Three major developments landed in Indiana manufacturing this week: a $4.5 billion Eli Lilly addition at Lebanon that pushes their total Indiana commitment past $21 billion, a 133-acre energy storage plant breaking ground in Huntington County pointed at the Kokomo EV corridor, and a labor market signal in Allen County that is easy to overlook when the investment headlines are this large. The capital investment wave and the workforce erosion are running on parallel tracks right now — in the same region, competing for the same labor pool.

Watch this TEG Daily on YouTube for the full breakdown of all three stories.

Eli Lilly Lebanon Adds $4.5B — API Factory Will Be the Largest in U.S. History

On Wednesday, Lilly announced an additional $4.5 billion across two sites at the LEAP Innovation and Research District in Boone County. The first site is an active pharmaceutical ingredient factory set to open next year. The additional investment brings new process designs and the capability to produce Fondayo — Lilly's first once-daily weight loss pill — alongside injectable medications Zepbound and Mounjaro, and Retatratide, a triple hormone receptor agonist in late-stage development. CEO David Ricks put it plainly: it will be the largest API production site in U.S. history. The second site, the Advanced Therapies Facility focused on genetic-level medicine production, opened this week. Combined with a third LEAP facility — the Medicine Foundry, an R&D manufacturing center opening next year — Lilly is running a multi-facility advanced manufacturing corridor through at least 2027, alongside existing LEAP tenants Cummins, Elanco, Corteva, and Roche.

For Indiana manufacturers, the question is not whether this is a large investment. The question is whether your firm is positioned to compete for any of the subcontracting, component supply, construction, or facility services work tied to this build-out. The API factory opens next year, which means procurement and supplier qualification cycles for that facility are active now or will be very soon. If you're in construction, industrial equipment, skilled trades, specialty materials, or logistics in central Indiana and you do not have an active relationship with Lilly's procurement or facilities teams at LEAP, that is the gap to close.

Hanjung America Breaks Ground in Huntington — 440 Jobs Pointed at the Kokomo EV Corridor

South Korean energy storage company Hanjung America — a subsidiary of Hanjung NCS — officially broke ground on its first U.S. manufacturing facility this week at the River Fork West Industrial Park in Huntington County. The 133-acre site at 2018 Progress Drive is purpose-built to manufacture advanced energy storage systems. Governor Braun was at the groundbreaking alongside Huntington Mayor Richard Strick and Hanjung America leadership. Operations are expected to begin in June 2027, with more than 440 jobs projected.

Here is why this matters beyond the job count: Hanjung America's ESS products will feed directly into the StarPlus Energy EV battery gigafactory in Kokomo — the Stellantis and Samsung SDI joint venture. What you're watching is a Northeast Indiana to North Central Indiana supply chain corridor taking physical shape. Huntington is feeding Kokomo. Kokomo is feeding the broader EV production ecosystem. June 2027 is about a year out, which means supplier qualification and hiring activity ramps through the back half of 2026 and into early 2027. If your facility already has a relationship in the Kokomo EV supply chain through Stellantis or Samsung SDI, that is a potential entry point into Huntington. If you don't, now is the time to map where your products or capabilities could fit before qualification windows close.

Manufacturing Unemployment Claims Rising in Allen County — Even as Wages Climb

Manufacturing workers in Allen County and Fort Wayne are now filing unemployment insurance claims at the highest rate in the region. This trend has been building since at least April, when TEG Daily first covered a 1.28% year-over-year decline in Northeast Indiana manufacturing employment. What's new this week is the claims data confirming that manufacturing is carrying the heaviest concentration of new unemployment filings in the region.

The complicating factor: wages across Northeast Indiana are climbing at the same time. The health and service sector in Fort Wayne is expanding and actively recruiting from the same labor pool your facility depends on. That means plant leaders in the Fort Wayne corridor are facing upward wage pressure whether they're hiring or trying to hold existing workers. If your facility cannot offer productivity gains to offset higher wages, labor cost per unit goes up. The number to watch is whether manufacturing's share of unemployment claims in Allen County continues to grow in the next quarterly release from the Indiana Department of Workforce Development. If that share keeps climbing, it signals the workforce erosion is accelerating, not stabilizing.

Questions for Your Morning Huddle

Q: With manufacturing unemployment claims rising in Allen County even as regional wages climb, how do we know if our compensation and working conditions are strong enough to keep our best people? A: Compare your total compensation package — wages, benefits, and scheduling flexibility — against what Fort Wayne's health and service sector employers are currently offering. If you haven't surveyed your workforce on their reasons for staying or leaving in the last six months, that's the place to start before the next quarterly claims data confirms the trend.

Q: Eli Lilly's Lebanon build-out is now over $21 billion and the API factory opens next year — how do we find out if there are supplier opportunities available to our facility? A: The IEDC has not yet disclosed Lilly's incentive package details, but procurement and supplier qualification cycles are running independently of that announcement. If your firm is in construction, industrial equipment, specialty materials, or logistics in central Indiana, direct outreach to Lilly's procurement and facilities teams at LEAP is the action item — not waiting for a public announcement.

Q: Hanjung America's Huntington plant feeds directly into the StarPlus Energy gigafactory in Kokomo — does our facility have any path into that supply chain? A: Start by mapping whether your products or capabilities align with energy storage system manufacturing or the broader EV component supply chain. Existing relationships through Stellantis or Samsung SDI in Kokomo are your best entry points. With operations starting June 2027, supplier qualification activity ramps through late 2026 — the window is open but not indefinitely.

Watch this TEG Daily on YouTube for the full breakdown of all three stories.