IEDC recruiting more jobs for state

Last year the Indiana Economic Development Corporation reported commitments from 160 companies for nearly 20,000 new jobs in Indiana, and the group has already started contacting companies this year for more commitments.

IEDC spokesperson Blair West said the corporation has contacted 100 companies so far, including companies from the defense, auto and pharmaceutical sectors. To recruit companies to Indiana, the IEDC offers performance-based tax credits, tax abatements and training grants.

THINK, the producer of an all-electric car, committed to a production facility in Elkhart, Ind. The company expects to create 400 new jobs by 2013.

The company will begin production this spring and plans to have vehicles ready by January 2011. The company expects to put out about 20,000 vehicles a year.

Company spokesperson Brendan Prebo said the already-existing facility, a skilled workforce and the central location were what attracted THINK to Indiana.  

“The IEDC were supportive and went out of their way to bring THINK to Indiana,” Prebo said.

The existing facility will cost the company $43 million dollars in improvements and repairs, according to the IEDC.

The IEDC offered THINK $3 million in performance-based tax credits and up to $65,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans.

The IEDC also recruited Ultra Electronics, a defense and aerospace company. Ultra Electronics plans to create up to 45 new jobs by 2012. The company committed to invest $4.4 million to expand its facility in Columbia City, Ind. The company will produce a new product line of high-pressure air compressors for military aircraft.

The IEDC said in a statement it offered Ultra Electronics $565,000 in performance-based tax credits and $150,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans.  

Joe Peters, vice president of programs for Ultra Electronics, said the company chose Indiana over Rochester, N.Y., because of the financial incentives. Peters also said expanding the facility there made sense because the work matched closely to what they already did.

Chemical manufacturer Evonik Industries AG has also committed to Indiana. Last October, the company bought the Tippecanoe Laboratories from Eli Lilly. Evonik is a German-owned company that recorded nearly $16 billion in sales in 2008 and employs 41,000 associates globally.

To bring Evonik to Indiana, IEDC offered up to $10 million in performance-based tax credits and up to $200,000 in training grants.

At the facility in Lafayette, Ind., Evonik will continue production of pharmaceuticals.
Mike Sheridan, manager of media relations, said Evonik chose Indiana because of the “tremendous cooperation” Evonik received from Gov. Mitch  Daniels as well as the IEDC. Sheridian said the company greatly valued the skilled workforce in Lafayette.
“Their work ethic is strong, their education high and their motivation unmatched,” he said in an e-mail.

“Indiana is well-suited for the companies that we have recruited,” West said. “Our experience in auto-manufacturing, bio-technology and the medical industry makes Indiana a well-seated state.”