Generating Excellence at Atlas Copco in Rock Hill

By Mike Demos, OpExChange Coordinator for the SCMEP

On March 20, 2025, Atlas Copco welcomed OpExChange members for an insightful plant tour at their Rock Hill, SC, facility. Having joined OpExChange just last year, Atlas Copco has wasted no time fully engaging with the network, actively participating in plant visits and workshops across the state. Their inaugural hosting event set a high standard, offering not only an exceptional tour but also top-tier hospitality, including a catered lunch that fostered valuable networking opportunities among attendees.

A Comprehensive Tour Experience

The Rock Hill site consists of two large buildings: a manufacturing and assembly plant and a logistics warehouse. The tour, one of the most extensive in OpExChange history, included seven stops and lasted nearly two hours. The event drew 33 visiting OpExChange peers from 13 South Carolina counties and even one from Charlotte, with the longest journey made from Hilton Head Island.

Scott Kaffka, General Manager for the site, welcomed the group and provided insights into Atlas Copco’s global presence. Headquartered in Sweden, Atlas Copco operates in 73 countries across four primary business areas: Compressor Technique, Vacuum Technique, Power Technique, and Industrial Technique. The Rock Hill facility plays a critical role in producing products for 2 of these business areas namely Compressor technique & Power technique

Precision Manufacturing for Critical Industries

A key highlight of the tour was Atlas Copco’s production of specialized equipment for the medical industry. Their medical gas solutions division lines manufactures gas and vacuum systems essential for hospital operations, including operating rooms, laboratories, and patient care areas. These systems ensure a continuous and reliable flow of medical gases, which is vital for patient safety.

Atlas Copco designs and builds highly customized medical equipment, incorporating embedded software developed in-house for precise control and monitoring. Their systems are designed with redundancy, ensuring no single point of failure – a critical requirement in the medical field. Duplex systems, which provide backup capabilities, are standard to guarantee operational reliability.

Each unit is built to order, undergoing extensive functional testing before shipment. The testing process is rigorous, ensuring that every component meets the highest standards for safety and performance. From monitoring gas flow to integrating with hospital pipelines, Atlas Copco’s solutions play a crucial role in modern healthcare infrastructure.

Beyond medical applications, the Rock Hill facility produces air compressors, generators, dewatering pumps & light towers used in a variety of industries. Their lean manufacturing processes ensure high efficiency, with a focus on safety, quality & continuous improvement.

Investment in Workforce Training and Development

A key focus of the tour was Atlas Copco’s investment in workforce development. Their operator training program, launched in August 2023, is designed to improve the skills needed for safe, efficient, and high-quality assembly work. This structured program includes a two-day training for new operators, four-hour training sessions for support personnel, and an eight-hour training for logistics operators. A refresher training component is also being rolled out to reinforce key concepts and techniques. Training covers a range of critical areas, including tool usage, routing of electrical and hose assemblies, process improvement, and basic torque theory.

One of the standout advancements in training is their digitized training matrix. Developed in-house, this tool provides instant visibility into employee training status, ensuring workforce readiness and facilitating career progression discussions. If an operator is absent, supervisors can quickly identify who is trained or certified to take on the task, maintaining operational efficiency.

For forklift operators specifically, Atlas Copco has implemented virtual reality (VR) training, allowing them to practice navigating courses in a simulated environment before working with actual equipment. This immersive approach enhances safety and skill development. As part of their safety policy, any forklift-related safety incident requires additional time spent in simulation training. During the visit, an engineer from IKO Glass Fiber had the opportunity to test the VR forklift simulator firsthand, experiencing the challenges and benefits of the program.

Lean Manufacturing and Logistics Excellence

Throughout the tour, visitors observed how Atlas Copco integrates lean manufacturing principles to enhance efficiency. The facility employs software tools – both commercially available and in-house developed – to optimize material flow. Their pull systems ensure that necessary components are delivered just-in-time, reducing waste and improving production accuracy.

In their logistics center, Atlas Copco has made significant improvements since transitioning from a third-party logistics provider. The facility features eight receiving lanes with real-time inventory monitoring. Their repackaging strategy, which standardizes material presentation for operators, has improved productivity by 39% and reduced repacking rates from 43% in January 2024 to just 18%.

Among the most impressive innovations was their use of autonomous drones for warehouse management. These drones operate overnight, scanning inventory with an accuracy rate that has significantly improved warehouse operations. The drones perform a full facility scan every nine days. This automation has driven warehouse management system (WMS) accuracy from 91% to 97% over six months. The drones also identify discrepancies in real time, allowing immediate corrective action. With the ability to reach high storage areas effortlessly, they enhance both safety and efficiency by eliminating the need for workers to climb ladders or operate lifts for inventory checks. This investment in automation exemplifies Atlas Copco’s commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology for operational excellence.

A Commitment to Sustainability and Safety

Atlas Copco’s Rock Hill facility is a model of environmental responsibility. LEED Silver certified, the site operates on 100% renewable energy and is landfill-free. Their transition from B7 bio-diesel to Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) in April 2025 will totally eliminate traditional fossil fuel use in testing operations.

Safety remains a top priority, with a proactive safety team and a structured three-pronged approach:

1. Participation – Engaging all employees in safety initiatives.
2. Purpose – Creating personal connections to safety importance.
3. Policy – Establishing clear procedures and training programs.

During the tour, they showcased a tool recently introduced to identify ergonomic risks. By simply capturing videos of their production line or warehouse operations, an AI-powered platform automatically analyzes employee movements, pinpointing potential ergonomic hazards. This eliminates the need for time-consuming manual assessments, allowing for a more efficient and comprehensive evaluation. The platform generates detailed reports with visual feedback and actionable insights, highlighting specific hazardous postures or movements that could lead to musculoskeletal disorders. This enables Atlas Copco to implement targeted interventions, such as adjusting workstations, providing training on proper lifting techniques, or modifying task procedures – ultimately reducing the risk of workplace injuries and fostering a safer, more productive environment.

Their commitment to safety is evident in their current 13-month record of zero recordable incidents.

A Workplace that Values Everyone
A notable aspect of the visit was Atlas Copco’s commitment to fostering a welcoming and supportive workplace. As guests arrived, they encountered a large group of women wearing “Women in Manufacturing” t-shirts, part of an appreciation event held by senior leadership. Atlas Copco stands out as one of the largest employers of women in manufacturing, with 27% of their workforce being female.

Atlas Copco embraces a workforce that contains employees from 20 different countries.  The company holds an annual World Cultural Celebration Day, where groups showcase their heritage through decorations, food, and cultural exhibits. This event highlights the company’s efforts to create an engaging and collaborative work environment.

Conclusion

The OpExChange visit to Atlas Copco in Rock Hill was an inspiring experience, showcasing a company that excels in operational excellence, innovation, diversity, and sustainability. After the tour, OpExChange peers participated in a “Plus/Delta” session, sharing key takeaways and opportunities for further improvement. One visitor expressed their motivation for attending, stating, “Atlas Copco’s reputation for high employee engagement preceded them, and I wanted to see why.” After the visit, she reflected, “I was truly blown away by the investment they have put into providing their employees with what they need to be successful and in turn make the company successful as well.”

This spirit of collaboration and continuous learning exemplifies what makes the OpExChange network invaluable.

About Atlas Copco in the United States

Every day, across the United States and around the world, products are manufactured, facilities are constructed, critical bolts are fastened, and all types of gases are compressed and turned into energy. This may seem like a collection of unrelated processes, but one company unites them – Atlas Copco. With over 5,000 employees in over 100 locations and greater than $2 billion in sales in the United States, we pride ourselves on being a trusted solutions provider for all types of industrial equipment. Our portfolio specifically includes compressed air and gas equipment, industrial tools and assembly solutions, mobile compressors, pumps, and generators, industrial vacuum equipment, rental equipment, as well as service and maintenance!

https://www.atlascopco.com/en-us

About OpExChange

The OpExChange, an SCMEP program, is a peer-to-peer network of manufacturers and distributors in South Carolina known for generating success for members through benchmarking and best practice sharing. Member companies host events and share practical examples of industrial automation, lean manufacturing improvements, and leadership development. It is an invaluable resource to South Carolina companies that provides access to others who are on similar improvement journeys. If your company is interested in participating in this collaborative effort to improve both the competitiveness of your operation and South Carolina, contact Mike Demos (mdemos@scmep.org). More information and upcoming plant visits are available on the OpExChange website www.OpExChange.com.