Telecommunications Electrifies Catawba County

The growth of the fiber-optic industry has transformed Catawba County's economy during the past decade. With 40 percent of the world's supply of fiber-optic cable being produced here, Catawba County is at the hub of a $5.5 billion global industry.

“Catawba County is the telecommunications capital of the world,” says Phil Armstrong, director of investor relations at CommScope Inc.

Two of the high-tech industry giants, Alcatel NA and Siecor Corp., have built R&D facilities here, expanded their manufacturing plants and brought hundreds of engineers to the region. CommScope, the world's leading manufacturer of coaxial cable, is also spending $35 million to expand its Claremont plant. This is good news for the local economy which gains hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in construction with every plant expansion.

Siecor and CommScope are Catawba County's major employers, each with more than 2,000 employees. Alcatel is also among the county's top 20 employers. Wages are $10 to $15 an hour at fiber-optic cable plants and even more at optical fiber plants. The county's unemployment rate, at 2.7 percent, is at a 30-year low.

“With employment so low, recruiting workers is a full-time job,” says Robie Cline, manager of marketing communications at Siecor. “We are pouring resources into the community to fund workforce development programs.”

Siecor is working with educators in Catawba County's three public school systems to encourage students to pursue careers in math and science. The company has awarded almost $50,000 over the past 10 years to teachers who come up with creative ways to teach these subjects. It offers fellowships to teachers to pursue master's degrees and sponsors advanced placement chemistry and biology classes in the high schools.

In response to the workplace needs of the region's growing telecommunications industries, the Catawba County school system applied for and received a $60,000 grant from the BellSouth Foundation to fund a program to create high school classes in the new technology. Two high school teachers were paired with Siecor, CommScope and Alcatel NA for a year to develop the curriculum for the new courses.

“One teacher worked with the companies on hardware and the other worked on the software end,” says Roxy Poovey, director of workforce development education for the Catawba County Schools. “Sending these teachers out into the workforce for a year was expensive, but we wanted to get input from the industries.”

Dianne Gantt spent time at both Alcatel and CommScope during her sabbatical in order to develop curriculum for high school classes in computer programming.

“Spending time there was very important,” says Gantt. “I got to see how the programmers use computer languages. I got to understand what they do on a daily basis. I can't say enough about the cooperation we got from the industries.”

Darrow Mann used his sabbatical year to develop classes in cable technology. Three high school students who completed his course are working full time at CommScope this summer and will continue to work 20 hours a week during the coming school year.

“This takes students one step beyond the classroom,” says Marion Ford, assistant director of workforce development education. “It also lets CommScope learn how much our students know.”

Catawba Valley Community College also has put programs in place to prepare students for work in the high tech industries. Enrollment at CVCC has surged 50 percent in the past 10 years. Lenoir-Rhyne College, Hickory's four-year institution, has added an MBA program to its curriculum. About 40 students, most of them executives from area companies, are enrolled in the program.

The growing partnership between educators and industries is paying off for students, businesses, and the economy in Catawba County. If the workforce is prepared to do the job, the growing demand from the telecommunications industries will keep the fiber-optics companies expanding their production locally.

“It makes sense for us to invest in the community,” says Cline. “Not only do we need to do whatever we can to ensure the labor pool is there, we are also members of this community. We want to attract trained workers, but we also want to participate in making the area a better place.” —Casey Jacobus