By Marilyn Odendahl, Truth Staff
modendahl@etruth.com
Two months after unveiling plans to revive Elkhart County's economy by building hybrid vehicles here, Wil Cashen, chief executive officer of Electric Motors Corp., said he is "completely happy" with the company's progress.
He also retains his bullish vision of the county becoming a center of electric vehicle manufacturing.
The concentration of recreational vehicle manufacturers and suppliers in Elkhart County has created an infrastructure of distribution systems, supply chains and service providers that can help not only launch EMC, Cashen said, but also foster other companies and entrepreneurs to get into the business.
"The more people at the party, the better the party," Cashen said. "You can't dance if you don't have anyone to dance with."
EMC continues to await word from the U.S. Department of Energy on its applications for more than $300 million in loans and grants. It is also in contact with the Indiana Economic Development Corp., which has offered the company $4.6 million in performance-based tax credits and up to $200,000 in training grants.
However, Cashen emphasized, his company will move forward with production even if it does not receive the funds.
"You never build a business on loans," he said, explaining he has a business plan and his company is doing "exceedingly well."
Activities EMC has undertaken since May:
* Hiring 12 people from the area for management positions including Linda Yoder, former director of the Nappanee Public Library. She will serve as the company's vice president of government affairs, acting as a liaison among EMC and Elkhart County and officials in Washington and Indianapolis.
* Purchasing the former DeMartini RV dealership building in Wakarusa at the corner of S.R. 19 and Nelson Parkway. This facility will house the engineering design offices as well as the showroom for EMC's vehicles, hybrid chassis and components.
In addition, EMC has opened its main office and technology department in Eddy Commons near the University of Notre Dame in South Bend. Cashen said the university has "a lot of smart people" with whom EMC wants to work.
* Signing an agreement with Livernois Vehicle Development in Inkster, Mich. This company will use EMC's designs and patents to create the prototype, ensuring that the electric drive train systems are fully compliant with the chassis and body parameters of light, medium and heavy-duty vehicles.
Once the engineering work and prototype are completed, Gulf Stream Coach could start installing the drive train system into the pickup truck toward the end of the first quarter of 2010. At the peak, Cashen estimated EMC would be producing about 50,000 trucks a year.
"I see a market," Cashen said. "We're not being silly. We're going to sell this product to a specified area of need."
EMC's vehicles could be used as fleet trucks that run routes within a limited area so the trucks could return to base each night and recharge. However, Cashen contended his electric vehicles will be able to travel cross-country because of the series hybrid system his products use.
"You can buy our car and drive it anywhere you want," he said.