Local company gets boost from Indiana@Work
Wanda English Burnett - Editor

local company, Bed Techs, Inc., has been selected as one of four in the state of Indiana to expand its workforce through grants from Indiana@Work.

The state's new workforce development initiative is offered through the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, and according to Governor Joe Kernan, four companies will be the recipients of more than $42,000 in grants to assist them.

Ripley County's Bed Techs, Inc. is located at the intersection of US 50 and SR 129, and is a hospital bed refurbishing company that presently employs 13 people, according to information from Governor Kernan's office. They will receive $8,324 from the program.

This grant money will allow the company to assess the existing employees and profile four jobs, which include that of office manager, utility worker, supervisor and a position in its shipping department. Plans are to hire five additional employees over the next year.

Job profiling helps the businesses identify skill levels needed for #267 has for many years sponsored representatives to attend Hoosier Boys State, an educational experience in government for boys who have completed their junior year of high school.

The Legion is also in charge of an annual Halloween Parade and costume judging in Osgood.

"We appreciate the grant from the Gilmore and Golda Reynolds Foundation that has enabled us to make a better appearance at all the services we are called upon to perform," said Legion Member Paul C. Hardy.

With Legion Member John Bloom organizing the photo-shoot, the following members participated: Dennis Winters, Herman Pettit, John Stork, Paul C. Hardy, Earl Phillippe, Bob Simmons, Harold Turner, Louie Kieffer, Jim Fruchtnicht, Bill Downey.

Also, Robert Day, Omer Flint, John Bloom, Robert Henneke, Eddie Oliger, Bill Borchelt, Steve Kissell, Mark Scott, Virgin Werner, and Carl Hauser.
workers to be successful on the job. This is achieved through professional job analysts who work with present employees to define the duties and skills needed to perform in each occupation. Together they create specific job profiles, which are used in the hiring and placement process.

"We are grateful to the state of Indiana for providing these types of programs, and we are excited about taking our work force to a higher level of competency and efficiency," noted Michael Wilson, president and co-founder of Bed Techs.

The assessment process, which is comprehensive testing system identifying an individuals' skill level, helps match individuals with available jobs that require skills similar to ones they have.

"As a rapidly growing small business, it can be a challenge to invest the time needed to hire, train and develop our workforce to sustain the growth," noted Tim Brandes, vice president and co-founder of Bed Techs Inc. Indiana@Work clearly provides the resources we need to ensure a stable, reliable and energetic team.

The other companies who will benefit from this grant include Wayne County's Autocar LLC and Color-Box LLC, and Intat Precision Inc., located in Rush County.

General managers of the companies have described this project as a win-win situation for the individual worker and the company.

A joint effort between the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD) and the Indiana Department of Commerce,
Indiana@Work builds around Energize Indiana's four targeted sectors: advance manufacturing, information technology, life sciences and high-tech distribution.

Information from the governor's office notes that since the inception of Indiana@Work in January, skills assessments have been made available to nearly 21,000 Hoosiers and more than 400 job profiles have been requested by companies.