By: Matt Craig, Radius Indiana Director of Crane Community Support

 

Every year the counties and cities around Naval Support Activity Crane expend some energy to assuage concerns that it will someday fall to the ax of military cutbacks. Some ask, “is it necessary?” 

Without doubt or hint of hesitation, the answer is a resounding “yes.” Crane’s economic impact to our region is over $2.1B annually with a civilian and contractor payroll topping more than $400 million. 

Local leaders constantly monitor base realignment and closure, or BRAC, the process by which the federal government prunes defense spending or rearranges its assets to meet changing military needs. Unease due to BRAC has come a handful of times, including in the 1980s and 90s and in 2005, when the base lost over 350 jobs. 

For now, though, it appears there’s little political expectation of a BRAC and there has been a wealth of change at Crane since 2005. But local leaders often speak about BRAC the same way officials might talk about a big flood or other natural disaster. It’s hard to say when it will happen, and so it demands permanent, guarded attention.

That’s why it’s important for the community leaders to strengthen the ties between the base and region—to focus on the connections that have united us since 1941. In recent years, community leaders have heard mostly good news. 

Recently, local, state and military leaders created the White River Military Coordination Alliance to enhance communication between Crane and the community and to implement practical policies, programs, and projects geared at sustaining and enhancing the installation and the quality of life in the neighboring communities.

Last year, NSA Crane announced projections to hire 850 new employees above attrition during the next three years, ranging from highly-skilled to blue-collar positions. This builds on the over 400 new jobs already announced in the last quarter of 2018, with new employees coming to both of Crane’s largest tenants, Crane Army Ammunition Activity and Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division.

Under Governor Eric J. Holcomb’s leadership and the Next Level agenda, Indiana is advancing a more collaborative, strategic approach to growing and enhancing its defense industry. Indiana is strengthening its efforts to target industry growth and job creation, and collaborating with industry, government and academic partners to increase the state’s competitiveness in the defense sector. The Legislature also exempted military retirement benefits from income tax with support from not only state lawmakers but from city and county leadership and the business community.

The Office of Navy Research, Development, and Acquisition named Crane as one of only five national “Naval X Tech Bridges.” As the Midwest bridge, it will work to better connect the Department of Defense with the private sector. Crane will collaborate with innovators, academics, small businesses to bring solutions more quickly to national security problems. 

Crane and the region have a strong connection, one that has been strengthened in recent years. Now we must work to keep it that way.

 

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

 

Photographs from Naval Support Activity Crane’s early years contain some familiar images that we can still see today at the installation—from the original command office at Building One to vast acres dotted with munitions storage—there is much that could transport us back in time. But time, and Crane, have marched on at a blistering pace.

Over the years, Crane has continued to evolve to fulfill rapidly-changing mission requirements and is home to the only federal research laboratory in Indiana. It has also become a vital part of the our regional economy and plays an important role as valued community partner. Crane’s evolution from its original designation as an ammunitions depot to now a prime location for new missions and programs is evident from several recent headlines. 

Last month, Crane announced projections to hire 850 new employees above attrition during the next three years, ranging from highly-skilled to blue-collar positions. This builds on the over 400 new jobs already announced in the last quarter of 2018, with new employees coming to both of Crane’s largest tenants, Crane Army Ammunition Activity and Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division.

Crane was also chosen as the location for a new Underwater Launch Test Facility to support the Naval Surface Warfare Center’s strategic mission and a recently completed a new flexible manufacturing facility for Crane Army, which is a multi-million dollar investment to upgrade existing workplaces and increase efficiency in advanced manufacturing.

Last week, the Office of Navy Research, Development, and Acquisition named Crane as one of only five national “Naval X Tech Bridges.” As the Midwest bridge, it will work to better connect the Department of Defense with the private sector. Crane will collaborate with innovators, academics, small businesses to bring solutions more quickly to national security problems. The Tech Bridge, which will operate from Bloomington and WestGate@Crane Technology Park, also gives organizations a chance to seek financial backing through grants and other forms of funding.

From monumental developments in technology and new facilities to an adaptive workforce that is among the best and brightest in the industry, Crane’s capability to grow and change keeps it as relevant today as it was at its commissioning in 1941. It is certain that Crane’s ongoing evolution will continue to make an impact on our region and bring new opportunities for growth.

by Kara Kavensky for Radius Indiana

Trends are encouraging in the Radius region of Southern Indiana when it comes to productive engagement between the private sector and schools. Across the eight Radius counties, community stakeholders are realizing a stronger bridge between education and local industry is critical for future growth.

As a result, high schools are becoming more focused upon students positively contributing to economic development.

“Schools play a major part of economic development and our schools are really hitting it out of the park right now,” says Tim Kinder, Executive Director of Martin County Alliance, a local economic development organization. “The Ready Schools program has really helped to foster this and plan for the future.”

Loogootee High School (LHS), a recently certified STEM school, is setting a national example of what’s possible. Loogootee isn’t waiting for its students to return to the community after earning a post-secondary education or after graduation from high school to participate in the local economy; LHS is engaging their students while still in high school.

Martin County, where Loogootee is located, is nationally ranked (#4) for concentration of STEM jobs thanks to NSA Crane. Crane is the 3rd largest Naval installation in the world and occupies the northern third of Martin County.

“There are fourteen departments of the Federal government within the Crane fence line, taking up 98 square miles,” says Kinder.

Thanks to a grant by the Lilly Endowment supporting the Regional Opportunities Initiatives (ROI) Ready Schools program, the Loogootee School Corporation was able to initiate a design thinking process to help bridge education to area industry.

“Loogootee is in a beautiful part of the state [of Indiana],” says Tina Peterson, CEO of ROI, who oversees eleven counties in the Indiana Uplands region. “There is a substantial opportunity given the incredible assets of the region, but there isn’t strong post-secondary achievement [data]. We asked the question, ‘How are we going to help this region fill its potential?’”

As part of the Ready Schools planning process, community stakeholders convened to identify challenges for their area and create a systematic approach to prepare for their next steps. One segment of their research was to visit Cardinal Manufacturing in Strum, Wisconsin, a community similar in size to Loogootee in the size of both school and community. Of the Ready Schools ideas proposed for LHS, the winning concept was to create Lion Manufacturing, a student-run business.

“It is always scary to start something new in education. It can be a daunting task. The best advice we received from our research is that you will never be completely ready – no matter how much you prepare,” says Chip Mehaffey, Superintendent of Loogootee Schools. “At some point, you just have to jump in and get started!”

Loogootee High School’s synergistic hiring of Chris Woodard also helped move the concept of a student-run business into a reality. In the summer of 2017, Woodard was hired to teach engineering and technology as part of the Project Lead the Way curriculum. He was also able to bring 20 years of manufacturing management experience.

“Since college, I wanted to work in the industry and teach, and I made the transition to teaching in 2017,” says Chris Woodard, who worked as a student in a student-run business while earning an Industrial Technology degree at California State University Chico.

A pivotal partner for Lion Manufacturing is Loughmiller Machine Tool & Design. Both Jason and Pam Loughmiller are graduates of Loogootee High School and their office is down the street. Loughmiller has donated more than just equipment to the Lion program, they have donated customers.

The school launched an effort to transform its 1960s-era “shop” classroom space. LHS had a HAAS Mini-mill, a computerized machine (CNC), donated in 2006. It had not run since 2010 when the relevant instructor left. During 2010 – 2017, the CNC machine remained dormant. The Loughmillers worked with Mitch Mathias (of L-Machine) during the 2018 summer and were successful in getting the HAAS mini-mill functional. It was programmed to make a specific part – LM2800 – which is a part sold to the U.S. Navy for its radar systems, and which is meaningful to the Radius region because of the radar work done at Crane.

“During the transformation, many old pieces of equipment that were no longer usable were discarded and the area received a fresh facelift,” adds Mehaffey.  “Students were thrilled to be a part of that process.”

The Lion Manufacturing area in the school – the old shop classroom – now looks up-to-date and more like a professional business environment for manufacturing. There are eight welding stations for Lion Manufacturing growth opportunities for their business. A second CNC machine and a laser engraving machine will soon be added.

In the fall of 2018, three students were recruited to run production on the machine. By spring semester (2019), Lion added two additional production team members and three office staff. All of the positions are students.

“Loughmiller Machine Tool & Design is a wonderful corporate partner with Loogootee High School,” says Woodard. “We love them. They are community-oriented, heavily involved, and a great partner.”

“I was sold when I saw Cardinal Manufacturing in Wisconsin,” says Pam Loughmiller, whose company has consistently supported the shop program at LHS. “We [Loogootee] have a lot of similarities and I knew that we could make this happen in our school. With an emphasis leaning towards trades, it only makes sense for us to be the ones to help facilitate success for Lion Manufacturing.”

The experience for the students is unmatched. During their first year, Lion Manufacturing hired students to work in other areas in addition to the machinists. Students from the business department were hired to run the office of Lion Manufacturing. Their responsibilities included accounts receivable, billing, marketing, and public relations. Students from the Art Department were also hired to develop a logo for the business and to create clothing and apparel.

The students are experiencing problem-based learning, as there are no answers in a book on how to solve a specific issue. Students must figure out how to fix the machine if there is a power outage or how to fix drill bits. They must diagnose, solve, and implement a solution.

“They are running a business,” says Woodard. “This learning model provides real-world experience. This is less about building parts than it is about building students into becoming good people.”

Becca Hollaway, a recent graduate, served as the Director of Marketing and Communications for Lion Manufacturing. During her senior year, she planned an open house, organized tours, coordinated all elements of Lion Manufacturing events.

“I did more work with Lion Manufacturing than I thought I would be doing,” says Hollaway, who be will a marketing major in the fall at the University of Indianapolis. “There is no other area opportunity [in Loogootee] that would have given me the same experience. Lion helped me discover what I want to do after high school. It’s definitely a useful program at school!”

The tenets for the Ready Schools initiative include: collaboration, immersive student engagement, a shared vision with the community, and the goal of prosperity for the area. These best practices align with economic development.

“We have incredible schools, dedicated educators, and wonderful young people who are full of potential, yet we fail to recognize this, as rural communities are often overlooked,” says Peterson. “The Loogootee community has created a model that has an incredible capacity for success.  These young people will develop soft skills, work as a team that will serve them well in life, and what they have created in their small community is something replicable across the country.”

By: Matt Craig, Director of Crane Community Support for Radius Indiana

Crane originally began as an ammunition depot site to produce and manufacture munitions in 1941, now nearly 80 years later, manufacturing at Crane continues to be prominent economic driver — though the processes and technologies have greatly evolved.

Our entire region has a rich history of manufacturing. Manufacturing makes up 32 percent of our workforce with more than 20,000 people employed in the industry. When one thinks manufacturing, Jasper Engines, Kimball, and General Motors probably come to mind, but advanced manufacturing is thriving at Crane Army Ammunition Activity as well.

Crane Army Ammunition Activity is the second-largest tenant of NSA Crane and employs 700 over people. Crane Army works to safely receive, inspect, store, ship, renovate, demilitarize, and manufacture conventional ammunition, missiles, and related components to support the Army and Joint Force readiness. It occupies over 51,000 acres of land and 4.8 million square feet in storage and manufacturing buildings.

Crane Army’s new Crane Flexible Manufacturing Complex (CFMC) is a multi-million dollar investment currently under construction at the base, and is part of the Army’s modernization strategy to upgrade existing workplaces and increase efficiency. The total site for the complex is around 46 acres with three main, co-located, production buildings and a variety of support buildings dedicated to advanced manufacturing. After renovations are completed, the upgrades will give production lines and projects improved production rates.

The CFMC will initially provide the manufacturing space to service the M1122 artillery round, which processes old conventional munition rounds and reuses the shells to create low-cost training projectiles for the Army. Previously, this type of job had to be completed in several separate areas, and now can all be done at the CFMC. With the entire production process modernized, operations will have a better flow from start to finish. Previously, Crane Army was forced to rely on trucks to move production from one point to another, slowing down completion times and increasing logistics costs.

This type of investment is a testament to the strength of manufacturing in our region and will continue to provide jobs for the skilled workforce that helps drive our economy. Production at CFMC is slated to be fully functional and operational by 2019, and a ribbon cutting will be held when the complex is nearing completion.