advanced manufacturing Archives - The Central Indiana Corporate Partnership

Case Study: Internships Help Students Find Careers, Grasp Advanced Manufacturing

Courtney Kerr2025-11-25T09:12:05-05:00November 25, 2025|

This story is part of an initiative led by the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership (CICP) to highlight entrepreneurship and innovation across Indiana’s universities. Learn more about the initiative here. Background A company launched at the dawn of the 20th century and still owned and operated by its founder’s descendants, Grote Industries has thrived into the 21st century by constantly pursuing innovation. A manufacturer of safety lighting and visibility systems, the company has been recognized as a top employer in the Madison area and as a global leader in its industry. More than a century ago, William Grote saw a future not only in a particular line of products but also in groundbreaking production processes. Even as the company he launched established itself as a leading supplier of visibility and safety products, it also emerged as a manufacturing trailblazer. It was first to introduce injection-molded plastic products to the nation and to create a plastic-injection molding machine. A reflector technology Grote Industries developed decades [...]

Indiana on the Global Stage: Insights from the Global Entrepreneurship Congress 2025 in Indianapolis

Courtney Kerr2025-11-18T09:53:38-05:00November 18, 2025|

This story is part of an initiative led by the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership (CICP) to highlight entrepreneurship and innovation across Indiana’s universities. Learn more about the initiative here. Earlier this year, Indianapolis took center stage as thousands of entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers and innovation ecosystem builders from over 140 countries gathered for the Global Entrepreneurship Congress (GEC) 2025. The international event, hosted every other year in a new global city with an emerging entrepreneurial ecosystem, brought an estimated 3,000 attendees to the Hoosier State and showcased why Indiana is earning its reputation as a rising hub for innovation and entrepreneurship. Ryan Henderson, Conexus Indiana’s senior director of innovation, attended the event and brought back key takeaways across four jam-packed days of programming and collaboration. A Global Spotlight on Indiana’s Manufacturing Strengths and its Entrepreneurial Roots The opening session, Bold Solutions [...]

Conexus Indiana names two to Board of Directors and promotes Snellenberger to Vice President of Partnerships

Courtney Kerr2025-11-17T14:20:50-05:00September 5, 2025|

Marty Brown, President of Kem Krest and Jeffrey Rhoads, Vice President for Research at the University of Notre Dame, have joined the 22-member Conexus Indiana Board of Directors. “These appointments bring valuable expertise and fresh perspectives to our board at a critical time for Indiana’s manufacturing and logistics sectors,” said Jay Wirts, Conexus Indiana president and CEO. “Marty and Jeff are insightful leaders with proven track records in their respective fields. I look forward to seeing how they work alongside our existing board members to help the industry achieve its aggressive goals.” New Board Members Marty Brown brings substantial commercial leadership and strategic experience to his role as President at Kem Krest, a certified minority-owned supply chain optimization firm headquartered in Elkhart, Indiana. Appointed President in January 2025, he leads the company’s growth strategy, talent development and operational oversight. His [...]

Conexus Indiana releases “Future Ready” report identifying the critical manufacturing subsectors and roles driving Indiana’s economic growth

Courtney Kerr2025-08-06T15:54:24-04:00August 6, 2025|

New data reveals aerospace, automotive, life sciences and microelectronics as key drivers of innovation and productivity. Conexus Indiana today released "Future Ready: Advancing Indiana's Productivity Through Critical Manufacturing Subsectors," a comprehensive report identifying the advanced manufacturing subsectors and roles that hold the greatest potential to drive Indiana's future productivity and competitiveness. The report zeroes in on four critical subsectors—aerospace, automotive, life sciences and microelectronics manufacturing—and the high-impact roles that will be essential to their success. These subsectors make up more than 45% of Indiana's manufacturing GDP and 31% of industry jobs, underscoring their outsized role in shaping the economic future of the industry. "Future Ready analyzes the subsectors that are especially well positioned to shape Indiana's global competitiveness in manufacturing," said Jay Wirts, CEO and President of Conexus Indiana. "By focusing on these high impact subsectors—and within them, accelerating technology [...]

Conexus Indiana opens nominations for Rising 30 Class of 2025, celebrating emerging talent in advanced manufacturing and logistics

Ronnetta Spalding2024-10-28T13:00:08-04:00October 28, 2024|

INDIANAPOLIS – Conexus Indiana has opened nominations for the Rising 30 Class of 2025. The fifth annual Rising 30 awards program, presented by Purdue University, highlights young leaders who are making a significant impact on Indiana’s advanced manufacturing and logistics (AML) sector and shaping the future of the industry. As part of Conexus Indiana’s mission to position Indiana as a global leader in advanced manufacturing and logistics, the Rising 30 program was designed to celebrate the next generation of innovators, change-makers and leaders who are advancing the state’s AML ecosystem. The program also encourages pathways to success in these vital industries, which employ over 700,000 Hoosiers and represent a third of the state’s gross domestic product. “Indiana’s young professionals in advanced manufacturing and logistics are driving change across sectors, from product design and manufacturing processes to logistics and transportation,” [...]

New data confirms growing impact of Manufacturing Readiness Grants program on success and scale of Indiana’s small- to mid-sized advanced manufacturers

Ronnetta Spalding2024-10-08T00:47:16-04:00October 2, 2024|

INDIANAPOLIS – Conexus Indiana announced today the results of its most recent study measuring the impact of Indiana’s Manufacturing Readiness Grants program. The report reaffirms the program’s pivotal role in transforming and modernizing Indiana’s advanced manufacturing sector by incentivizing capital investments in advanced technologies at small- to mid-sized businesses. The Manufacturing Readiness Grants program was launched in 2020 as part of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation’s (IEDC) Economic Activity Stabilization and Enhancement (EASE) program. The Indiana General Assembly extended funding for the program in 2021 and again in 2023. The program has seen increasing interest, with the number of applications and continuing to exhaust funding each fiscal year. Since the program’s inception, $57 million in matching grants through 526 awards have been made in 79 Indiana counties. The program boasts a 13:1 leverage ratio, demonstrating that for every dollar [...]

New art exhibit shines light on Indiana’s advanced manufacturing industry through the lens of Indiana photographer

admin41332023-10-06T14:48:38-04:00October 5, 2023|

INDIANAPOLIS – The Hoosiers and the technologies behind Indiana’s advanced manufacturing industry take center stage in a new art exhibit, featuring images captured by Indianapolis photographer Michael Durr. “The Art of Modern Manufacturing: Views through a different lens” opens on Friday, October 6 and runs through Friday, October 27. The exhibit, which is free to the public, is accompanied by an audio tour with commentary from Durr, writer Sandra Cline and Conexus Indiana Director of Innovation and Digital Transformation Ryan Henderson. Durr, in partnership with Conexus Indiana, traveled statewide to capture nearly 80,000 images to document how Indiana manufacturers and Hoosier workers are using smart manufacturing technologies – such as cobots, additive manufacturing and advanced robotics – to increase productivity and competitiveness. Sixteen of his photos are on display in The AMP at the 16 Tech Innovation District. Durr’s work [...]

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