BRISTOL — After five years of private internal conversations about shifting operations to a more modern facility, Utilimaster unveiled plans Tuesday to relocate all production lines and corporate offices from its birthplace in Wakaursa to the town of Bristol.

The manufacturer of commercial truck bodies and walk-in delivery vans intends to move from its sprawling 106-acre campus along S.R. 19 to the 425,000-square-foot building on Earthway Boulevard that was previously occupied by the former Odyssey Group.

John Forbes, president of Utilimaster, said the new plant will give Utilimaster a better work environment and help the company improve quality. It will also position the company to grow its business and, in turn, create new jobs in Elkhart County.

“This was the best option for us within Elkhart County from both a quality of facility standpoint and a cost standpoint,” he said. “Like any good business, we’ve got to do what’s right to support our business because that ultimately supports jobs and growth for the county and for our team members within the county.”

For the past few months, representatives from the Indiana Economic Development Corp. and the Economic Development Corp. of Elkhart County have been working with site selectors and company officials to keep Utilimaster in Elkhart County, according to EDC president Dorinda Heiden-Guss. They code-named the effort “Project Horizon.”

As Utilimaster made its announcement Tuesday morning, Bristol lawmakers were surprised while Wakarusa officials were, Heiden-Guss said, “hit blind side.” For Elkhart County as a whole, Utilimaster’s decision to stay is a win, she said, because the county retains the jobs, keeps the tax revenue and will benefit from the company’s future expansion and growth plans.

“It’s awkward,” Heiden-Guss said of Wakarusa losing a homegrown business to Bristol. “You sense and feel what Wakarusa is going through and the challenge before them.”

UNDER ONE ROOF

At its current campus, vehicles travel through multiple buildings during production. In fact, just to get through the assembly line and ready for shipment, the trucks and vans will journey 2.5 miles.

The new facility will put all production under one roof and decrease the distance vehicles travel to half a mile. More importantly, Forbes pointed out, the Bristol location will provide a safer work place, bring more efficiency and enable the company to produce higher-quality processes and vehicles.

It is a cavernous space with 26-foot-high ceilings that dwarfed the van and truck Utilimaster had parked inside. The company will make a multi-million dollar investment in the building to prepare it for production, Forbes said. That will include installing water-testing stations and paint booths, new painting equipment, ergonomic work places and, eventually, robotics.

Ultimately, Forbes sees the structure as key to helping Utilimaster capitalize on its 46 percent jump in sales in 2011 over 2010.

“We are passionate about continuing our growth and this facility will help with that,” he said.

In addition, he noted many times, future increase in sales will lead to ramped-up production and more jobs for local residents. Currently, the company has just under 600 full-time employees and 200 contract workers.

Forbes praised the 800 employees, calling them a “great team,” and said the company’s plan is to keep the team intact when relocating to Bristol.

“Customer orders always drive our business needs, our employment needs,” he said. “So that’s what first drives us. Absolutely we expect to grow this year. We’re going to have more jobs, more team members in the future.”

WHAT’S LEFT BEHIND

Utilimaster started in 1973 in Wakarusa in the corner of one building. Some of the structures that the manufacturer now uses are 40 years old and need upgrading, Forbes said.

The company has designs to make a gradual move from S.R. 19 to Bristol so production will not have to be shut down and the move will be completed by year’s end. When it does vacate the last building, Forbes said, it will not abandon the property.

“We understand our responsibility to work with the town of Wakarusa to market the properties, to bring new jobs and opportunities to Wakarusa,” he said. “We understand that responsibility, we take it very seriously and we will work with them to accomplish that. We own the buildings in Wakarusa so certainly it’s in our best interest to sell them.”

At present, Utilimaster owns 13 parcels off S.R. 19 that have a total assessed value of $5.65 million, according to Elkhart County records. Taxes paid in 2011 reached $144,000. The company was late on the fall installments but paid all its property taxes up to date on Nov. 21, 2011, incurring fines of $3,598.93.

The property on Earthway Boulevard is owned by Fruit Hills Investments LLC of Bristol (Utilimaster intends to lease it) and has an assessed value of $10.4 million. Property taxes in 2011 were $256,703.24.

NOT QUITE DONE

Spartan Motors delayed the release of its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings Tuesday by a half hour while Utilimaster began telling official parties its plans and economic development officials revealed the identity of the company behind “Project Horizon.”

The tight secrecy was maintained because parent Spartan is a publicly-traded company and leaks could impact the market.

However, even though Utilimaster has picked a building and announced its intentions, the deal is not done. The company is waiting to see what incentive package the town of Bristol and the state of Indiana will offer before making a final decision.

No incentives “would affect the ultimate decision,” Forbes said.

“We are willing to go the extra mile,” said Bristol Town Council president Floyd Lynch.

Heiden-Guss said the state and town are working on a proposal but she did not know how quickly one would be completed.

“It has to work for everybody,” she said of the incentives. “I think we can all reach that. It’s just a matter of time and talking, meeting and discussing.”

Truth reporter Stephanie Gattman and Truth correspondent Miriam Nowak contributed to this story.


Editor's note: This story was edited by Stephanie Gattman on Feb. 15 to reflect a change in 2011 property taxes paid by Utilimaster.