INDIANAPOLIS — When we think of things made in Indiana, we probably imagine SUVs, limestone, popcorn and an array of engines for almost anything on wheels.
But did you know the state also produces musical instruments, lithium batteries, baseball bats, polygraphs and medical devices?
The Indiana Chamber of Commerce opened online voting Monday for its first "Coolest Thing Made in Indiana" tournament. The contest pits 65 companies that manufacture products in the state against each other to let voters decide on the winning entry. The product with the most votes cast in six rounds over the next six weeks will win.
The champion will be announced February 15 at the Indiana Chamber’s Chamber Day Event.
Nearly 50 Hoosier communities in 35 counties are represented, according to the Chamber.
The contest uses a single-elimination bracket format with winners chosen through public fan voting. Each round's winners advance until the Coolest Thing Made in Indiana is decided. The bracket was not seeded like an NCAA basketball tournament, for instance, but randomly generated from all entries.
You can see the bracket here.
How to vote
Online voting for the competition takes place weekly at www.indianachamber.com/coolestthing.
Voting for the first round concludes on Sunday, Jan. 16 and overall on Feb. 14. The timeline of each round of voting:
- Round 1: Week of Jan. 10
- Round 2: Week of Jan. 17
- Round 3: Week of Jan. 24
- Round 4: Week of Jan. 31
- Semis: Feb. 7-9
- Finals: Feb. 10-14
You can only vote once per matchup per round, then the number of votes resets for the next round.
Who is entered
The products entered represent a full range of Indiana's manufacturing, from heavy engines and portable toilets to birthday chocolates and feed for raising healthy ducklings.
To help you learn about the companies and what they make, each entrant includes a photo and product description.
The product field represents manufacturers from Anderson, Angola, Argos, Batesville, Bloomington, Brownstown, Carmel, Centerville, Decatur, DeMotte, East Chicago, Elkhart, Elizabethtown, Elwood, Evansville, Fishers, Fort Wayne, Frankfort, Franklin, Goshen, Greens Fork, Hammond, Indianapolis, Jeffersonville, Kokomo, Lafayette, Mishawaka, Nappanee, New Albany, Newburgh, Newtown, Noblesville, Pendleton, Plymouth, Portland, Princeton, Rochester, Sellersburg, South Bend, South Whitley, Syracuse, Terre Haute, Valparaiso, Warsaw, Wawaka, Westfield and Zionsville.
To participate, a company did not need to be headquartered in Indiana, but its product had to be manufactured in the state. Companies could only enter one product.
The Chamber’s goal with its Coolest Thing contest is to showcase all of the manufacturing taking place in the state.
