Client News
ELLETTSVILLE, Indiana – Over the past 10 months, Smithville leveraged upwards of $10 million in private investments to design and build new high-speed symmetrical gigabit-capable fiber networks in several rural areas of southern Indiana, according to Darby A. McCarty, Smithville Chairman and CEO.
The latest project features a 382-home expansion in the Stinesville area, where physical network design has been completed and fiber construction is getting underway. The town’s region will be built through private investments by Smithville in three phases, with the second and third phases – including the town of Stinesville – beginning in 2024.
“Over the past year we focused on upgrading legacy copper service to high-speed fiber in a number of our long-time rural service areas, which has been a continuing goal of Smithville,” Ms. McCarty explained. “By leveraging private investments, we can move faster and more efficiently to bring much-needed fiber capacity to these remote areas.”
The two words “breast cancer” can unfortunately strike fear into the hearts of some women. It is true that breast cancer is the most common cancer found in women, but it’s also true that you can do many things to lower breast cancer risks. The more you know, the better you can work to lower risks and have peace of mind (you may find the online tool at this link to be useful to help assess personal risk elements).
Here are some common myths we sometimes hear in our southern Indiana practice:
Myth No. 1 – Detecting a lump in your breast means you probably have cancer.
This is not true. While self-examination and checking your breasts for unusual lumps or changes (including sensitive or painful areas) is a good first line of defense, you should know that only a small number of lumps actually turn out to be cancerous. If you feel an unusual lump, it’s time to bring that to your medical provider’s attention. A lump or swelling can arise for different reasons and are often benign (non-cancerous). A medical examination and possible tests will provide good answers.
ELLETTSVILLE, Indiana – Recognized as “Indiana’s most prominent independent telecommunications firm,” Smithville received national attention in August as a leading broadband enterprise, being named a leader in “building a fiber-connected world”. The 101-year-old privately held company was named as one of America’s top 100 national broadband companies, according to Sean Buckley, editor-in-chief of Broadband Communities magazine.
“Smithville consistently has found and deployed creative and innovative solutions to expand broadband service, especially in underserved rural areas of Indiana,” said Buckley. “With an established reputation as an early fiber adopter and builder, Smithville continues to demonstrate quality leadership in bringing transformational fiber connectivity to residents, businesses and organizations in Indiana.”
Buckley noted that standards are high for selection in the top 100. Requirements to be selected in the intense annual competition include deploying networks, services and products intended to transform local economies or improve communities’ quality of life and introducing advanced technologies with “game-changing potential.”
ELLETTSVILLE – Beginning in March 2023, severe storms and tornadoes disrupted or even eliminated power infrastructure across southern Indiana on three separate occasions, temporarily isolating rural homes and businesses. Despite widespread damage and outages, Smithville crews tapped pre-positioned supplies and advance preparation to keep internet and phone service live in the storms’ aftermath, earning accolades from customers.
With several thousand customers on landlines because of cell-blocking hills in southern Indiana, physical restoration of service from an outage is always a high priority at Smithville, according to Darby A. McCarty, chairman and CEO of Smithville.
“We fully appreciate that broadband connectivity and telephone service represent critical essential services for residents and businesses,” she said. “We invest considerable resources to be prepared for storm-related damage to restore services quickly.”
Customers Express Appreciation
Just before the Fourth of July weekend, two senior citizens in their late 80s were understandably anxious when state-spanning derecho straight-line winds annihilated infrastructure across Indiana. They later wrote: “We lost our phone service on Saturday night, July 1, at about 9 p.m., when a vicious storm brought down a huge tree along with the phone line! Cell service in our area is unpredictable at best, so we were fraught with anxiety as we are 89 and 87 with serious heart conditions.”
Their justified anxiety was relieved when Smithville construction crews showed up “to rescue us. They were concerned, kind, courteous, patient, and efficient…We wanted you to know how much we appreciate all their efforts on our behalf.”
ODON, Indiana – Establishing a new “permanent presence of Purdue” in the WestGate tech park region, Purdue President Mung Chiang joined with senior officials from NSWC Crane, Purdue University, and the Purdue Applied Research Institute (PARI) September 5 to announce the creation of a Purdue@Crane initiative. In a WestGate Academy ceremony that included Angela Lewis, NSWC Crane technical director; Navy Captain Rex Boonyobhas, Naval Surface Warfare (NSWC) Crane Commander; Karen Plaut, Purdue Executive Vice President of Research; Congressman Jim Baird; and others, President Chiang outlined a far-reaching progressive plan that would begin with Purdue expanding to 3,000 sq. ft. of offices in the WestGate with an initial budget of $2 million.
“Today marks a momentous milestone and turns a new chapter in the collaboration between Purdue and Crane,” he said. “This new strategic partnership with the most important defense presence in our state brings excellence at scale to deliver solutions for national security research.”
Daviess County leaders present at the ceremony expressed excitement and anticipation over the new Purdue expansion. “This announcement holds great opportunity and continued transformation for Daviess County and the WestGate region,” said Bob Grewe, Executive Director of the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation (DCEDC). “Many people in Daviess County have worked together for many years to create the foundation and critical resources that have enabled a development like this.”
WASHINGTON (Indiana) – Following a four-month national search, the Daviess County Economic Development Corporation (DCEDC) board has named industry veteran Robert Grewe as its new Executive Director. “We are pleased and excited to have a professional of the experience and caliber like Bob to now lead and execute economic development strategy in Daviess County,” said Eric Lane, chairman of the DCEDC board and CEO of First Federal Savings Bank in Washington. “We are looking forward to working with Bob to continue the county’s advancement and growth in the region.” (This release also appeared nationally on PRWeb and a summary on Inside Indiana Business)
Lane cited Grewe’s experience with establishing and managing the operations and redevelopment efforts for the 7,000-acre Vermillion Rise Mega Park (VRMP), which was part of his duties as Executive Director of the Newport Chemical Depot Reuse Authority. “We expect that Bob’s deep experience with federal and military entities will work well with the emerging opportunities associated with NSWC Crane and the WestGate tech park,” Lane noted.
Grewe replaces former DCEDC leader Bryant Niehoff, who left the organization in April to become CEO of the Uplands Science and Technology Foundation. Lane served as acting interim executive director during the search. Grewe joins DCEDC from the Evansville Regional Economic Partnership, a four-county regional economic development organization in Southwest Indiana, where he served as Director of Economic Development.
What’s the status of the tech industry in Indiana? As the world continues to inexorably move into the Fourth Industrial Age, news is more than good in the Hoosier state, with thousands of new high-impact tech jobs on deck or being created. Tech companies and jobs already punch in more than $16.4 billion to the Hoosier economy. A current CompTIA report estimates that the median wage for the industry is north of $77,000 annually, a considerable step up from the median Hoosier salary for other types of jobs.
The challenge amidst all of this good news? Demand is hot and rising. The state urgently needs more tech workers and the upskilling of our existing tech workforce to fill current and emerging jobs. And this is across all sectors from business to government to academia and non-profit organizations.
How will this be achieved, especially as competition for tech workers remain fierce across the United States?
We at Smithville see this demand in full view throughout our industry. Diverse Indiana strategic initiatives driving tech growth also accelerate high demand for gigabit-level reliable internet capacity.
WASHINGTON (Indiana) – Launching a “significant project to increase our capacity and regional competitiveness,” local elected officials and members of the Daviess County Airport Board were on hand May 16 to formerly inaugurate a $1.5 million project to lengthen the airport’s main runway.
When finished, the main runway will exceed 5,000 feet in length. According to airport manager Erica Burkemper, the present airport facilities can accommodate landing and takeoff of aircraft similar to a Cessna Citation Latitude or Citation CR650. The new runway can allow jets like a Gulfstream G150 or G300, Bombardier Learjets, and Dassault Falcons to land and take off safely, as well as heavier turboprop-driven aircraft.
“This project has been a long time in the planning and funding process,” said David Gray, President of the Daviess County Airport Board. “When completed, it will enable the airport to service larger commercial aircraft than previously.”