Palmetto State Armory moves into former Lexington County plant. Take a look inside

When the Akebono Brake Company ceased operations at its Lexington County facility at the end of last year, Koto Yonemura was one of the last employees left.

These days, Yonemura is still on the job at the 310,000-square-foot center at the end of Metropolitan Driove. But the site is busier now, and could soon hum with more than 200 new employees.

The building that has sat vacant near Columbia Metropolitan Airport since the end of last year will find a second life as an expanded manufacturing and distribution center for Palmetto State Armory.

The locally-based firearms manufacturer recently acquired the building, where it plans to expand its manufacturing, logistics and distribution operation, according to Julian Wilson, co-owner and deputy chairman of the armory’s parent company JJE Capital.

Palmetto State Armory needs the additional space. The company’s existing facility on Old Dunbar Road is so tightly packed that employees complain they can’t park on site, Wilson said.

“That’s a limiting factor when we’re trying to hire,” Wilson said. “Here, we can work multiple shifts without parking being a limitation. We have substantial room for growth.”

The facility comes with 30 acres the company can use for future expansion.

Palmetto State Armory manufactures and sells a range of guns from pistols to AR-15s, plus related sporting equipment. The company operates six retail locations in South Carolina and Georgia, as well as direct sales online.

“We’ve seen a substantial growth in sales and a significantly large number of products moving,” both old favorites and new lines the armory is turning out, Wilson said. “These have been some busy engineers.”

The company expects to create at least 150 jobs at the Akebono site, on top of 80 employees they plan to move over from the Old Dunbar facility.

Wilson hopes to have the site ready to host warehouse operations by July. He says the large spaces are ideal for Palmetto State Armory’s online sales and retail enterprise. The brakes manufacturer had an aluminum foundry on site, so it’s also set up for manufacturing the kind of parts the armory currently makes at its other facilities.

The armory — co-owned with Wilson by Ed Larocque and Jamin McCallum — has reached a deal with Lexington County to acquire the Akebono site.

The company’s investment will be not less than $61.7 million, according to an agreement approved by Lexington County Council last week. The new location must create at least 150 jobs, according to the terms of the deal.

Under the agreement, the company will pay a reduced property tax rate of 6% instead of the normal 10% for industries. Over a 10-year period, the company would be entitled to a tax credit equivalent to 20% of its investment for the first five years and 10% for the second five years.

“We are pleased that a home grown company has decided to continue investing in Lexington County,” said County Council Chairman Todd Cullum.

Indeed, the company prides itself on trying to hire local talent into high-skilled positions.

“Some of these machines are like you’re playing video games,” said Marc Pitillo, facilities director at another Palmetto State Armory manufacturing site a mile away on Enterprise Parkway. “It’s a skilled trade. We’ve hired a lot of people from a good program at Midlands Tech, but this year there are only three guys in there.”

Yonemura, who oversaw operations at the former Akebono brake manufacturing facility, expects many former Akebono workers, who possess the same kind of skills Palmetto State Armory will need, will end up coming back to work at their old workplace.

“I get called every day, (asking) ‘are you open now or what?’” Yonemura says. “After this article comes out, I’ll probably get a lot more.”