Indiana Announces New Business Development Office in Milan, Italy

Governor Eric J. Holcomb concluded a three-day economic development trip to Italy, seeking opportunities to further collaboration in automotive manufacturing and motorsports between the two states and their business sectors. During the trip, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation celebrated the opening of a new office in Milan to further strengthen the state’s relationships in Italy and the surrounding area and to pursue new business development opportunities to benefit Hoosiers.

"We've had both an inspirational and productive trip to Italy, including meeting Italian automotive leaders and welcoming a new company to Indiana. Our relationship with Italy is already having a tremendous impact on our state, and we're just getting warmed up," said Gov. Holcomb. "We've opened an office in Italy to build on the synergy of our well-established relationships, and our continued presence here will help bring even more Italian businesses to Indiana and open more markets for our Hoosier made goods."

While in Italy, the governor, Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger and a delegation of Indiana business and government leaders traveled to Milan and “Motor Valley,” meeting with executives of Italian businesses with operations in or ties to Indiana and with companies interested in expanding into the U.S. While in Milan, Italian manufacturer Filtrec S.p.A. announced plans to establish its North American headquarters in Indiana, investing $1.3 million in Daleville and creating up to 25 new jobs over the next few years.

Additionally, the delegation:

• Visited the headquarters of Dallara, which is the exclusive designer and manufacturer of chassis for the Verizon IndyCar Series and operates its only facility outside Italy in Speedway, Indiana, housing the world’s most advanced vehicle dynamic simulator used to support driver training and to advance the design and safety of race cars. In Italy, the governor and delegation helped celebrate the grand opening of Dallara Academy, a new educational and display center dedicated to sharing the company’s knowledge and innovation for visitors as well as with intermediate, high school and university students through hands-on laboratories and partnerships with regional universities.
• Met with the top leadership of Valbruna Group, a producer of stainless steels, nickel alloys and titanium long products. The company has three production facilities - two in Italy and one in Fort Wayne, Indiana - and is the sole stainless steel bar manufacturer in Indiana.
• Met with executives of OMR Automotive and toured the company’s production facility in the Province of Brescia. In 2015, the company announced plans to locate its North American headquarters in Speedway, Indiana, investing $10 million to establish a 2.5-acre campus to manufacture automotive components.
• Visited Fontana Group, a manufacturer of fasteners for a variety of uses, including automotive and heavy machinery. The company has a production facility in Frankfort, Indiana, and also supports one in Rochester, Indiana, through its subsidiary Acument Global Technologies.
• Traveled to Motor Valley to meet with leaders of Maserati and FCA Group, which has manufacturing facilities in Kokomo and Tipton, as well as Lamborghini and Ferrari, which help support automotive suppliers in Indiana and share the Hoosier state’s tradition of racing.

Additionally, the First Lady traveled to Beretta, an Italian firearms manufacturer. Founded in early 1500s, Beretta is an advanced manufacturing company, specializing in firearms. The First Lady and members of the delegation met with Franco and Pietro Beretta, the 15th generation of the Beretta family to manage the company.

This marks Gov. Holcomb's seventh economic development trip as governor. He was accompanied by First Lady Janet Holcomb; Indiana Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger; Rep. Randy Frye (R-Greensburg), Indiana General Assembly and chair of the Motorsports Caucus; Mark Miles, Hulman & company and IEDC Board; Sarah Fisher, retired IndyCar driver, CEO and business owner; Michael Browning, Browning Investments; Rollie Helmling, IEDC senior vice president of global industry and trade development; and Jan Wiedemann, director of the IEDC's office in Europe. The cost of the state delegation is covered through private donations to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.