PMG Indiana Corp. is permanently closing its Columbus, Bartholomew County powder-metal plant by December 31, 2026 — eliminating 150 jobs and ending eight years of losses that totaled more than $150 million. That number, combined with Canada's 50% retaliatory tariffs now live as of September 8 and Elkhart County's lowest first-half RV shipment count since before 2016, defines the pressure map Indiana plant leaders are operating inside today.

PMG Indiana's $150 Million Collapse: What It Means for ICE Suppliers

PMG Indiana Corp. filed a WARN notice with Indiana's Department of Workforce Development — registered September 2nd — confirming the permanent closure of its 186,000-square-foot powder-metal plant at 1751 Arcadia Drive in Columbus, Bartholomew County. All 150 remaining jobs are gone by December 31st. Workforce reductions begin November 1st.

The number that belongs in front of your leadership team: more than $150 million in cumulative losses over eight years — roughly $18.75 million per year, absorbed by Füssen, Germany-based PMG Holding GmbH cross-subsidizing a Columbus operation that had passed any reasonable standalone viability threshold. The Columbus City Council granted PMG a ten-year tax abatement in November 2019 tied to a $4.7 million equipment investment. In hindsight, that abatement was extended during a period when losses were already accumulating — a data point worth carrying into any future long-dated tax incentive discussion tied to ICE-exposed operations.

The customers named in the internal plant notice — Stellantis, Hitachi, Valeo — now face a supplier requalification window for OWC and powertrain sinter components that has to close by Q1 2027. Typical PPAP cycles for precision powder-metal parts run six to eighteen months. That math creates real line-stoppage exposure on legacy ICE platforms still in production. This is also the second major Bartholomew County automotive supplier closure of 2026, following NTN Driveshaft's announced ramp-down in March. The pattern is compounding.

Canada's 50% Retaliatory Tariffs and the Section 232 Aluminum Trap

Canada's 50% retaliatory tariffs went live September 8th, targeting automotive and agricultural manufacturing as the hardest-hit sectors for Indiana. A quarter of jobs in Elkhart County alone are in industries already targeted by earlier retaliatory rounds. The structural angle that is not getting enough attention: non-USMCA-compliant imports from Canada and Mexico face roughly 25% duties, while vehicles from Japan, Korea, and the EU face a negotiated 15% rate. For the portion of Big Three supply chains that falls outside USMCA content thresholds, those suppliers are structurally disadvantaged in their own home market by their own government's tariff architecture.

AGCO has publicly quantified its 2026 tariff exposure at $105 to $110 million. That number will show up somewhere in the value chain — as OEM margin compression, price pass-through to dealers, or renegotiated supplier terms. Indiana Tier 1 and Tier 2 ag equipment suppliers should be modeling all three scenarios in current contract talks, not waiting to see where the pain lands.

Layer in the Section 232 aluminum tariff-relief program and the trap deepens. The Commerce Department is offering Canadian and Mexican aluminum producers a reduction from 50% to 25% — if they commit to building or expanding U.S. primary capacity. The compliance requirement is equivalent to major industrial project-finance oversight: binding capex commitments, milestone reporting, end-to-end metal traceability. The aluminum Producer Price Index has already risen 37.3% since April 2025. The December 31, 2027 sunset on current tariff modifications is the hard reset risk. Any procurement contract structured around today's aluminum rates needs to be stress-tested against a full 50% reset in eighteen months — because that deadline is real and it is closing.

Elkhart County RV Contraction: Why the Jobs Data Is Misleading You

Elkhart County produces more than 80% of the world's recreational vehicles. Manufacturing jobs make up more than half of the metro area's workforce. RV wholesale shipments fell 14.2% in the first half of 2026 to 163,644 units — the lowest first-half output since before 2016. The RV Industry Association has cut its full-year 2026 forecast to roughly 314,000 units.

Here is what the employment statistics are not showing: many Elkhart RV workers are paid on piece-rate production models. When shipments decline, household income compresses directly — without triggering formal layoff counts. The real labor market damage is being masked by the way the data is structured. Thor Industries has filed WARN notices for mass layoffs across multiple Elkhart and LaGrange County plants and is reorganizing its North American RV operations. Winnebago is consolidating towable production into its Grand Design campus in Middlebury. Forest River's Bristol plant cut 105 jobs effective September 17th. When demand recovers, re-employment is likely to concentrate at fewer, larger plants — which means the labor market takes longer to tighten and rehiring lags the demand signal. If Elkhart is your leading indicator for consumer durables demand broadly, and it is reading at a ten-year low, your own forward order book deserves the same scrutiny today.

Questions for Your Morning Huddle

Q: What should a Tier 1 or Tier 2 supplier do right now if PMG Indiana was in their supply chain?

A: Identify your backup source for powder-metal or powertrain sinter components immediately — do not wait for Q1 2027. PPAP cycles for precision parts run six to eighteen months, and the requalification window is already open.

Q: How should Indiana ag equipment suppliers respond to the Canada tariff exposure AGCO quantified at $105 to $110 million?

A: Model all three downstream scenarios — OEM margin compression, dealer price pass-through, and renegotiated supplier terms — and bring those scenarios into current contract conversations before terms are set.

Q: What does the Section 232 aluminum compliance sunset mean for Indiana buyers with procurement contracts in place today?

A: Any contract priced around current rates needs to be stress-tested against a full 50% tariff reset effective December 31, 2027. That deadline is eighteen months out and the compliance path for relief is demanding enough that not every supplier will qualify.

Q: Why don't Elkhart County's unemployment numbers reflect what's actually happening on the floor?

A: Many RV workers are paid on piece-rate models, so income falls when production slows without triggering formal layoff filings. The official headcount data structurally understates the real labor damage during a demand contraction.

Indiana's manufacturing base is bifurcating. The ICE supply chain and consumer-durables sector are contracting faster than the headline data shows, tariff architecture is compressing margins from multiple directions simultaneously, and the life-sciences growth economy Indiana is building is hiring into a different skill base and geography than the workforce being displaced today.

Audit every product line tied to ICE powertrains against your own version of that $150 million loss curve. Stress-test every aluminum procurement contract against a full 50% tariff reset before December 31, 2027. And if piece-rate income compression is a dynamic in your workforce, get that conversation on the table before the data catches up to what is already happening on the floor.

For context on how Canada's tariff architecture connects to the broader aluminum and auto supply chain pressures Indiana manufacturers were already tracking, see the September 8 TEG Daily on Canada Tariffs, Rolls-Royce, and Burns Harbor and the September 7 brief on Canada tariffs hitting Indiana auto and ag suppliers.