
Closed EV Plants Can Hollow Out A Town Faster Than You Think
From In Wheel Time Podcast: Your Go-To Automotive Talk Show by In Wheel Time Podcast | Automotive talk with Don Armstrong, Michael Marrs, and Jeff Dziekan
April 14, 2026 · 32 min · Season 2026 · Episode 72
About this episode
The episode discusses the rapid economic decline a town can face following the closure of an EV factory, featuring insights from expert Sunderesh Heragu.
A giant EV factory can feel like a town’s future on opening day and like a crater on closing day. We sit down with Sunderesh Heragu, professor at Oklahoma State University and President of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers, to unpack what really happens when EV manufacturing plants, battery factories, or assembly projects get paused midstream. We talk about why EV production is built differently than internal combustion, and why that difference can make a restart or a quick re...
People in this episode
Hosts: Don Armstrong, Michael Marrs, Jeff Dziekan
Guest: Sunderesh Heragu
Topics covered
- EV manufacturing
- economic impact
- factory closures
- sustainability
- industrial engineering
Keywords
- EV plants
- economic impact
- factory closure
- battery factories
- industrial systems
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Oklahoma State University, Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers
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