Central Indiana Update
The region's top business stories

by Kathy Mayer

(April 2002) - MARION COUNTY
"We've done well in the face of adverse circumstances," says Roland Dorson, executive vice president of the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce.

And it's only going to get better, with the launch of the Indy Partnership's five-year, $15.5 million campaign and plan, "Enriching the Region." The goal is to increase capital investment and quality job growth throughout a nine-county central Indiana area.

Business expansions logged by Indy Partnership include additions at Masco Support Services, a finished goods procurement center employing 150, and National Starch & Chemical Co., manufacturer of adhesives, synthetic polymers and starches.

Marion County's largest industrial employers are Eli Lilly & Co., with 11,000 employees in Indianapolis; Rolls-Royce, which employs 5,000; and Allison Transmission, with a 4,100-person workforce.

HAMILTON COUNTY
In the last year, the county welcomed Index Corp. to Noblesville, where it's making turning machines and employs about 80; and Midwest ISO to Carmel, which employs about 140 in electric grid management, reports Jeff Burt, president of Hamilton County Alliance.

Existing industries reinvesting in the county included a $6 million expansion at security system manufacturer ADT in Fishers, the county's second-largest employer with 450 on the payroll; and the $4 million project at Noblesville's Perfecto Manufacturing, where 250 workers make aquariums. Carmel's Heart Center of Indianapolis is spending $60 million on its cardiac facility.

Other top employers are: Bridgestone/Firestone in Noblesville and Carmel, with 550 employees making air springs and building products; IMMI in Westfield, employing 450 who make tie-downs, seat belts and straps; and Universal Music Group in Fishers, a CD/tape distributor with a workforce of 425.

JOHNSON COUNTY
"Right now we feel very fortunate that the recession hasn't hit us that hard. Our employers are staying even," reports Dan Theobald, executive director of Johnson County Development Corp.

Top employers include Franklin's ArvinMeritor, with 650 employees making heavy duty truck exhaust systems; Mitsubishi, also in Franklin, employing 500 and producing air conditioner compressors; Edinburgh's Lear Corp., with 525 on the payroll making automobile injection molded products; and Franklin's Best Buy distribution center, employing 500.

The Sierra Crest Business Park in Greenwood is up and running, and earthmoving for the 300-acre Franklin Tech Park in Franklin gets underway this spring. In Greenwood's Precedent South business park, a spec building is nearly finished and ground will be broken this spring for another 500,000-square-foot building.

HENDRICKS COUNTY
Bulk space leasing topped 3 million square feet in Hendricks County in 2001, reflecting the popularity of the county for distribution and logistics facilities. That number will soon rise dramatically, predicts Harold Gutzwiller, executive director of the Hendricks County Economic Development Partnership.

Among the new industries recently opened are: HomeGoods, a division of TJX and owner of Marshall's and TJMaxx, which opened an 805,000-square-foot distribution facility in Brownsburg employing 300; Belkin, an electronics manufacturer employing 300 in Plainfield; Plainfield's Puritan Bennett, which supplies portable oxygen equipment and employs 400; and the Whirlpool/Ryder logistics facility in Plainfield, with 325 on the payroll.

In other news, Denison Properties has created One West Business Park in Pittsboro on 200 acres near Interstate 74.

MORGAN COUNTY
Two new firms have joined the lineup in Morgan County, reports Helen Humes, director of the Mooresville Development Commission. Carter-Lee Building Components is the first occupant in the new 74-acre Mooresville Industrial Park; it makes trusses and panels for home and commercial projects and expects to employ 75 within four years. And Toa USA, an automotive suspension parts manufacturer, has begun production. Current employment of 34 will soon increase to about 150.

Top employers, all in Mooresville, include Nice-Pak, employing 420 and making baby wipes; brick-maker General Shale, with 115 employees; and LinEl Signature Skylights, with 100 workers making skylights and other architectural products. LinEl, in the Flagstaff Business Park, is now building an addition and will soon hire another 30.

HANCOCK COUNTY
Expansions headline the news in Hancock County, where Eli Lilly and Co. continues its $73 million addition to its Greenfield Laboratory, adding a new biology lab, records facility, offices and related infrastructure. Mount Comfort Airport is getting another 12,000 square feet of space in offices and hangars; and Indiana Automotive Fasteners in Greenfield, which employs 100, is adding another 30,000 square feet.

Precedent Corp. built a second 70,000-square-foot spec building in Mount Comfort, added 125 acres to its Mount Comfort Commercial Park, and is now building a 588,000-square-foot building.

The county's top industrial employers are Keihin IPT in Greenfield, with 1,200 on the payroll making fuel injection parts for Honda; Eli Lilly, with 750 employees at its research and production facility; and Irving Materials, which employs 300 at its concrete, sand and gravel plant.

SHELBY COUNTY
When it comes to economic impact, Shelby County is counting a new entity outside the traditional industrial base: Indianapolis Downs at the Interstate 74/Fairland Road interchange, where horse racing will be the product. "That should have significant impact upon the entire county," says John DePrez Jr., executive director of Shelby County Development Corp.

The county's top industries, all in Shelbyville, are Knauf Fiberglass GmbH, where 1,150 employees make fiberglass insulation; PK USA Inc., which makes steel and plastic auto parts and employs 600; and Pilkington, with 550 making tempered glass parts for automobiles.

In industrial park development, the city of Shelbyville hopes to add 850 acres to the Northridge Industrial Park. In spec development, the Blue River Development Corp. is putting up a 50,000-square-foot building.

BOONE COUNTY
Kathleen Zoeller Culp, executive director of the Boone County Economic Development Corp., reports three major stories in Lebanon: ConAgra opened, employing 135 in food processing; Pearson Education spent $49 million on its publishing plant and increased employment from 150 to 430; and Lau Industries spent $4.1 million to expand its fan and blower plant, adding about 20 jobs.

The county's top industrial employers, all in Lebanon, are Prairie Industries, employing 300 and making artificial Christmas trees and other plastic products; Kauffman Engineering, employing about 150 who make electronic components; and American Air Filters, with 150 on the job making air filters.