A Canadian company sees promise in the Lowcountry’s tech sector and expects to add more employees to Charleston-based Avista Solutions following its recent acquisition. “We think this is a very material growth opportunity,” said Gerrard Schmid, CEO of D&H.

South Carolina moved up a spot to No. 7 on Chief Executive magazine’s list of the best states in which to do business in 2012. The magazine released today its eighth annual survey of “CEO opinion of Best and Worst States in which to do business.” Texas ranked No. 1 and California ranked No. 50, rankings that have remained the same for eight consecutive years. South Carolina ranked No. 8 in 2011 and No. 10 in 2010.

Forbes annual survey of the “Best places for jobs in the U.S.,” ranks the Charleston region #5 among mid-size metros and #29 overall. This is up from #8 in 2011. Rankings are based on recent growth trends, mid-term growth, long-term growth and the region’s momentum. Mid-size metro areas are defined as having a current nonfarm employment base of 150,000 to 450,000 jobs.

In Charleston, creatives may set up shop in edgy districts such as the Upper Peninsula or hang a shingle on Upper King or along Spring and Cannon streets. Their offices may be local coffee shops, their storefronts only URLs, but their collective economic impact in the Charleston metro region alone is $1.4 billion.

An ocean carrier alliance will begin a weekly container service that will connect the Port of Charleston to China and South Korea, the S.C. State Ports Authority announced today. The carriers will send nine ships for the service, adding 52 ship calls each year at the North Charleston Terminal. The first Charleston call is expected in June.

The 787 Dreamliner "Made with pride in South Carolina" has shifted the dynamics of U.S. aircraft manufacturing. It is the first commercial jet built on the East Coast and the first assembled by a nonunion workforce. The 240-acre site in North Charleston includes the first new jetliner assembly campus in the U.S. in more than four decades and Boeing's first outside Washington state.

For the past four-odd years, the Citadel graduate and Isle of Palms resident has directed the development of the Geode, an iPhone “appcessory” that will allow people to leave all their plastic cards at home. The sleek contraption, which will sell for $199, fits around the iPhone like a hard protective case and features a programmable barcode and magnetic-stripe card, accessible only by a fingerprint scanner.

The driver for wind-energy jobs in greater Charleston is Clemson University’s Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing Facility, now under construction on the former Navy base in North Charleston. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the $98 million facility will be the largest of its kind in the world, capable of testing enormous 7.5 and 15 megawatt turbines under stressful conditions.

Clemson University has secured funding to create a multimillion-dollar energy grid testing system at the Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing Facility in North Charleston. “At 15 megawatts, this will be the largest grid simulator in the world,” said Nick Rigas, senior scientist and director of the drivetrain testing center.

In all, the payroll from Boeing trickles through the Charleston region with nearly a $5 billion impact, according to a study last fall from the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce. The study, based on 5,000 employees at the time, estimated the economic impact at $4.6 billion, sustaining another 12,000 jobs in the region. Boeing now has more than 6,000 workers in North Charleston.

Even as Boeing South Carolina made history by rolling out its first 787 Dreamliner on Friday, the talk was as much about the future as it was about the accomplishments to date.

South Carolina's first 787 Dreamliner emerged from Boeing Co.'s final assembly building amid a haze of manufactured fog at 2:30 p.m. today. The 787 turned 45 degrees, and parked behind the stage directly in front of the crowd. The jet, purchased by Air India, has not yet been flown or given a final paint job, but bears the Air India logo in red paint on the white aircraft. Also, the front of the fuselage sports a large painted Palmetto and crescent, as on the South Carolina flag. It says,“Made with pride in South Carolina.”

Benefitfocus launched a new software product for large employers today at its annual One Place event in Charleston. The new software, HR InTouch Marketplace, supports benefits shopping, defined contribution, consumer direct pay and applications.

Amazon is expanding in North Charleston. The city of North Charleston leased the old city hall building to CreateSpace, a DBA of On-Demand Publishing LLC, part of the Amazon group of companies.

The 2012 BB&T Wine and Food Festival brought $8.6 million to the local economy, according to a preliminary economic impact study conducted by the College of Charleston’s office of Tourism Analysis.

The Charleston Digital Corridor is expanding its workforce development strategy with the announcement today of a new program to teach software coding. The program, CODEcamp, will teach open source coding, and classes will be held in a new computer lab funded through the corridor’s member dues.

Just months in the making but perhaps offering a glimpse decades into the future, South Carolina’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner will roll out April 27. A major milestone for the local plane-making operation, the rollout announced Wednesday represents the inaugural jet’s official debut, as well as a definitive step toward proving North Charleston’s ability to do what only two other places in the world do — finish putting together a wide-body commercial airplane.

The Federal Aviation Administration has certified the Boeing 787 Dreamliner powered by General Electric engines, the aerospace company announced minutes ago. Boeing received initial type certification for the 787 with Rolls-Royce engines in August. The U.S. FAA has now granted the Dreamliner with the other engine option its amended type certificate.

French-owned Nexans said Wednesday it will invest $85 million and create up to 200 jobs at a new plant to be built on the property near Goose Creek. Nexans expects to begin operations in Berkeley County in 2014. Its new plant will focus at first on making underground land cables that can handle 69 to 420 kilovolts.

The 787 Dreamliner won a National Aeronautic Association award for excellence in the aerospace industry, the Boeing Co. announced Tuesday. The association awards the Robert J. Collier Trophy to the air or space vehicle that represents the greatest aeronautic achievement in America.

The S.C. State Ports Authority awarded a $42.7 million contract to a Massachusetts-based firm to begin filling the site of a future container terminal on the former Navy Base.

Nexans, a worldwide leader in the cable industry, announced today that its new high voltage power cable manufacturing plant will be located in Berkeley County. The $85 million investment is expected to create up to 200 new jobs. Nexans will use the facility to manufacture high-voltage power cables, with a possible future extension to submarine cable production. The company expects plant operations to begin in 2014.

BMW Manufacturing Co.’s Spartanburg County facility is now the leading U.S. automotive exporter. The German automaker announced that the export value of its passenger vehicles through the Port of Charleston in 2011 totaled $7.4 billion. The plant contributed more than $4.4 billion annually in 2010 and $3.1 billion in exports in 2009.