SIA, at 35 ... and beyond
Plus, a state-federal one-two punch on catalytic converter thefts. And a new take in Ukraine on a Clash classic
Today’s edition of the Based in Lafayette reporting project is sponsored by Purdue University’s Presidential Lecture Series, featuring Purdue President Mitch Daniels’ March 29 conversation with Purdue alumna Julie Wainwright, founder of The RealReal. For more details, scroll to the end of today’s edition.
A little of this, a little of that on a Sunday, knowing we’re all just waiting for tipoff on the Purdue-Texas game in the NCAA Tournament. It’s an 8:40 p.m. start, they say. Next stop: Sweet 16, where No. 15 seed St. Peter’s – no, really, St. Peter’s is no joke – awaits, if the Boilers pull it off.
SIA MARKS 35 YEARS IN LAFAYETTE: The Subaru of Indiana Automotive plant traditionally takes a pause every five years on March 17 to mark the day when what was then called Subaru-Isuzu Automotive Inc. was incorporated in Indiana. That happened in 1987, with the first Subaru and Isuzu models rolling off a newly built plant near Indiana 38 and Interstate 65 in September 1989.
Since then, a plant that had 1,000 employees in 1989 has more than 6,500, with production of 400,000 vehicles a year, according to SIA figures. Highlights expected by the end of 2022: the 5 millionth Subaru, likely in August, and the 7 millionth vehicle overall, estimated sometime in December. (In addition to Subaru models made there now, the plant has handled assorted Isuzu models before the company left in 2004, Toyota Camrys and Honda Passports at various times in that 35 years.)
In late 2021, the company announced it would build a $52.2 million, 500,000-square-foot warehouse along Haggerty Lane, just northeast of the plant’s 800-plus-acre site – the first move off the footprint of the original construction.
Scott Brand, executive vice president at SIA, talked a bit last week about looking out from here for Lafayette’s largest employer, outside Purdue University.
On what SIA might be marking by the time of its 50th anniversary. Brand said …
“If we were to talk about it, let's say 15 years from now, we know that the automotive landscape is changing pretty rapidly. We've got the bigger players or the disruptors – I’m referring bigger players to General Motors or Ford and disruptor a Tesla – that are throwing their lot heavily into electrification. They're going all in on battery electric vehicles. And Subaru, obviously, can't ignore the market dynamics that are going to draw customers in that direction.
“We're taking a cautious approach in terms of how we will migrate toward hybrid technologies, whether that's battery electric hybrid vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles or what we call strong hybrid – which is a hybrid vehicle that’s still got a gas engine but also has regenerative charging and engine charging capability for the battery – or battery electric. How Subaru gets to that final destination still remains to be completely seen and divulged, just because we think the market is in still in a state of flux.
“Even though General Motors or a Ford or a Tesla has made a total commitment toward electric, we think the market dynamics may be a little bit slower than what they're professing. And our strategy is to configure the plant to give us flexibility to be able to satisfy the internal combustion engine market, as well as be prepared to migrate into newer technologies as development progresses and as the market is more accepting or open and demanding of those new technologies.
“So from a footprint standpoint, we're using a pretty good portion of this 820 acres that we've got here. But there are opportunities for us to become a little more efficient with how we use the space here at the factory. So when there's investment that we would do internally, before we would consider doing any, you know, wholesale, large, additional external investment.”
On whether the Lafayette site is ready, if and when that move happens into the electric vehicle market …
“Oh, yeah. We have the capability to move to new technology. The thing you’ve got to remember is that car bodies are still built essentially the same way. The assembly of cars – the seats, steering, the suspension, a lot of the components – whether you're in a battery electric or a hybrid electric vehicle are very similar. So the configuration the plant would need to change, but not completely.”
On marking 35 years last week …
“It's a stepping stone for us. Thirty-five years in most companies’ histories is not a significant amount. … But we're just getting started. And our focus at this point is we can say at the 35 year mark, we have established a super robust, strong foundation for this company to continue to grow or to prosper in the Lafayette area for decades to come.”
NEW EFFORTS TO STOP CATALYTIC CONVERTER THEFTS: Lt. Jon Eager of the West Lafayette Police Department said that when the department gets a report about a catalytic converter being cut out and stolen from under a vehicle, chances are more calls will follow.
“They come in waves,” Eager said. “We don’t get them all the time. But when we do, we get a lot.”
New legislation, signed into law Monday by Gov. Eric Holcomb, along with a push in Congress by U.S. Rep. Jim Baird for complementary regulations is looking to curb thefts that can leave drivers with repairs and replacements that can run more than $2,000.
“This has to stop,” Baird said during a swing through West Lafayette last week with Indiana Secretary of State Holli Sullivan to talk about the catalytic converter theft bills.
Both efforts are aimed at making the conversion – from theft to cashing in – of the exhaust components more cumbersome and less lucrative.
In 2021, the National Insurance Crime Bureau marked a spike in thefts between 2018 and the end of 2020. Of reported thefts, there were and average of 108 catalytic converter thefts a month in 2018, 282 in 2019 and 1,203 in 2020. The bureau reported 2,347 thefts in December 2020. The catalytic converter thefts tended to trace prices of precious metals – including platinum, palladium and rhodium – used in the parts, which could be cashed in at metal recycling firms. Payouts, according to the report: $50 to $250 per catalytic converter.
Thieves generally just need a battery-powered saw or cutting tool and a few minutes to get under the vehicle.
Senate Bill 293 redefined a catalytic converter as a “major component part,” so only licensed salvage recyclers may buy or sell them. The bill also capped cash payouts on catalytic converters at $25 per transaction per day. Sullivan said the idea was to make it harder to make money off the thefts, which would cut down on them to start with.
Baird has introduced the Preventing Auto Recycling Thefts Act, which would require new vehicles to come with catalytic converters stamped with an ID number that could be traced to the Vehicle Identification Number on the car. The bill also calls for grant program to be used to stamp VIN numbers to catalytic converters on vehicles already on the road.
THE INVASION, THE CLASH: This in, over the weekend, from The Guardian:
“The Clash have given their blessing to a new version of their song ‘London Calling’ by a Ukrainian punk band called Beton. ‘Kyiv Calling,’ recorded near the frontline, has lyrics that call upon the rest of the world to support the defense of the country from Russian invaders.”
For the full story from The Guardian, here you go: “Kyiv calling: famous Clash anthem reborn as call to arms”
For the video from Ukraine …
And for old time’s sake, the original, by The Clash …
Thanks to the Presidential Lecture Series for sponsoring today’s edition. Despite setbacks, Purdue alumna Julie Wainwright persisted to create the luxury resale giant The RealReal. Join the conversation alongside Purdue President Mitch Daniels in person or online at 6 p.m. March 29.
Have a story idea for upcoming editions? Send them to me: davebangert1@gmail.com. For news during the day, follow on Twitter: @davebangert.