Top business stories Central Indiana update.

AuthorMayer, Kathy
PositionRegional Report Central

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...

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