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Manufacturing & Technology
VOICES FROM THE INDUSTRY: Existing work force is our biggest education challenge
November 19, 2007
Carol D\'amicoAs Hoosiers, every time we open our wallets and pocketbooks, we should think about going back to school. For the last three
decades, Indiana's per capita income growth has lagged the rest of the country, to the point where the average Hoosier earns
less nized for work force development use a combination of state and local dollars and even lottery funds (as in Georgia).
Private management of the Hoosier Lottery, as proposed during the last legislative session, could provide the...
MoreCarrier carrying on in cool housing market
November 19, 2007
Chris O'MalleyWith steep declines in new-home construction and existing home sales, market conditions in the Indianapolis-based North American
residential business of Carrier Corp. "are clearly challenging," according to George David, CEO of Carrier's parent, United
Technologies.
MoreMedical-device startup lands venture capital: Symbios bringing orphan Biomet technology to market
November 5, 2007
Peter SchnitzlerWhen large companies make innovations that don't fit their business plan, the discovery often ends up gathering dust on a
shelf. But entrepreneurs are eager to build new companies around these orphaned technologies. Four years ago, Jeffrey Alholm
spotted just such an opportunity. Warsaw-based Biomet Inc. had tabled a promising anesthetic-dispensing device. So Alholm
formed Symbios Medical Products LLC and cut a deal to secure its rights. Now, Symbios has a chance to commercialize the device
widely, thanks to a...
MoreNot your father's car lot: Auto dealers grab attention with livelier designs
November 5, 2007
Chris O\'malleyThe three-tiered floor gives a commanding view of the flick playing on the big screen. Down the hall, other guests sit entranced
behind flat-panel TVs in a spacious lounge, or check their e-mail courtesy of the building's wireless signal. Not far away,
20 kids and their parents celebrate a birthday party. It's not a movie theater, a Hilton or a Chuck E. Cheese's: It's Burd
Ford's new facility at 10320 E. Pendleton Pike. These days, almost every new or remodeled...
MoreEDITORIAL: Tough love for struggling park: State's high standards deserve praise
October 29, 2007
Tough love for struggling park State's high standards deserve praise It would be easy for the state's certified technology
park initiative to degenerate into a handout program with little or no accountability. If communities in all corners of the
state get a park, along with the accompanying tax benefits and grants, everyone's happy, right? Perhaps. But for the Indiana
Economic Development Corp. to deploy resources in the most potent manner, it must focus on the parks with the potential to...
MoreBank's plans unclear after LaSalle buy: Bank of America unlikely to grow local retail biz, but lending office should stay,
industry observers say
October 29, 2007
Scott OlsonBut here in Indianapolis, where LaSalle's lone location is a downtown commercial lending office, banking observers don't expect
Bank of America retail outlets to follow. "I don't think [Indianapolis] will be a primary focus, at least not in the near
term," said Tom Kersting, an Edward Jones analyst in St. Louis who follows the bank. "Their main purpose in making the purchase
was getting the Chicago presence. That was the last major market they were lacking." Even so, observers say...
MoreEmbattled city to get lift from resurgence of Remy:
October 22, 2007
B e a t e n - d ow n Anderson finally has some good auto-related news: Remy International Inc., headquartered in the industrial
city of 60,000, is poised to survive- perhaps even thrive-thanks to a bankruptcy reorganization plan that halves its debt,
along with other moves that make it more competitive. "Frankly, I think this is a great piece of information for Anderson,"
Anderson Mayor Kevin Smith said of the company's trip through bankruptcy court, which is expected to...
MoreIndia deal boosts Bastian
October 22, 2007
Anthony SchoettleLittle more than a decade ago, Bastian Material Handling had annual sales of less than $35 million. Since 2000, its revenue
has doubled, to $80 million, and its business interests don't just cross the state, they circle the globe.
MoreEYE ON THE PIE: This may not be beginning of the end
October 15, 2007
Morton Marcus"The sky is falling, the sun may not rise tomorrow, the eternal verities are in doubt." So said the Prophet standing in the
public park. Lunch-hour office workers and shoppers strolled past or relaxed on benches. The speaker was seen as a nut, an
unfortunate member of the homeless class, driven by drugs to disgrace and dissolute dialogue. But I knew better. This was
Phil Prophet, formerly one of the leading mortgage lenders in the state, a regular Rotarian, a...
MoreECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Perceptions of manufacturing don't match reality
October 15, 2007
Mike HicksThere's no way to miss the dramatic loss of manufacturing employment Indiana has experienced in the past generation. Since
about 1980, there has been a roughly 60-percent drop in the number of manufacturing workers in the state. Why is this so?
Many Hoosiers blame globalization for these job losses (even if they support free trade). There's plenty of anecdotal evidence
by way of Chinese-made toys. But once you get past this anecdote, the data tells a very different story. The...
MoreIU, state pushing regulators to halt sale of I-Light vendor
October 8, 2007
Chris O'MalleyIndiana University and the state's Office of Technology have sought an emergency order from regulators to halt a Colorado
company's further assimilation of an Indianapolis fiber provider it bought Oct. 1.
MorePatent dispute threatens Suros Surgical Systems: Consultant claims key role in biopsy innovation
October 8, 2007
Peter SchnitzlerAn intellectual property tussle dating back to the origins of Suros Surgical Systems Inc. is threatening to become more than
a headache for the local medicaldevice maker. Founded in 2000, Suros was one of the fastest-growing high-tech startups in
Indianapolis history. Its machine for minimally invasive breast biopsies now rings up more than $43 million in annual sales.
Such success attracted deep-pocketed suitors, and Suros was acquired in July 2006 for a whopping $240 million by Bedford,
Mass.-based Hologic Inc....
MoreECONOMIC ANALYSIS: Why the nation's union movement is in decline
October 8, 2007
Mike HicksThe recent United Auto Workers strike against General Motors Corp. provides a good backdrop for considering the collapse of
the union movement, and its causes. Back in the early 1970s, about one in four workers belonged to a union. Unions and union
interests were powerful. Then, as now, unions came in two flavors-trade and industrial. Trade unions serve a critical role
in the functioning of markets. Employers of carpenters, welders, masons, plumbers and a host of others rely upon unions...
MoreEYE ON THE PIE: Good news about Indiana economy
October 1, 2007
Morton MarcusWhat do most people concerned with economic development want to see? More jobs at better pay. How can we tell if we are getting
there? Simply by looking at what is happening to earnings. Earnings divided by the number of jobs equals average earnings
per job. Hence, with elementary school arithmetic, we can say that earnings equals the number of jobs multiplied by the average
earning per job, exactly the two indicators of economic development that most folks want to...
MoreVIEWPOINT: Avoiding Chinese 'fifth-shipment' follies
September 24, 2007
Benjamin A.The recent announcement by the Indianapolis company Gilchrist and Soames that it would recall its privately branded toothpaste
because of concerns regarding its diethylene glycol content is a small part of a larger global concern about the quality standards
of goods made in China. The same week, Mattel recalled more than 9.5 million U.S. toys over concerns about the use of lead
paint. Many Indiana firms rely on a steady stream of qualified products from China, so now seems a...
MoreHilbert taking on tanning niche
September 24, 2007
Anthony SchoettleLess than two years after New Sunshine LLC was bought by a group led by former Conseco Inc. CEO Stephen Hilbert, its Australian
Gold division has acquired its top two competitors, amassing 80 percent of the indoor suntan lotion market.
MoreRelocation survey says: 'Go [Mid]west,' young executive: Companies are sending more of their employees to the region; overseas
transfers are also on the increase
September 17, 2007
Scott OlsonMidwestern cities are unlikely to top the list of vacationing hot spots, but they are a popular destination for relocating
employees. That's the consensus from the latest Corporate Relocation Survey conducted annually by Evansville-based Atlas World
Group, whose largest subsidiary is Atlas Van Lines, the second-largest interstate motor carrier in the United States. The
study revealed that nearly a third of firms, 29 percent, are sending more employees to the Midwest than any other part of
the country. Surprisingly, the...
MoreExactTarget accurately predicts its fast growth
September 17, 2007
Tammy LieberExactTarget Inc.'s 2005 announcement that it would be moving into 30,000 square feet on Monument Circle and hiring 100 people
over seven years seemed ambitious. Indianapolis was littered with the ashes of once-high-flying technology startups that had
flamed out. But ExactTarget is fast becoming one of the city's biggest technology success stories.
MoreNew Image Fine Clothing Inc.: Clothier looking for the right fit After four years as a sideline, business becomes full-time
job
September 10, 2007
Tammy LieberGrowing up in Detroit, Andrew T. Porter had an early education in men's fashion. The son of a minister, he recalls admiring
the Sunday best of his father and members of the congregation. In his neighborhood, "there was a clothing store on every corner,"
Porter said. "I always had an eye for putting things together. It came naturally to me." Porter remained a student of fashion,
even though he worked in manufacturing. When a friend who owned a Detroit clothing...
MoreSymons puts biz into Ch. 11, undercutting rival's court win
September 10, 2007
J.K. WallAlan G. Symons' company, Fast Tek Group LLC, lost a court fight with Fishers-based competitor Product Action International
LLC in February. So Symons pushed Fast Tek into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June--a move that clears the way for a
suitor to buy the assets without being saddled with the liabilities.
MorePROFILE: Electro-Spec: Aerospace niche helped business' revenue skyrocket Decades later, Franklin electroplating firm working
to diversify its customer base
September 3, 2007
Ed CallahanElectro-Spec Aerospace niche helped business' revenue skyrocket Decades later, Franklin electroplating firm working to diversify
its customer base It all started with spoons. These days, Franklin-based Electro-Spec is a $5 million a year electroplating
company that produces components for the automotive, telecommunications and medicaldevice industries. That's quite a change
from its origins in 1959, when the company focused on spiffing up antique silverware. "It did silver and gold plating of family
heirlooms," said President Jeff Smith, who bought the company...
MoreEx-banker creates empire by buying, boosting sleepy businesses
September 3, 2007
Anthony SchoettleRiverside Manufacturing was a sleepy New Castle firm with $5 million in sales when Fred Merritt bought it to try his hand
at running a company. Five years later, Riverside's sales have grown a whopping 800 percent, it dominates its industry, and
Merritt, 39, is ready to work his magic on an Indianapolis company.
MoreECONOMIC ANALYSIS: How Indiana's industrial economy looks to a newcomer
August 27, 2007
Mike HicksThis week marks the start of my tenure as director of Ball State University's Bureau of Business Research. I take over from
Pat Barkey, whose thoughts on the state's economy have long graced this column. His will be hard shoes to fill. I have read
over many of Pat's old columns, and the one thing that stands out is how much we agree on the issues facing the state-and
their solutions. Contrary to the old stereotypes, hard-headed economists usually come...
MoreCummins cleans up with diesel
August 20, 2007
Anthony SchoettleLess than a decade ago, diesel engines were viewed as loud pollution machines punching holes in the ozone. Now their cleaner,
quieter cousins are powering a resurgent Cummins Inc.
MoreEYE ON THE PIE: Life goes on despite property taxes
August 20, 2007
Morton MarcusMiss Sugar repeated her dominance of the candy- and cakeeating contest at the Indiana State Fair. "Ya gonna write about property
taxes again this week?" she asked as we rode the Ferris wheel high above the fairground lights. "I should, but I can't," I
said. "My mind fades out when the topic comes up." "So whatcha gonna write about?" she asked, chewing her taffy vigorously.
"Plymouth," I replied. "Da rock or da old car?" Miss Sugar asked. "The city in...
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See, I told u Indyman and Dipsicle....this 8 days is overkill. It's barely worth a weekend....great job Tony George! Your dream has been fulfilled....he fans want the I r l back. Thats how good it was.....and that sucked.
I have been in training for a short time now but right off I can see that safety and quality are the number one issues, my experience as of late has been a positive one, the employees along with Jeff the plant manager and the operation supervisor as well as the engineers are a highly motivated group of people, what an asset for the area to have and for company's in need of a quality metal products.
Pimlico
While I understand the severity of their actions as well as everyones eagerness to hold them responsible for thier lost funds, these gentlemen did know how to make money. Dispite thier poor decisions over the ownership of Fair they had made several wise investments which paid them greatly. This proves they do have the potential to rebuild so they can repay. I do not feel they should live the life of luxuary but given an opportunity could they find ways of repaying the debts? They are doing nothing now but being a burden on tax payers. Just a thought!!!!!
You guys have some "interesting" comments to say the least. I hope you will call in and share those opinions starting June 1. I'm looking forward to having you on the air.