The second week in June represented one of the biggest weeks in Indiana economic development in recent memory and all the jobs are technology related.
The combined announcements, which impacted many areas of the state totaled more than $4 billion in new investment, 2,100 new jobs and 4,000 retained jobs.
Here’s the rundown.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb announced plans to bring a more than $3 billion electric vehicle (EV) battery cell plant to St. Joseph County, creating 1,700 manufacturing jobs. The new battery cell plant, a joint venture between Michigan-based General Motors and Korea-based Samsung SDI, is scheduled to begin operations in 2026.
GM and Samsung SDI, which announced their joint venture in April, will build the plant just east of New Carlisle at Larrison Boulevard and Indiana 2 to supply GM’s EV production needs. GM plans to install more than one million units of annual EV capacity in North America in 2025 and accelerate from there.
That wasn’t the only good news from GM. In a separate announcement, the vehicle maker unveiled plans to spend $632 million to update its Fort Wayne assembly plant so it can make the next generation of full-size pickup trucks with internal combustion engines.
The investment in new conveyors and equipment in the body shop and assembly areas won’t create any new jobs. But GM officials said it will keep jobs for about 4,000 people who work at the facility. Construction will start in 2024 at the plant, which now builds the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 light-duty pickup trucks.
Nucor, a major competitor to U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs, plans to invest $115 million in a new plant in Crawfordsville.
The North Carolina-based steelmaker operates a mini-mill in Crawfordsville, where it’s also investing $290 million in modernization projects that include expanded galvanizing and pre-paint lines. It’s looking to build another plant there to supply manufacturers of utility infrastructure for electric vehicles, renewable energy projects and electrification due to the soaring demand.
The mini-mill operator, which is the largest steelmaker in America by volume, estimates it will hire 200 more workers by the end of 2027.
The plant will feature a great deal of high-tech automation, according to company officials. It will make structures for electrification projects, including EV charging stations, grid hardening and renewable energy projects.
Indiana lured the investment with up to $7 million in incentives contingent upon its job creation and investment plans.
Nucor last year made the list of Best Places to Work in Indiana, and BizVoice® magazine told the story of the massive difference the company makes in its employees’ lives.
Netherlands-based NewCold, an advanced cold storage logistics company, is planning a $150 million expansion of its 380,000-square-foot facility at Lebanon Business Park. NewCold currently employs 140 people in Lebanon and company officials said the expansion would mean the addition of 100 high-paying jobs.
The expanded facility would be the largest automated cold storage building in the U.S. at 710,000 square feet, according to the company, which revealed its intended expansion June 12.
Previously, the company announced plans in 2020 to build a $150 million facility in Lebanon. The building became operational in fall 2022. NewCold’s facility is equipped with state-of-the-art automated storage and retrieval systems to handle products in sub-zero temperature conditions.
“The expansion of NewCold’s facility in Lebanon is a testament to our strong community and business environment,” Lebanon Mayor Matt Gentry states. “We are excited that NewCold continues to succeed and grow here.”
Heidelberg Materials pulled the curtain up on a new $600 million cement plant that opened in Mitchell on June 13, with claims that due to new technology there, the plant has significantly lower CO2 emissions than similar plants.
Company officials said the facility is the second largest cement plant in North America and one of the most technologically advanced and sustainable ever built.
Chris Ward, president and CEO of Heidelberg Materials North America, says that not only is the new plant more sustainable, but it is also more productive.
“This plant now will do three times the amount of cement and generate three times the amount of economic benefits that our legacy plant has,” Ward offers. “We think this will really spur a lot of further investment as companies look to support this plant now for years to come.”
Heidelberg is adding more than 50 full-time jobs to the already 120 employed at the location.
The site also will leverage funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to study the feasibility of carbon capture, utilization and storage at the site. The company aims to have those processes implemented by 2030.
While this last bit of news happens north of the U.S. border, its impact will also be felt here at home in the Hoosier state.
An Indiana-based technology company, Convoy Technology, recently shared it is opening a 18,000-square-foot Canadian manufacturing facility in Tecumseh.
Convoy officials announced it would begin operations at the new facility this fall.
The company, headquartered in Fort Wayne, manufactures industrial-grade safety products, including cameras, monitors, sensors, recording systems and accessories, serving the heavy duty on- and off-road industries.
The cameras are used for various functions including allowing commercial truck drivers to monitor heavy load movements and activity during a trip and providing a 360-degree view of the truck and vehicles around it, with the recording being used in the event of accident insurance claims.
The site in Windsor-Essex will be a production facility but also will serve as the company’s research and development location, with several engineering positions expected to be created in support of that effort.
Convoy Technology is aiming to employ up to 50 people at the Canada facility and said additional support staffers will likely be needed at its Fort Wayne headquarters.
Anthony Schoettle is the director of communications for the Indiana Chamber. He started with the Chamber in 2021 after a long career in journalism. He’s won multiple awards for his storytelling ability on a wide range of business topics.
