Southeast Heavy Industrial & Mining Group Brings More Innovation to a City Rooted in History

Nestled 40 miles south of Louisville, Elizabethtown is a mid-sized city in Kentucky with a friendly, suburban feel. Known as a stop on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail and home to the iconic Fort Knox, the city is full of tradition. But Elizabethtown, like much of Kentucky, is also embracing a new chapter of innovation.

A major part of reshaping the industrial landscape of Kentucky has begun with the delivery of LOTTE Group’s first aluminum foil facility in the U.S. This state-of-the-art facility will produce 36,000 tons of cathode foil a year. This specialized, ultra-thin aluminum foil—measured in micrometers (one-millionth of a meter)—requires high-purity aluminum alloys for use in lithium-ion batteries, electric vehicles, and other applications.

Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear set his sights on solidifying Kentucky as the electric vehicle (EV) capital of the United States. Since 2020, companies and public agencies have invested more than $11.5 billion in EV-related projects in Kentucky, leading to the creation of over 10,000 new jobs.

“These facilities help stimulate the local economy and provide more jobs here in the Southeast,” said Sundt Vice President and Southeast Regional Manager Pat Bulman. The Sundt team has ample experience building the facilities for new industries and jobs coming to Elizabethtown. In 2022, we completed construction management and oversight for the 425,000-square-foot Kruger Packaging Plant.

 

 

Taking Self-Perform to New Levels

With highly specialized equipment and strict quality standards, our team self-performed an impressive 80% of the mechanical, electrical, and piping (MEP) and instrumentation scope.

The total installed quantities by Sundt included more than 900 tons of steel; 15,000 ft of process pipe; 85,000 ft of process and hydraulic tubing; 1,000,000 ft of cable; 70,000 ft of raceway; and 90,000 electrical terminations.

“Our team set all the heavy processing equipment, installed all the piping and hydraulic tubing to all the equipment, and pulled and terminated all the electrical cable to the equipment,” said Sundt Project Manager Jay McGill.

 

Bringing Hungary to Kentucky

Because Sundt did not build the initial building for the specialized aluminum plant, we needed precise as-built information to plan MEP locations for specialized equipment. In March 2024, we sent a team to Hungary to visit a LOTTE plant using the same equipment. The team captured 3D imagery of a comparable setup and brought those models back to inform layout, clashes, and install sequencing at Elizabethtown—saving rework and accelerating decisions.

 

Turning Delays into Challenges Overcome

The equipment for the plant was supplied by two German manufacturers, and shipments faced delays due to international logistics. Three key rolling mills—pairs of rollers that reduce thickness and achieve precise dimensions—arrived two months later than expected. The building designated for the rolling mills, constructed by another contractor, also faced a two-month delay.

To keep the project on schedule, the team added craft professionals, worked targeted overtime, and partnered closely with the equipment supplier to streamline installation and startup, ensuring the machines were operational as quickly as possible.

Work on this project included installing a large, automated storage racking system inside the building—900 tons of structural steel spanning 750feet. The team used specialized lifts to assemble the structure safely and ahead of schedule.

 

Project Impact Beyond the Jobsite

Despite challenges, the nearly 200 craft and administrative staff working at the LOTTE site found time to engage with the Elizabethtown community.

The team organized a food drive in 2024 and 2025 for the local food bank, Warm Blessing; participated in Toys for Tots supporting children in Hardin County and at Fort Knox; and volunteered with Feeding America. They even showed some competitive spirit when a group of employee-owners joined a local co-ed soccer league and won first place in their division.

The LOTTE Aluminum Manufacturing Facility was substantially completed in the summer of 2025. It has proven to be an exceptional showcase of our self-perform capabilities with innovative and complex infrastructure.

Thank you to all our employee-owners who brought grit and skill to make this project a win—for Elizabethtown, LOTTE, and Sundt.