November 5, 2026 · Delaware · Grant
Indiana Manufacturing Workforce Grants, an $11M Muncie Expansion, and a $46M Marion Refinery Deal
Indiana manufacturing workforce grants hit $19M this week, alongside Astemo's $11M Muncie expansion and ReElement's $46M Marion refinery financing deal.
Indiana manufacturing workforce grants reached nearly $19 million this week, landing alongside an $11 million Astemo expansion in Muncie and a $46 million refinery financing package in Marion, while new federal data shows the country's factories are posting more open jobs than at any point since 2023 and still struggling to fill them. Delaware County, Grant County and the state workforce system all have developments worth tracking before your next shift starts.
01Delaware
Astemo's $11 Million Muncie Expansion Ties the Plant to Honda's Hybrid Volume
Astemo Ltd. announced on November 4 that it will invest more than $11 million in its Muncie plant at 4400 N. Superior Drive, adding injection molding capacity and a new assembly line for the AP3 HEV intake manifold.
- For the huddle
- If Astemo's Muncie site is now functionally a captive Honda e:HEV supply point, how exposed are our own single-OEM-dependent lines if that customer's program volume shifts?
SourcesAstemo to Invest Over $11 Million in Muncie Operations (aftermarketnews.com)
02Statewide
Indiana Manufacturing Workforce Grants Top $19 Million, With a Catch
Gov. Mike Braun announced on October 22 that Indiana secured four federal grants totaling $18.79 million: a $6.74 million Department of Labor Industry-Driven Skills Training Fund award, a $5.1 million RESTART grant for justice-involved adults, a $3.9 million State Apprenticeship Expansion Formula grant aimed at advanced manufacturing, and a $3.09 million Department of Education grant for a special-education teacher apprenticeship model.
- For the huddle
- Could we use the SAEF4 group-sponsorship mechanism to join a regional apprenticeship consortium instead of carrying solo sponsorship liability ourselves?
SourcesIndiana receives nearly $19 million for workforce training (wowo.com)
03Grant
ReElement's $46 Million Marion Refinery Financing Comes With a Harder Story Underneath
ReElement Technologies, a holding of American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ: AREC), announced on November 5 that its Marion rare-earth and critical-mineral refining project secured an aggregate $46 million in federal New Markets Tax Credit allocation for phase-one equipment and working capital. CFO Kirk Taylor said the project is projected to create 189 jobs, about 90 percent of them reachable with only a high school diploma, alongside a $2.1 million workforce-training commitment.
- For the huddle
- Are we tracking domestic critical-mineral refiners like ReElement as potential future suppliers, or are we still sourcing rare-earth magnet inputs through the same China-dependent channels?
SourcesReElement Announces $46 Million in Non-Dilutive Federal NMTC Allocation to Support Critical-Minerals Refining Expansion (einpresswire.com)
04Statewide
Kelley Futurecast Calls 2.8% Growth for Indiana, Banking Heavily on One Sector
The IU Kelley School of Business released its Futurecast 2027 outlook on November 4 in Indianapolis, projecting U.S. GDP growth of 2.6 percent and Indiana growth of 2.8 percent next year, with durable goods manufacturing forecast to grow 5.6 percent and construction 4.6 percent. IBRC Executive Director Phil Powell said Indiana's labor force, which contracted in 2026, should grow 0.5 percent in 2027 with unemployment falling to 3.1 percent, helped along by Gov.
- For the huddle
- If BioHeartland's $1 billion tax-credit bet has already claimed a third of the IEDC's incentive pool, what's our fallback if our own expansion plans sit outside life sciences or agriculture?
SourcesKelley Futurecast: Moderate steady growth expected for 2027 economy (news.iu.edu)
05Statewide
Manufacturing Job Openings Hit a Two-Year High. Hires Fell in the Same Month.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' September JOLTS report, released November 3, showed total job openings jumping 333,000 to 7.523 million, while manufacturing vacancies climbed by 54,000 to reach 584,000, the strongest reading since December 2023 and roughly 50 percent higher than the year-earlier figure. Manufacturing hires fell by 34,000 to 313,000 in the same report, total layoffs dropped to 1.63 million (the lowest since March 2025), and quits jumped 321,000 to 3.365 million, the largest monthly increase since May 2023.
- For the huddle
- Are we using real-time signals like LinkedIn hiring-rate data to judge whether our open requisitions are actually fillable before committing to overtime costs or new capex-driven headcount?
SourcesUS job openings rise by 333,000 to 7.52 million in September while layoffs fall by 127,000, fresh governm (timesofindia.indiatimes.com)
Questions for your morning huddle
- If Astemo's Muncie site is now functionally a captive Honda e:HEV supply point, how exposed are our own single-OEM-dependent lines if that customer's program volume shifts?
- Could we use the SAEF4 group-sponsorship mechanism to join a regional apprenticeship consortium instead of carrying solo sponsorship liability ourselves?
- Are we tracking domestic critical-mineral refiners like ReElement as potential future suppliers, or are we still sourcing rare-earth magnet inputs through the same China-dependent channels?
- If BioHeartland's $1 billion tax-credit bet has already claimed a third of the IEDC's incentive pool, what's our fallback if our own expansion plans sit outside life sciences or agriculture?
- Are we using real-time signals like LinkedIn hiring-rate data to judge whether our open requisitions are actually fillable before committing to overtime costs or new capex-driven headcount?
This brief
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Manufacturers Energy Grant Program
Free for Indiana manufacturers
Manufacturers from qualifying Indiana counties receive free, ongoing energy auditing and cost control that reduces their energy bills and keeps them low, month after month. Every line item checked and validated, every opportunity found comes with a step-by-step guide to capture it.
EDCs: sponsor this program and it carries your organization's name For economic developers →