Exploring Indiana
When the leaves started to change last month, we drove to one of my favorite places to hike: McCormick’s Creek State Park. We were excited when we entered the park and noticed that the trails were not as crowded as we had anticipated. However, at the entrance to Trail 3, we soon realized why. Barricades blocked the entrance of the trail with a large sign warning that the trail was closed until further notice. In fact, the majority of trails were still closed due to the devastating tornado that ripped through the park in May.
Read full storyOptimistic Outlook for NWI's Economy in 2024
The 2024 forecast for the Northwest Indiana economy is mostly an optimistic one, according to the experts that presented during the recent Business & Economic Outlook. During the event, a cross section of industry leaders delivered their expectations for the coming year. The Northwest Indiana Business RoundTable (NWIBRT) and the Construction Advancement FoundationConstruction Advancement Foundation (CAF) host the economic outlook each autumn to provide the regional business community with insights about topics that may impact companies and communities.
Read full storyTop Industry Experts Presenting at Free Business & Economic Outlook
Coming up on November 3rd, a panel of regional business and economic experts will be presenting their forecast for 2024 at the NWIBRT Business & Economic Outlook. This is a free event hosted by the Northwest Indiana Business RoundTable (NWIBRT) and the Construction Advancement Foundation (CAF).
Read full storyCelebrating NWI Women at the 12th Annual Influential Women Awards
Women across Northwest Indiana have been transforming our region in remarkable ways. Recently, the 12th annual Influential Women of Northwest Indiana Awards Banquet honored the region's outstanding female professionals for their significant contributions across a variety of industries and local organizations.
Read full storySPI Marks its 2,000th Aviation Asset Recovery
Chicagoland-area aviation firm sage-popovich, inc. (SPI) recently completed its 2,000th aviation asset recovery with the return of a Bombardier CRJ700 from an East Coast airport. This new milestone marks an important achievement for the 44-year-old company as it continues its transition toward a new generation of leadership.
Read full storyCLH Announces Promotion of Two New Partners with a Mission to Uphold Excellence
Gretchen Kalk-Castro, CPA, and Kylee Fraze Norman, CPA, of CLH, CPAs & Consultants have both recently been promoted to become the newest partners at the NWI-based business consulting and public accounting firm. Having assumed their new leadership roles, both professionals have fresh ideas on how to develop the company’s team and its culture.
Read full storyServe & Protect - Lafayette’s New Public Safety Center Opens
Construction recently completed on a major upgrade to the city of Lafayette’s public safety infrastructure. The $51 million project took a little over two years to complete and established a new 70,000-square-foot Public Safety Center building and a large parking garage. Many aspects of the center will equip the department with the latest amenities in community policing.
Read full storyHit the Road - All Kinds of Big Roadway Projects are Taking Shape
Indiana is building important connections right now with multiple new roadway projects underway throughout the state. There’s a lot of variety to the projects too, with some designed to improve safety, connectivity, or to establish inviting new spaces along our highways. We’ve been hittin’ the road lately, and lots has been happening. To get you caught up, we’ve gathered a few highlights from INDOT’s recent string of high-profile projects. There’s lots to check out!
Read full storyShipping Smarter - Your Bottom Line Will Thank You
Trying to turn a profit with today’s shipping prices is a tough task for any company. Keeping expenses in check is crucial, and let's be real, shipping costs can be volatile and will certainly eat up a chunk of your budget. This is especially true for companies that are into e-commerce or deal with loads of goods. Fortunately, there are several clever ways to save big bucks on shipping without sacrificing quality. Let’s dive into some ideas and stop some of the losses to your bottom line.
Read full storyRolling Out - Big Investments, Big Vehicles, and Big Projects
Many of Indiana’s automakers have their feet pressed firmly on the gas right now in terms of business growth. Expansion efforts are in high gear all throughout our state. New vehicles are going to join our manufacturing portfolio soon, as well as enhanced partnerships, facility expansions, big investments, and hundreds of new jobs.
Read full storyWhat’s the Value of Positive Recognition?
Ever feel like your hard work and effort goes unnoticed? You’re not alone there. People all over the country are feeling the same way, unappreciated and undervalued, and the problem is becoming expensive. The absence of positive recognition has been costing businesses way more than they think, and it’s time for a change. For supervisors and managers in charge of employees, the ability to spread a little validation might just become a critical skill that keeps their companies one step ahead of the competition.
Read full storyOut-of-Town Dollars - The World Invests Big in Indiana
Out-of-town dollars are a wonderful thing for the Hoosier economy. Companies and industries from all over the world choose Indiana for their big ideas. Some invest in multi-million-dollar production facilities, others expand their distribution capabilities, and some come here for their research and development initiatives. The list goes on and on and has been growing every year. Recently, a new state-by-state analysis of foreign direct investment (FDI) shows us just how robust this spending is for our economy, and how much of an impact it makes for our communities.
Read full story5G Flying - New Network Turns Airport into Real-Life Research Site
Hoosiers have been hard at work to revolutionize the aviation industry. Right now, there’s a unique 5G project underway in Indiana that aims to modernize just about everything about the ways that airports operate. It’s going to be “out with the old” and “in with the new” in some seriously game-changing ways. And it’s all going to start with a ground-up revamp of airport communication systems.
Read full storyHow to Make a Healthier Construction Worker
Construction workers are some of the toughest and hardest-working people in the country, but they’re also among the unhealthiest categories of workers. Part of that is obviously due to the physical nature of the job, but aside from that, there’s a strong correlation between unhealthy habits and construction employment that can and should be addressed. It’s time to get more hardcore about health and toughen up the industry in a new kind of way.
Read full storyBrownfield Cleanup - Largest Ever EPA Investment of Its Type
What’s a brownfield site? We didn’t know what they were either when we’d heard about a record-setting amount of federal dollars that just came to Indiana to help clean up these locations. The EPA just made its largest investment ever in brownfield communities when it allotted $8 million dollars to our state through the Investing in America Agenda. That money could bring a lot of opportunities to Hoosier communities and help remediate many underutilized properties.
Read full storyThere are Warning Signs that Can Help Predict Turnover
It's a Monday, you’ve got a heavy week planned for your team, and you’re met with a headcount that’s one employee short. One of your people ghosted you without notice. Like many business leaders today, the concept of any kind of two-week notice has become more of a wish list item than the norm. But it doesn’t necessarily have to be this way. There are subtle signals that watchful supervisors can monitor which may be helpful. Although it’s not the same as a formal notice, turnover often comes with precursory behaviors that can at least give business leaders a heads-up about the vacancy that may be coming.
Read full storyGiving Back - Hoosier Firms are Passionate About Their Communities
A few weeks ago, we put out a call to all of the businesses that read Building Indiana and asked them: What are some of the unique ways that your company gives back to your community?
Read full storyCapture Construction - A Whole New Kind of Industrial Building Project
Thanks to some advantageous geologic formations beneath our feet, Indiana may soon have the opportunity to launch an entirely new type of industrial construction project. Many of the biggest employers in the state are looking into ways to offset their carbon footprints, and one of the options they’re considering is called carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS). As it turns out, our state has just the right conditions to make this possible, and just the right kind of demand to make it feasible.
Read full storyInfluential Women Winners to be Announced September 28th
The 12th-annual Influential Women Awards Banquet will be taking place on Thursday, September 28th, when winners from a pool of over 165 finalists will be announced in front of an audience of nearly 800 attendees. This year’s nominees, of which there were more than 300, come from many leading regional companies and organizations.
Read full storyTwo Leading Companies to Co-Chair Safety Committee (Cargill and bp)
With the addition of a new co-chair, the NWIBRT Safety Committee is now helmed by representatives from two leading employers in the Northwest Indiana region. Experts in construction industry safety from both Cargill and bp will now be working together to lead the committee and develop new ways to improve safety across numerous companies and jobsites in the area.
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