With Kratos putting more than $120 million into facilities near Crane, where could our shop fit into the radar sustainment or hypersonics testing supply chain building around Odon?

Look now at subcontracts tied to AN/SPY-1 radar sustainment and thermal-protection materials testing, since Kratos is still building out its vendor base before IRIC and Helios reach full operation.

Have we actually run the numbers on foreign trade zone compliance costs against our real tariff exposure, or are we assuming it will help the way Electro-Spec and NTN did?

Electro-Spec and NTN both modeled their specific country-of-origin tariff exposure against the $24,000 to $60,000 annual compliance cost before committing, and that same math is the only way to know if a foreign trade zone will cover your tariff bill or just add overhead.

With Marshall County wages climbing toward V Tech Conversions' benchmark and Winnebago cutting jobs in Iowa, where does that leave our ability to hold onto skilled labor?

When one major local employer pays 165% of the county average wage, every other employer in that labor market eventually has to match it or lose workers to it, regardless of what's happening at plants in other states.

Manufacturing News TEG Daily

October 19, 2026 · Daviess · Johnson · Boone · Marshall · Porter

Indiana Foreign Trade Zone Tariffs Surge, Kratos Breaks Ground Near Crane, and Urschel Names a New President

Indiana foreign trade zone tariffs relief drives a 53% membership surge as Kratos breaks ground near Crane and Urschel names a new president in Chesterton.

Daniel BurkePublished every day

Kratos Defense broke ground on a $70 million radar and hypersonics testing complex outside Odon in Daviess County on October 14, the same week a new report confirmed Indiana foreign trade zone tariffs relief is pulling in manufacturers statewide at a 53% two-year membership growth rate. Plymouth's labor market is tightening despite historically low unemployment, Winnebago cut another 51 jobs in Iowa with implications for its Middlebury, Indiana towable-RV plant, and Chesterton's Urschel Laboratories named its first outside president in company history.

01Daviess

Kratos Breaks Ground on $70 Million Radar and Hypersonics Complex Near Crane

Kratos Defense and Rocket Support Services held a groundbreaking ceremony on October 14 at Westgate Academy in Odon for two new facilities tied to NSWC Crane. The Indiana Radar Integration Complex, a 183,000-square-foot plant, will repair, test and sustain the Navy's AN/SPY-1 radar system.

For the huddle: If Kratos is building a vertically integrated ground-to-flight-test pipeline at Crane, are there sustainment or materials-testing subcontracts in that supply chain our shop should be bidding into now, before the facility is fully operational?

SourcesKratos begins construction of Indiana facilities for Navy AN/SPY-1 radar sustainment and hypersonic materials testing (defence-industry.eu)

Read the story →

02Johnson · Boone

Indiana Foreign Trade Zone Tariffs Relief Drives a 53% Membership Surge

Operator membership in the Greater Indianapolis Foreign Trade Zone is up 32% over two years to 29 companies, with 19 more applying, and membership across Indiana's six foreign trade zones has climbed 53% statewide, according to zone general manager Anita Ford. Franklin-based electroplater Electro-Spec says the designation it obtained in late 2025 solved nearly all the tariff problems that once threatened half its revenue from 10% to 25% tariffs tied to France and China.

For the huddle: Have we actually modeled the $24,000-$60,000 annual FTZ compliance cost against our specific country-of-origin tariff exposure, or are we assuming it would help without running the numbers Electro-Spec and NTN did?

SourcesAppeal of foreign trade zones grows amid tariff uncertainty (english.news.cn)

Read the story →

03Marshall

Marshall County's Labor Pool Shrinks Even as Unemployment Hits 3.2%

Marshall County Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Greg Hildebrand's third-quarter update shows county unemployment at 3.2% in August, below Indiana's 3.6% and the national 4.2%, but the labor force itself shrank 0.6% from August 2025. Diesel is running about $7 a gallon locally and the 30-year mortgage rate has climbed to 7.28%.

For the huddle: With V Tech Conversions now setting a 165%-of-average wage floor in Plymouth, can we retain maintenance and skilled-trades staff without matching that benchmark, or do we need to get ahead of it now?

SourcesMarshall County Economic Development Corporation delivers third-quarter update: Low unemployment, workforce challenges ahead (giant.fm)

Read the story →

04Statewide

Winnebago Cuts 51 More Jobs in Iowa While Indiana's Middlebury Plant Keeps Running

According to an October 9 WARN notice, Winnebago Industries plans to cut 51 jobs at its Forest City, Iowa, specialty vehicles facility effective November 9, pushing that site's 2026 workforce reductions to 78 and bringing the company's total layoffs since 2025 (which include the closure of two Iowa plants) above 300. The company points to falling consumer demand and dealer inventory levels alongside new tariffs on Canadian and Mexican inputs like plywood, plastics and wiring.

For the huddle: Given Middlebury, Indiana is Winnebago's remaining towable production hub, are we tracking supplier and labor-market signals there even though this specific round of cuts landed in Iowa?

SourcesMore layoffs hit iconic Iowa manufacturer amid restructuring, tariffs (desmoinesregister.com)

Read the story →

05Porter

Urschel Laboratories Names Tim Crammer President in Chesterton

Chesterton-based Urschel Laboratories named Tim Crammer president effective October 12, working alongside fourth-generation CEO Rick Urschel. Crammer spent nearly 20 years at Henny Penny Corporation, most recently as senior vice president of operations and manufacturing, and helped lead Henny Penny's 2015 transition to an employee stock ownership plan, the same year Urschel itself became employee-owned.

For the huddle: As more Indiana manufacturers adopt ESOP ownership, does our own leadership succession plan need the kind of multi-year, outside-operator glide path Urschel and Henny Penny both used?

SourcesUrschel Laboratories Appoints Tim Crammer as President (potatopro.com)

Read the story →

Questions for your morning huddle

This brief