11/08/12 Wednesday morning dozens of invited guests attended a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new rubber mixing plant at Hoosier Racing Tire.
John DeSalle, Vice-President of Engineering and Manufacturing at Hoosier welcomed the group and gave a brief history of the project. On November 11, 2011 ground was broken for the 37,000 square foot three-story building. The project is the result of two years of planning and construction and is one of the most significant single largest capital projects the company has made. DeSalle said, “This project came in on time and under budget.” Estimate for the project was $8.5 million. He also said, “This project gives us a great opportunity to grow and prosper.”
The facility has the latest technology and greatly increases the rubber making capability. The plant has the capability of mixing 20 million pounds of rubber a year. This project also increases the number of employees by 20.
During the ceremony DeSalle thanked those involved in the project including Mayor Mark Senter and the City Council, Jennifer Laurant from the Marshall County Economic Development Corporation, their financial lender-First Source Bank, NIPSCO, Herman Getz Electrical and the Hoosier Racing Tire design team.
Second generation family, Marge Newton Skaggs, daughter of founders Bob and Joyce Newton cut a special rubber ribbon with her son, Scotty Merrill and John DeSalle at her side.
After the ceremony Hoosier employees began production at the new mixing plant.
