this action alongside our partners in South Carolina, we aim to support the future prosperity of our ports and the role of GPA in shaping that future.”

The brief argues that the Fourth Circuit’s decision undermines the pro-competitive principles that the NLRA was designed to protect and that the decision has allowed unions to use their power to harm businesses that are not unionized.

That argument was reiterated by South Carolina’s senators, Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott who also filed an amicus brief asking the court to take up the case.

“There is no doubting this case’s importance,” Graham and Scott said. “It is important for the people of South Carolina. It is important to ensure consistent application of the law nationwide. And it is important to vindicate the federal constitutional structure, so that the People remain governed by a nation of laws, rather than ruled by administrative fiat.”

The South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance said port choice is a decision that’s made based on the contents of a container, shipping routes, access to inland shipping and final destination.

“The Fourth Circuit’s coastwide view of the work caused it to treat containers of cargo as fungible, without regard to the contents of the particular containers,” the alliance said.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers said the court’s decision “blurs the critical line between work preservation and acquisition.”

“The result of this conflation will be to dramatically increase the range of circumstances when unions are allowed to engage in pressure campaigns—wielding them not as a shield to preserve their own jobs, but as a sword to take away the jobs of non-union employees,” court documents state.

The groups argue the “consequences for the law and the national economy would be dire” should the court uphold the Fourth Circuit’s decision.

They argue that the Fourth Circuit misapplied the precedents used when they ruled in favor of the union.

A response from the government’s original deadline has since been extended to Nov. 29.

Copyright 2023 WCSC. All rights reserved.

The Texas Dow Employees Credit Union (TDECU) on Aug. 23 sent letters to more than 500,000 people saying their personal data was compromised during last year’s MOVEit attacks carried out by the Clop ransomware gang.

The MOVEit attacks were first discovered and reported in late May 2023, affecting more than 2,700 organizations and 95 million people.

In a notice on its website, TDECU said it first discovered on July 30 that the personal information of TDECU members was potentially removed from MOVEit by the threat actor between May 29-31 of last year.

The impacted data included full names in combination with dates of birth, Social Security numbers, bank financial account numbers, credit/debit card numbers, driver’s license information and taxpayer identification numbers.

TDECU was quick to add that there was no compromise of TDECU’s broader network security.

Ira Winkler, chief information security officer at CYE, said the TDECU case is a scary indication that organizations frequently lose insight into the data they collect. Winkler pointed out that given the delay in reporting, it’s likely that they were completely unaware of the data that was on a compromised system until recently.

“Data can be extracted from their original sources for a variety of purposes. And if the data is not properly tracked, it not only becomes vulnerable to compromise, but worse, the organizations have no idea it is compromised until it is too late,” said Winkler.

Itzik Alvas, co-founder and CEO and co-founder of Entro Security, added that the TDECU breach stressed the urgent necessity for organizations to prioritize cybersecurity measures, particularly vulnerability assessments and patch management.

"This incident reminds us that the stakes in cybersecurity are incredibly high, and organizations must stay attentive in both internal and external system security," said Alvas. “Regular vulnerability assessments and the swift application of patches are not just best practices, but critical actions that can prevent catastrophic breaches."

Ken Dunham, cyber threat director at the Qualys Threat Research Unit, said that the MOVEit vulnerability — CVE-2023-34362 — continues showing up in the news because of its widespread exploitation and the depth of exploitation. Dunham said while we may tire of hearing about MOVEit, it’s critical for security teams to stay vigilant.

“Readiness is more than planning on paper, it requires regular testing, demonstrating TTPs and defensive measures, testing for operational excellence and gaps,” said Dunham. “It also requires running drills — blackbox, graybox, and whitebox — to continually prepare and adjust to dynamic global threatscape risks to an organization.”

BENGALURU: Taking exception to the Karnataka Lokayukta sleuths seeking Governor’s nod for sanction of his prosecution in connection with illegal iron ore mining case, former Chief Minister and Union Minister of Heavy Industries and Steel H.D. Kumaraswamy on Wednesday questioned the State Government “Have you submitted the completion report of the Special Investigation Team which investigated the illegal iron ore mining case (against me) to the Supreme Court.”

Kumaraswamy, at a press conference in Bengaluru, reacted to the Karnataka Lokayukta sleuths seeking a fresh Governor’s permission to file a charge sheet against him in connection with alleged ‘illegal’ approval for 550-acre mining lease through a letter dated 6/10/2007 to Sai Venkateshwara Minerals in Sandur of Ballari district when he served the State as Chief Minister.

While the Supreme Court asked for submission of SIT completion report within 3 months of investigation in 2017, Kumaraswamy said “It is 2024 now yet no SIT investigation completion report has been submitted to the Supreme Court by the State Government.”

“I moved the Supreme Court in 2014 regarding the illegal iron ore mining case and the State Government constituted a Special Investigation Team to investigate the illegal iron ore mining case in 2017. The Supreme Court asked the State Government to investigate and the investigation has been completed but its completion report has not yet been submitted to the Supreme Court,” said the Union Minister.

He asked the State Government “Did Supreme Court ask you to knock on the doors of the Governor's office?” and he stated “Finally all the matters are to be decided by the Supreme Court (not Governor).”

The Union Minister denied having inserted his signature to Sai Venkateshwara Minerals to grant mining lease when he was the Chief Minister and blamed officials concerned for preparing files. “Hundreds of files came to my office. I do not know about any file of Sai Venkateshwara Minerals. Moreover it dates back to 2007," he said.

“It is not my signature (displaying a copy of a letter alleged to have been signed by him in 2007 to grant mining lease) and it has to be verified. Let officials concerned get my signature verified in any international Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL),” he said.

Before action, Kumaraswamy said “Signature has to be proved” and also ruled out his hand writing on a letter to grant mining lease to Sai Venkateshwara Minerals.

He alleged Sai Venkateshwara Minerals a “fraud” company and suspected that the letter claiming grant of mining license could also be “fraud” and wanted the matter to be investigated.

Criticising the State Government, he said, “For about 8 months a constant attempts have been made to fix in me denotification or any other case fearing that I will expose the State Government of wrongdoings with supporting documents.”

( Source : Deccan Chronicle )

UNION — Plans for a new amphitheater are moving forward, with construction expected to begin this fall across from the city’s Foster Park.

It’s among the projects the city is working on to provide additional space for events and outdoor entertainment.

For decades, Union has experienced a decrease in population. The city’s population of about 9,000 isn’t expected to rise substantially. However, some business growth is expected over the next decade.

The city is working to bring more retail and industry to the area through partnerships and upgrades to water and sewer infrastructure. The city also recognizes local businesses need more support and events to draw visitors.

City leaders hope an amphitheater will be a driving force in the local economy.

“Five years ago, we were really struggling to entice new development, and now I think we are trying to position ourselves to accept new development,” Union City Administrator Joe Nichols said. “We have quite a few things in the works.”

Spartanburg News

Funding for the $1.2 million amphitheater will include a grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission. It will be built on a 2.4-acre lot at the corner of Lakeside Drive and Arthur Boulevard. Engineers from SeamonWhiteside will design the project over the next 90 days.

Nichols said the amphitheater would initially host up to seven events annually. It’s expected to draw about 1,500 visitors to each event.

The amphitheater site will include water fountains, landscaping and restrooms. Nichols said he hopes an old railroad bed near the site will also be developed into a trail connecting with Main Street, which is being targeted for revitalization.

The city continues to work with Charlotte-based Benchmark Planning to develop a plan to help revitalize Main Street and its surrounding blocks. There’s more than 400 buildings in the downtown area some of which are underutilized.

Nichols said the city also has an agreement with a retail recruitment firm, Retail Strategies, to draw more business to the region. The partnership has already helped bring several national chains to the city including Starbucks, Arby’s and Harbor Freight. Mavis Tire and Brakes plans to open a new store in Union as well.