Defense - Whitley County EDC

Defense

Northeast Indiana's defense industry is intelligent and capable. Local defense contractors bring in millions of dollars every year, employ thousands of specialized personnel and develop products that change our Nation. Including such giants as General Dynamics, ITT and USSI, the defense industry in Northeast Indiana is vitally important to the region.

The wide range of products and services offered by northeast Indiana defense industry contractors requires a skilled and specialized workforce. Indiana's defense industry employs thousands of talented engineers, designers and technically trained software engineers. The ability to find existing talent and attract new talent in Northeast Indiana is one of the factors in defense contractors' successes in northeast Indiana.
Defense Profile


Northeast Indiana Major Employers

ITT Communications Systems
1,203
Raytheon Systems Co.
1,040
B.A.E. Systems Platform Solutions
899
Navistar International Inc.
500
C & A Tool Engineering Inc.
463
Ultra Electronics - USSI
374
Riverside Manufacturing
300
Stuart Manufacturing
189
Reelcraft Industries
170
Huntington Electric Inc.
102
Whitley County companies are bolded


Whitley County Wages, 2011

Occupation
Average Wage
Computer Software Engineers, Applications
$58,490
Computer Software Engineers, Systems Software
$56,056
Electrical Engineers
$58,552
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer
$59,654
Mechanical Engineers
$52,333
First-line Supervisor/Managers of Production and Operating Workers
$50,357
Electrical and Electronic Equipment Assemblers
$22,027
Team Assemblers
$24,877
Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers & Weighers
$29,578



Future Growth in Defense for northeast Indiana

Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded $20 million  to accelerate the development of northeast Indiana's workforce and talent resources. The program, entitled Talent Initiative, will develop education, training and talent initiatives in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The Initiative-- an unprecedented collaboration in northeast Indiana -- will better prepare the region's workforce to capture the high- quality job opportunities available in the near term and those of the future.  (Fact Sheet)

Components of Talent Initiative include support for the following critical initiatives:

  • Retraining at least 1,200 adult workers in northeast Indiana over the next three years
  • Enhancement of the Advanced Manufacturing program at Ivy Tech – Northeast
  • Expansion of the systems engineering and wireless technology programs at Indiana University-Purdue University- Fort Wayne (IPFW)
  • Creation of New Tech High Schools within school corporations in northeast Indiana, with an emphasis on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses

The Talent Initiative includes significant and targeted educational and workforce programs for the aerospace and defense industries.  One immediate goal is to prepare workers to assume more than 4,000 projected new and replacement jobs in these industries.  The programs also will be relevant to the workforce development needs of other advanced manufacturing sectors in northeast Indiana.  Northeast Indiana is home to over 160 defense/aerospace prime contractors and suppliers.  During 2005 and 2006 the six largest firms in this sector received a total of $2 billion in prime contracts from the Department of Defense.


Defense Opportunities

Procurement Technical Assistance Center

In August 2009 Partners In Contracting Corporation established the Procurement Technical Assistance Center for the Northeast Indiana Region. The center is a resource providing assistance with all aspects of marketing to federal, state, and local governments. It is a not-for-profit organization and there is no fee most services. PICC-PTAC is partnered with the Northeast Indiana Defense Industry Association with a goal of forward indentifying and strengthing the defense cluster supply chain.

For more information on PICC-PTAC visit www.PICCorp.org or contact Gil Perry at the PTAC office in Fort Wayne at 260-481-0491.

Sources: Northeast Indiana Regional Partnership, EMSI Covered Employment - 2011.4, Gil Perry PTAC Counselor-Trainer

Northeast Indiana Defense Industry Assocation

 

The Northeast Indiana Defense Industry Association's mission is to address issues and opportunities facing the Northeast Indiana defense industry community. Specifically, NIDIA will focus on the following: 

1 - Take action to work with community educators to develop and improve the local defense community's ability to develop, attract, and retain the required talent to effectively execute business opportunities

2 - Foster the increased and improved interaction between the defense industry and suppliers in the region for accomplishment of better services to defense and homeland security customers

3 - Perform as an advocacy group for the defense industry in the Northeast Indiana region

4 - Provide liaison with local, state, and federal governmental agencies, elected officials, legislatures, and special groups and committees, to advance defense industry opportunities' in the Northeast Indiana region to support economic development.

For more information or to become a member of NIDIA visit www.nidiaonline.org