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 replacement tenant harder than people expect.

We also zoom out to the forces driving these decisions: gasoline prices, inflation, disposable income, and the uncertainty that freezes investment when executives can’t get a clean read on demand. Then we widen the lens even more, looking at global EV growth and the competitive pressure from overseas makers like BYD. Trade relationships, tariffs, and supply chain redesigns all show up in the background, shaping where the next wave of production could land and who might buy up idle North American capacity.

From there, the conversation turns local and personal. When a plant closes, it’s not just a building problem. It’s job loss, struggling mom-and-pop stores, and cities left holding the bag after tax abatements and infrastructure bets. We kick around realistic reuse ideas like warehouses and data centers, while being honest about the employment gap, and we also touch on hybrids as a practical path when charging infrastructure isn’t ready.

If you care about the future of EV jobs, the rust belt economy, and what comes next for these mega-sites, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who follows the auto industry, and leave us a review with your take on what communities should demand when the next factory deal gets signed.

Be sure to subscribe for more In Wheel Time Car Talk!

---- -----
Want more In Wheel Time car talk any time?

In Wheel Time is now available on Audacy!

Just go to Audacy.com/InWheelTime where ever you are.
----- -----
Be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast provider for the next episode of In Wheel Time Podcast and check out our live multiplatform broadcast every Saturday, 10a - 12nCT simulcasting on Audacy, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch and InWheelTime.com.

In Wheel Time Podcast can be heard on you mobile device from providers such as:

Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music Podcast, Spotify, SiriusXM Podcast, iHeartRadio podcast, TuneIn + Alexa, Podcast Addict, Castro, Castbox, YouTube Podcast and more on your mobile device.

Follow InWheelTime.com for the latest updates!

Twitter: https://twitter.com/InWheelTime

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inwheeltime/

https://www.youtube.com/inwheeltime

https://www.Facebook.com/InWheelTime

For more information about In Wheel Time Podcast, email us at

info@inwheeltime.com