WARSAW — After a heavy morning rain Aug. 28, Warsaw Mayor Jeff Gross declared that the history of the R.R. Donnelly & Sons/LSC Warsaw plant was being washed away for the new chapter of Slate Auto.
Gross joined Slate CEO Chris Barman, U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym, city and Kosciusko County government officials and others celebrated plans for Slate to reopen the Warsaw facility as it struck manufacturing home base.
“What Slate is about to build for America, begins in Warsaw,” Barman said.
Barman thanked the many in government who helped Slade find a home in Warsaw — known as the Orthopedic Capital of the World due to it being home to such major manufacturers — including Kosciusko County council and commissioners along with Gov. Mike Braun and U.S. Sens. Jim Banks and Todd Young for their support.
Michigan-based electric vehicle maker Slate Auto plans to build stripped-down gray pickups called the Blank Slate for around $25,000 in the former LSC Printing Solutions site, 2801 W Old Road 30. The vehicles’ dashboards are significantly bare. Square rectangles cover areas where customers can install accessories. The vehicles come with a simple cell phone mount and universal plug and three dials for thing such as heating and cooling.
One of the three investors in the company is Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos.
“From the earliest days of Slate, we were focused on simplification of manufacturing, and how to build a single configuration would improve our entire operations.”
The Blank Slate will be “one truck, made the same way each and every time. Designed to be accessorized and wrapped by the customer after it leaves the factory.”
LSC closed in 2023, taking with it 525 jobs and leaving behind 1.4 million square feet of space, part of it where millions of catalogs for the likes of JCPenney and Yellow Pages were once stored after being printed on site over 65 years, dating back to when the site was home to R.R. Donnelly & Sons.
The size of the factory is significantly smaller than most automakers’, Barman said.
“A truck can have 5,000 to 6,000 parts, and over a million built configures. The Blank Slate has just over 600 parts and one configuration.”
The factory will be simplified: no paint shop, stamping operation, factory options or trim levels will be needed.
“What we are building will endure the test of time and drive the cost of ownership way down for people who want to spend less on cars and still be proud of their ride,” Barman said.
She noted the Blank Slate that was converted to an SUV and wrapped in blue and white with the Indiana state flag’s torch on the hood, and “Warsaw” and “Made in the USA” printed on the side and rear of the vehicle.
Guests toured the factory, which is currently undergoing demolition of walls and of the floors so that robotic assembly equipment can be moved in. It will house battery pack assembly, seat manufacturing and general assembly areas.
What Slate Auto plans to bring is production next year of two versions of vehicles: over 2,000 jobs and $400 million in investment that over 20 years will have a $39 billion impact on Indiana.
Barman, a Crown Point native, spent 30 years in the automotive industry in Michigan.
Yakym, a Republican whose 2nd District includes Warsaw, said, “Slate is proof that when we keep the made in America provisions strong, companies step up and they build right here at home. And thanks to things like immediate expensing and common sense tax reform in the One Big Beautiful Bill (a federal statute containing tax and spending policies that was signed into law by President Donald Trump on July Fourth) new manufacturers like Slate can put shovels in the ground faster and hire workers sooner and get their trucks on the road without delay.”
“Indiana’s 2nd District is the manufacturing capital of America,” Yakym said. “And specifically, Warsaw has been a hub of precision manufacturing. And with Slate’s investment, it will now lead the way in electric vehicles.”
With the new factory comes the need for more housing. Mayor Gross said the city like many others is in need of more housing but believes the city will achieve it.