As a group that places an emphasis on connecting and convening the state’s advanced manufacturing and logistics community, the Conexus Indiana team did its best to tap into technology and other tools to overcome obstacles created by the pandemic, but it also recognized that there’s no substitute for meeting people on factory floors and at distribution centers. So, as soon as it seemed prudent, the Conexus team got back on the road with what has been dubbed the 100 Companies in 100 Days tour.
Launched in May, 100 Companies in 100 Days is sending Conexus Indiana staff to companies representing the full range of the Hoosier state’s advanced manufacturing and logistics employers. They’re visiting all 12 Indiana Department of Workforce Development economic regions to connect with the people that power industries as diverse as medical devices and automakers, aerospace and food production, and recycling and defense.
What will they see? Hoosiers making pies and hips. Men and women turning used glass bottles into raw materials, and others molding raw materials into finished auto components. People assembling race car cooling systems and robots assembling just about anything. Workers ensuring that parts get out to the plants that need them, and others who make sure market-ready products get to retailers. They’ll also see how Indiana firms are pushing into the future with new technologies, how workers are adapting to a new high-tech manufacturing world, and how manufacturing and logistics leaders, education partners and public-sector officials are working to ensure that Indiana maintains its place at the front of the advanced manufacturing and logistics pack.
From the first days of the 100-day tour, the Conexus team got up-close views of the state’s thriving economic diversity. Whether it was a visit to the Orthopedic Capital of the World in Warsaw or a stop at a niche manufacturer in a tiny town, they saw again and again that Indiana firms and workers can make and move anything.
In the coming weeks, the team will share stories from this road trip with you, putting you behind factory walls and on distribution center floors to meet the people who power this sector, listen to their stories and learn about their operations. We know we can’t get back the last two years of lost face time, but that won’t stop us from restoring connections, forging new relationships and catching up on what’s been happening in the sector that accounts for a full third of Indiana’s gross domestic product.
See you on the road.