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4 State-Run WI Power Plants Violated Pollution Laws
August 25, 2009 10:05 am | by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsMADISON, Wis. (AP) — Four construction projects at state-run power plants dating to 1995 violated the Clean Air Act by increasing pollution without installing required controls, according to a state report. A 2007 lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club raised questions about whether state officials were following the act's requirements to obtain permits for construction at state plants and install equipment to cut emissions.
Employers Brace For 10 Percent Rise In Health Plan Costs
August 25, 2009 6:59 am | by Tom Murphy, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsINDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Costs for employer-provided health plans are expected to rise more than 10 percent within the next 12 months, a jump workers may feel in their paychecks or through changes to their insurance coverage. An aging population, rising costs and growing patient demand for services are among the reasons for the higher costs cited in an Aon Consulting report released Tuesday.
US Firm Caught In French Labor Standoff
August 25, 2009 6:49 am | by Maria Danilova, Associated Press Writer | News | CommentsPARIS (AP) — The French government was working Tuesday to solve a standoff between a U.S. company and its French employees amid allegations that the workers had attacked a manager while protesting job cuts. Industry Minister Christian Estrosi met with executives of Illinois-based Molex Inc.
Federal Stimulus Lets Teen Experience MD Harley Plant
August 25, 2009 4:51 am | News | CommentsANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Bill Hope loves motorcycles. The 17-year-old got to work on them all summer at Harley-Davidson in Annapolis thanks to a federal stimulus program. Hope was one of 70 young people recruited for an Anne Arundel County summer employment program supported by stimulus dollars.
MS Prius Plant On Hold Despite Budding Infrastructure
August 25, 2009 4:34 am | News | CommentsBLUE SPRINGS, Miss. (AP) — Infrastructure projects are continuing nearly on schedule around Toyota's northeast Mississippi plant, but the manufacturing facility is still on hold. Mississippi Department of Transportation officials started the traffic light on a new frontage road Monday for Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi.
MI Plant Source Of Six-Mile Groundwater Contamination
August 25, 2009 4:17 am | News | CommentsMANCELONA, Mich. (AP) — A six-mile-long plume of contaminated groundwater from a polluted northern Michigan factory site is threatening the Cedar River, one of two sources for the area's drinking water. "I would have to say this is one of the largest contaminations we've ever seen," Janice Adams, a senior geologist with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, told The Detroit News for a Monday story.
Jury Finds DuPont Negligent In Herbicide Misuse
August 25, 2009 4:06 am | News | CommentsBOISE, Idaho (AP) — A federal jury has found the Bureau of Land Management and E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Co. negligent in the use of an herbicide blamed for damaging thousands of acres of crops across a broad swath of southern Idaho. The jury found the BLM negligent in its decision to use of the powerful herbicide Oust to control invasive weeds on public lands burned by wildfires in 1999 and 2000.
Worker Badly Burned At AK Steel's Ohio Plant
August 24, 2009 12:01 pm | News | CommentsMIDDLETOWN, Ohio (AP) — Fire and union officials say a worker has been badly burned at AK Steel's Middletown Works coke plant in southwest Ohio. Middletown Fire Capt. David Adams says the man was performing maintenance work Monday when he slipped into what the company says is a condensation pit where hot water collects at the plant.
WI Man Pleads Guilty In Meatpacking Plant Fire
August 24, 2009 11:52 am | News | CommentsMILWAUKEE (AP) — One of two brothers accused of sparking a $50 million fire at a Milwaukee-area meatpacking plant with a military-grade flare has pleaded guilty to related charges. Twenty-three-year-old Joshua J. Popp pleaded guilty Monday to one count of second-degree recklessly endangering safety.
Full-View Door
August 24, 2009 10:55 am | Product Releases | CommentsHörmann Flexon (Leetsale, PA) has developed the Speed-Guardian 2400 FV full-view door. The door has a total panel thickness of 1.25” with 6.25” high window slats the entire height of the door panel. The Speed-Guardian 2400 FV also features a quick-opening mechanism, up to 80” per second; and a compact, self-monitoring direct-drive motor.
High-Temperature Camera Systems
August 24, 2009 10:54 am | Product Releases | CommentsLenox Instrument Company (Trevose, PA) announces the addition to an IP workable model to its line of FireSight high-temperature boiler and furnace camera systems. The new model allows customers to view recorded video in real-time using a standard web browser or other video management systems.
Keep Your I/Os In Touch
August 24, 2009 10:53 am | Product Releases | CommentsProSoft Technology (Bakersfield, CA) has released the Wireless POINT I/O adapter (ILX34-AENWG), a high-speed 802.11g wireless I/O communication system to link Rockwell Automation controllers to distributed process I/O modules. The Add-On Profile (AOP) utilizes the RSLogix 5000 programming environment and the Ethernet protocol to simplify configuration and communication with various I/O racks scattered across the process facility.
Micro-Alignment
August 24, 2009 10:52 am | Product Releases | CommentsPinpoint Laser Systems (Peabody, MA) announces a new storage system to be used with the Pinpoint Laser Microgage 2D family of products. The new display unit is compatible with existing 2D measuring systems and enables the operator to record readings in the field or on the factory floor.
Guest Feature: Using GRC to Drive Innovation and Competitive Advantage
August 24, 2009 9:08 am | by by Dan Wilhelms | Blogs | CommentsWith governmental regulations for compliance becoming all the more rigorous, chief audit officers (CAOs) are finding themselves between a rock and a hard place regarding controlling costs and satisfying these more rigorous compliance demands. At the same time, external auditors are getting more sophisticated in their investigations of compliance — delving deeper into organizations’ controls.
Embracing The Role
August 24, 2009 8:59 am | by by Jeff Reinke, Editorial Director, IMPO | Blogs | CommentsOne of the great American traditions is that of embracing the plight of the little guy, the underdog, the one with all the odds stacked against them. I think it’s because even in these seemingly impossible conditions they’re committed to doing whatever it takes and are unwilling to yield to theoretically superior opposition.
