Greenville, SC - As Boeing prepares to land in Lowcountry, we take a look tonight at what BMW means to the upstate. Fifteen years ago, BMW made the landmark decision to build in South Carolina. Today the biggest impact is simply putting people to work.

Pieces at time, across four miles of assembly lines, BMW vehicles built right here in South Carolina. Of the 5,000 people working at the plant, a vast majority are from the Palmetto state.

“I believe BMW is setting the stage to be here for a long time and as long as I can be here, I plan to be here,” said BMW employee Eric Williams.

Williams on the job for 13 years, he says working for an international powerhouse like BMW provides among other things piece of mind.

“It’s been stable and I can’t ask for anything more then that,” said Williams.

Boeing expansion in North Charleston is likely to provide thousands of potential jobs, the workers here offer some advice.

“Be excited, be ready to give your all because its not going to change just your life, but the whole area,” said Williams.

Bobby Hitt is part of the original BMW management team in South Carolina and a Charleston native. He made hiring local a priority.

“We had 60 thousand people apply for the first two thousand jobs. We found pretty quickly that people in South Carolina were very adaptable. They show up to work on time, they will work hard and are willingly to be trained and 15 years later we are a bench mark plant in the United States,” said Hitt.

An idea, Hitt says will likely translate from an upstate car plant, to Boeings new facility in the Lowcountry. Two companies, recognized by name across the world, both finding a home in South Carolina.

Hitt also says Boeing decision provides proof that BMW made the right choice 15 years ago.

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