TS Tech
Henry County REMC and Hoosier Energy power up fast for a new Indiana business
When Honda announced in March 2006 that it would build a massive auto manufacturing plant in south central Indiana, it set off an economic development ripple effect. One of the first waves rolled to the city of New Castle, Indiana.
Attracting Automotive Company Suppliers
Local economic development and elected officials in New Castle and Henry County, along with electric utility Henry County REMC, a member of the Hoosier Energy power network, worked with Indiana economic development officials to identify and attract Honda suppliers – automotive companies that would be likely to locate or expand their manufacturing operations to be near the new assembly facility.
A year later, the announcement came that TS Tech would construct a new 200,000-square-foot production facility and create 300 Indiana jobs to make seats for the new Honda operation, a $32 million capital investment. Time was of the essence, since Honda was due to go into production by the end of 2008.
“This project came pretty fast,” said Steve Wolfrom, general manager of the Henry County REMC.
Project Support from Henry County REMC
The REMC played two major roles. The first was to guarantee TS Tech a two-way feed which would ensure the automotive company a reliable source of electrical power. To meet that requirement, Henry County REMC installed an automatic switching device and met the manufacturer’s requirement for installing underground lines and redundancy, according to Wolfrom.
When TS Tech is in full production in 2009, it will be pulling 1.5 - 2 megawatts of electrical power, making the automotive supply company Henry County REMC’s largest customer, Wolfrom said.
An Indiana Company on the Fast Track
“TS Tech was on a tight schedule, and we postponed our regular work to make sure that we met their deadline,” Wolfrom said.
The second major role of the REMC was being part of the team that worked to meet TS Tech’s fast-track timetable. The utility is very active in the New Castle-Henry County Economic Development Corp., he added.
“With all the things the Henry County REMC did and the commitment they made, TS Tech felt very confident about making the commitment to locate here,” said Bryan Coats, former president and CEO of the New Castle-Henry County Economic Development Corporation.