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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Retirees 'Living In Hell' After Coal Ash Spill
November 11, 2009 3:55 am | by Bill Poovey, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsKINGSTON, Tenn. (AP) — Ten months after millions of cubic yards of coal ash spilled from a Tennessee Valley Authority dam, Gary Topmiller and his wife, Pam, said they are trapped in their home across the Emory River from the site and "living in hell." A retired millwright, Topmiller said Tuesday they are battling health problems and the TVA won't fairly compensate them so they can move from their 3-year-old house on the river and rebuild.
GM Chief Engineerer 'Really Happy' To Keep Opel
November 11, 2009 3:51 am | by Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsDETROIT (AP) — When General Motors Co.'s board halted the sale of the company's European car business last week, no one was happier than the automaker's chief engineer. Engineers with the Ruesselsheim, Germany-based Opel have designed the basics of GM's new compact and midsize cars that are sold across the globe, and they do much of the company's research on safety and electric vehicles.
BPA Leads To Sexual Problems In Chinese Workers
November 11, 2009 3:43 am | by Malcolm Ritter, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) — Male factory workers in China who got very high doses of a chemical that's been widely used in hard plastic bottles had high rates of sexual problems, researchers reported Wednesday. Heavy exposure to BPA, or bisphenol A, on the job was linked to impotence and lower sexual desire and satisfaction, according to the study, which adds to concerns about BPA's effects on most consumers.
GM Committed To Paying Back Taxpayer Loans
November 11, 2009 3:36 am | by Dan Strumpf, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsNEW YORK (AP) — General Motors Co. remains committed to repaying its billions of dollars in government loans, though it's too soon to say when that will happen, the automaker's chairman said Tuesday. "Can GM pay back its loans? You bet," Ed Whitacre said during an address at Texas Lutheran University in Seguin, Texas.
World Bank: U.S. Unemployment To Hold Back Economy
November 11, 2009 3:30 am | by Alex Kennedy, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsSINGAPORE (AP) — Stubbornly high joblessness threatens to trigger loan defaults and drag on consumption next year, hobbling a U.S. economy struggling to rebound from recession, World Bank President Robert Zoellick said Wednesday. Zoellick warned that the U.S. unemployment rate, which jumped to a 26-year high of 10.
Cleaning With Dry Ice
November 11, 2009 3:22 am | Articles | CommentsIncorporated in 1852, Ghirardelli Chocolate Company is a manufacturer and marketer of premium chocolates and chocolate products. Ghirardelli controls the entire chocolate manufacturing process, from cocoa bean to finished product. This control over the manufacturing process combined with Ghirardelli’s proprietary bean blend and unique methods of roasting and processing, ensure the highest quality and richest chocolate products.
Kanban Made Easy
November 10, 2009 10:59 am | Product Releases | CommentsMagnatag (Macedon, NY) offers the CardView Kanban boards to coordinate inventories and lean workflows. The kits come in five formats: Next-Job, Build-Board, Job-Load, To-Do, and On-Hand. Each comes ready to use in six size capacities, including kanban cards in 17 colors, card printing templates, color pocket tapes, and press-on FlashSpot so customers can tailor the board to their needs.
When Seven Monitors Isn't Enough
November 10, 2009 10:58 am | Product Releases | CommentsMatrox Graphics (Montreal, Canada) announces the launch of the M9188 PCIe x16 Octal graphics card, capable of supporting eight DisplayPort or DVI Single-Link outputs from a single workstation. Resolutions up to 2560x1600 per output are supported by 2GB of memory with support for Microsoft Windows XP and Linux.
Analog-Compatible Draw Wire
November 10, 2009 10:57 am | Product Releases | CommentsKübler by TURCK (Minneapolis, MN) has expanded its draw wire series, designed to work with sensors and encoders with analog outputs, with versions that measure distances ranging from 0.2 to 40 meters. Compatible outputs include 0 to 10 volt, 4 to 20mA, and potentiometers, as well as incremental (push-pull and RS422), absolute (SSI and BISS), and fieldbus interfaces.
Gas Leak Simulator
November 10, 2009 10:57 am | Product Releases | CommentsGassonic (Redlands, CA) has developed the first gas leak simulation tool for ultrasonic gas detection, which helps demonstrate the major advantages of implementing ultrasonic detectors for high-pressure gas leaks. The system responds to the distinctive ultrasound created by the leak without having to wait for gas to accumulate (conventional point detector) or within a narrow beam (open path gas detector).
Wireless With A HART Is Catching On
November 10, 2009 4:51 am | by Bob Karschnia, Vice President of Wireless, Emerson Process Managment | Articles | CommentsIt’s been two years since the WirelessHART™ standard was approved by some 200 member companies of the HART Communications Foundation. Successful Smart Wireless applications are now operating in more than 1,000 customer sites around the world, and as the range of available wireless products grows, end-users are finding more and more ways to apply them.
Procter & Gamble Consolidating, Moving 700 Jobs
November 10, 2009 4:03 am | News | CommentsCINCINNATI (AP) — The Procter & Gamble Co. ( NYSE:PG ) is centralizing some research and development operations, affecting some 700 jobs. P&G says it expects most of the affected employees in southwest Ohio and Massachusetts to transfer to new locations, but will work on alternatives for those who can't move.
1,250 Twin Cities Janitors Axed In Immigration Probe
November 10, 2009 3:49 am | by Amy Forliti, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsMINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Roughly 1,250 Twin Cities janitors with suspect employment documents were fired from their jobs in October as their company carried out an audit prompted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an immigration attorney said Monday. The janitors worked for ABM Industries Inc.
Emulex Sues Broadcom For Defamation, Antitrust Issues
November 10, 2009 3:41 am | News | CommentsCOSTA MESA, Calif. (AP) — Emulex Corp. ( NYSE:ELX ), which makes data storage equipment, said Monday it has filed a lawsuit against chip designer Broadcom Corp. ( NYSE:BCRM ), alleging violations of federal antitrust laws. Emulex's suit alleges that Broadcom, based in Irvine, Calif., acted in an uncompetitive manner, made defamatory statements and engaged in acts of unfair competition in violation of seven separate statutes.
Hawker Beechcraft To Power Down Kansas Operation
November 10, 2009 3:34 am | News | CommentsSALINA, Kan. (AP) — Airplane maker Hawker Beechcraft Corp. announced Monday that it will close its Salina operation. The company, one of the nation's leading business jet manufacturers, said in a news release that it informed its Salina employees and the International Association of Machinists leadership Monday morning.
