Mayco International LLC, a designer and manufacturer of auto parts, plans to spend $2.9 million to renovate and expand operations at its plant in Hartford City, IN, creating 120 jobs by 2016.

The upgrades to the 110,000-square-foot facility will allow the Sterling Heights, MI-based company to fulfill increased client orders for sunshades and other automotive parts for interior trim, the company said Thursday. New equipment for the plant should be installed and operational by February.

The facility currently employs 18 workers, which have focused on interior car elements such as floor panels and arm rests, plant manager Dan Stiehl. Employment at the facility in recent years has vacillated from as much as 50 to 100 workers, depending on the requirements of contracts from clients.

The plant in Hartford City, which is located about 80 miles northeast of Indianapolis, already has begun hiring production operators and maintenance associates for its expanded operations, Stiehl said.

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. has offered Mayco up to $880,000 in tax credits and $80,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. The tax credits are performance-based, meaning they cannot be claimed until jobs are filled.

Mayco is a supplier of car parts with more than 6,000 employees in 47 plants across the U.S., China, India, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and Australia.

A 25-year-old Racine, WI, man was arrested minutes after grabbing two bank bags full of cash from a nearby auto parts store, police said. The man walked into Gordon Auto Parts, 1401 King Drive, shortly after 8 a.m. and inquired about some merchandise, according to the Racine Police Department.

The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that a class-action lawsuit alleging that an insurance company did not disclose the option to replace damaged windshields to its policyholders does not meet the legal requirements for a class action. The high court issued its 26-page ruling in Cullen v. State Farm Mutual Auto Insurance Co. on Nov. 5.

An insurance company accused of refusing to cover a customer’s collision claim is seeking to dismiss a St. Clair County, IL, lawsuit.

According to the complaint filed Sept. 17, plaintiff Paula J. Beland claims she was involved in a chain traffic collision on Sept. 17, 2011. A driver hit the car behind Beland, which then allegedly hit her car.

Beland had insurance through defendant Automobile Club Inter-Insurance Exchange at the time of the collision, the suit states. She filed a claim with the insurance company, seeking money for her damages as a result of the collision. However, the insurance company refused to settle Beland’s underinsured motorist claim, the complaint alleges.

The defendant filed its motion to dismiss on Oct. 18 through attorneys Michael Reda and Daniel C. Lytle of Hepler Broom in Edwardsville claiming the plaintiff failed to state a cause of action.

“In this case, plaintiff’s complaint fails to separate causes of action for breach of contract and recovery pursuant to the Illinois Insurance Code,” the motion states.

The defendant filed for a substitution of judge on Oct. 29, which Chief Judge John Baricivic granted. Circuit Judge Robert LeChien was previously assigned to the case. A new judge has not yet been assigned.

The plaintiff seeks a judgment of more than $35,000, costs, fees and an additional $25,000.

Beland is represented by B. Jay Dowling of the Law Offices of Sterling and Dowling in Fairview Heights.