Scout Boats wraps up expansion

24K square feet added to Summerville plant

By: John P. McDermott

Post and Courier

               Scout Boats has completed an
expansion of its Summerville operation.

               The company said this week that
it added 24,000 square feet to its existing Dorchester county plant. The
estimated $2.5 million investment gives Scout 211,000 square feet of
manufacturing space off U.S. Highway 78.

             “The expansion is two fold,” CEO
and founder Steve Potts said in a written statement. “We’re keeping up with
demand of our models, as well as continually looking at how we can streamline
our production operations for better efficiency.”

                Scouts
newest and largest 420 LXF recreational boat and its 380 LXF will be made in
the new space. The expansion includes construction of a 1,000-square-foot paint
booth.

                “Our
new spray booth will allow us to custom paint our boats and engines, something
customers are demanding more and more,” Potts said.

                Scout
has said it has been adding jobs, and that employment in the Summerville plant
is up to about 265 workers, exceeding pre-recession levels.

                Potts
launched Scout on Bacons Bridge Road in 1989. Its high-end power boats are now
carried at more than 75 dealers in about 25 countries. Demand for larger models
fueled the latest expansion, the company has said.