eOpicle

There are few things in modern America more sacred than a giant patch of dirt surrounded by orange cones. You know the scene. A dozen pickup trucks. A crane that looks expensive enough to have its own accountant. Men in hard hats staring thoughtfully into the distance. And a sign promising that this particular stretch of former farmland is about to become the future. This week, that future is taking shape in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, where construction is underway on a new ContiTech manufacturing facility. Now, if you're like most people, your first reaction was probably: "Conti-what?" Exactly. Which is funny because modern civilization runs almost entirely on companies you've never heard of. Everyone knows the brands selling shiny gadgets, electric cars, and streaming subscriptions. Nobody knows the companies making the hoses, belts, rubber compounds, industrial materials, and components that keep the whole machine from collapsing into a pile of expensive...