INDIANA — The Indiana Chamber of Commerce’s competition for the second annual Coolest Thing Made in Indiana tournament is down to 16 companies. The organization reports “voting has been fierce with thousands of votes cast” in each of the first two rounds.
The tournament was created to celebrate the state’s rich manufacturing history and showcase all the great things being made right here in Indiana.
Round three voting is now underway with the remaining 16 teams from 14 communities around the state battling it out. Public fan voting for the third round ends November 15 at 10 p.m. In the single-elimination bracket, each winner goes to the next round until the Coolest Thing Made in Indiana champion is crowned.
The 16 companies still vying for the title are:
- A. J. Schnell Woodworks in Zionsville
- Birthday Chocolates in Greens Fork
- Blue Fox Farms LLC in Wawaka
- Dec-o-Art in Elkhart
- Grinds Coffee Pouches in Westfield
- Hard Truth Distillery Co. in Nashville
- Hiker Trailers in Columbus
- Hudson Aquatic Systems LLC in Angola
- Janus Motorcycles in Goshen
- Kidstuff Play Systems in Gary
- Maple Leaf Farms in Leesburg
- Oliver Winery in Bloomington
- Polywood in Syracuse
- Pure Green Farms in South Bend/Elkhart
- Tactile Engineering in Lafayette
- Wag’n Tails Mobile Conversions in South Bend.
To check out the products and cast your online vote, visit www.indianachamber.com/coolestthing.
Voting for the tournament concludes on November 30. Below is the timing of each voting round; all times noted are in Eastern Time.
- Round 3: November 11-15 (at 9 a.m.; closes 10:00 p.m. Tuesday)
- Round 4: November 16-18 (at 9 a.m.; closes 10:00 p.m. Friday)
- Semis: November 21-23 (at 9 a.m.; closes 10:00 p.m. Wednesday)
- Finals: November 28-30 (begins at 9 a.m.; closes 10 p.m. Wednesday)
The Champion will be announced on December 14 at the Indiana Chamber’s Best IN Manufacturing Luncheon, which also features the first honorees in the Indiana Best Places to Work in Manufacturing program.
Coolest Thing Made in Indiana sponsors are spirit sponsor Purdue Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP); gold sponsor Gibson; and silver sponsors Evonik Corporation, Insperity, Nucor Steel Indiana, SMC Corporation of America and The Horton Group.
Entry in the tournament is free. To participate, a company did not need to be headquartered in Indiana, but the product entered must be manufactured in the state. Companies are limited to having one product nominated for entry.
