Muncie.

AuthorReidy, Mary Jo C.
PositionIndiana

After more than a century of conducting business from headquarters in Muncie, Ball Corp. is on the move. The company that once made canning jars and now is involved in metal packaging and aerospace technology, is shifting its headquarters to Colorado.

Dramatic as the move sounds, the economic impact on this city of more than 70,000 will be minimal because Ball has fewer than 200 people on its Muncie payroll. The psychological impact may be greater, as the corporation has longtime ties to Muncie's culture and history. Indeed, the Ball name graces the local hospital and university. Still, change is something that the Delaware County seat is accustomed to, and Muncie has always counted adaptability among its strengths.

"We are really growing in the high-tech service area," notes Dan Allen, president of the Muncie-Delaware County Chamber of Commerce and a former General Motors plant manager. "A good example is Ontario Systems Corp.," he adds. The company, involved in software development, hardware manufacturing and system-integration services, has grown from an enterprise employing only a few individuals to more than 200 people.

"We will not abandon industry - it is very much a part of our community," Allen says. "Diversification allows us to have an economy that isn't dominated by two or three major employers."

Ball State University, educational home to about 19,000 students, is the city's largest employer, with 3,292 employees. With a national reputation as a teaching university, Ball State also is a center for cultural and athletic activities, hosting a variety of events in its 3,575-seat auditorium and 11,500-seat arena.

Ball Memorial Hospital, a 400-bed facility and major medical referral center owned by Cardinal Health System, is the town's second-largest employer, with 2,342 employees. New Venture Gear, which makes manual transmissions for cars and pickup trucks, has 1,200 employees. Borg-Warner, a manufacturer of four-wheel-drive transfer cases, occupies 1.4 million square feet and has 1,150 employees. Ontario Corp. employs 20 people at its corporate headquarters, while subsidiaries Ontario Systems and Sherry Laboratories (a material and environmental testing company) employ 250 and 60 people, respectively. The Maxon Corp., a manufacturer of industrial combustion equipment and valves, employs 320 workers. Twoson Tool, a manufacturer of tool-and-die components, employs 115 workers. The city has the Midwest's largest concentration of...

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