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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
A Mini Robot, Powered By Your Phone
April 25, 2013 9:06 am | by Ted | Videos | CommentsYour smartphone may feel like a friend—but a true friend would give you a smile once in a while. At TED2013, Keller Rinaudo demos Romo, the smartphone-powered mini robot who can motor along with you on a walk, slide you a cup of coffee across the table, and react to you with programmable expressions.
Need To Repair A NASA Spacecraft? 3D Print It
April 25, 2013 9:04 am | by CNET | Videos | CommentsEngineers at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Ames Research Center have begun experimenting with 3D printers for some spacecraft design. CNET's Sumi Das visits one of its newly open workshops, which is filled with state of the art equipment.
What's Next For Apple?
April 25, 2013 8:00 am | by CNN Money | Videos | CommentsIt's certainly one of the most talked about stocks, so what is it going to take to turn Apple's profits around? Apple's profits fell 18 percent to $9.5 billion in the second quarter. As profit margins decrease on iPads and iPhones, pressure increases on Apple to enter a new product category.
How Clouds Can Dominate Sunny Florida
April 24, 2013 4:43 pm | by Anna Wells, Executive Editor, IMPO | Blogs | Comments2012 saw the widespread acceptance of cloud computing, “including the validation of the model by some of the largest software companies in the world.” So as leading vendors continue to invest the resources in making this technology smarter, more reliable, and easier to use, manufacturers can do their fair share by giving these innovative solutions a little attention as well.
DMV Denies Tesla Request To Run Its Own Dealership
April 24, 2013 2:03 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsVirginia officials have rejected a request from electric car maker Tesla Motors to operate its own dealership at a Tysons Corner mall. State law requires manufacturers to sell cars through a dealer, unless the manufacturer can show that no dealer is available.
Boeing Sees Early-May Restart Of 787 Deliveries
April 24, 2013 2:02 pm | by Joshua Freed, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsBoeing is aiming to begin delivering 787s again in early May. The 787 has been grounded since mid-January because of smoldering batteries. Federal authorities have approved Boeing's redesigned battery system. The new battery setup has been installed on 10 787s that belong to airlines, and on nine more that have been built but not delivered, said Boeing Co. Chairman and CEO Jim McNerney.
European Recession Hits Major Car Makers
April 24, 2013 2:00 pm | by David McHugh, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsEurope's stubborn recession cut deeply into profits at major automakers Ford, Volkswagen and Daimler, first-quarter results showed Wednesday as the industry began reporting earnings. Germany's Volkswagen AG said its first-quarter net profit fell 38 percent to 1.95 billion euros ($2.5 billion), while Daimler AG's was down 60 percent at 564 million euros.
Mitsubishi Motors IDs Cause Of Battery Problem
April 24, 2013 1:58 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsMitsubishi Motors Corp. said Wednesday it has identified the cause of a battery malfunction of its Outlander plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and will take recall procedures as soon as the effectiveness of preventive measures is confirmed.
TX Plant Blast Loss Likely Exceeds $100M
April 24, 2013 1:56 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsAn insurance industry trade group estimates losses from a deadly fertilizer plant explosion in a tiny Texas town will likely exceed $100 million. Insurance Council of Texas spokesman Mark Hanna said Wednesday that insured losses after the explosion in West, Texas, included dozens of damaged homes, businesses and cars — as well as the costs of resettling displaced residents.
Orders For U.S. Durable Goods Fall In March
April 24, 2013 1:54 pm | by Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer | News | CommentsOrders for long-lasting U.S. factory goods fell in March by the most in seven months. The drop reflected a steep decline in commercial aircraft demand and little growth in orders that signal future business investment. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that orders for durable goods declined 5.7 percent in March. That followed a 4.3 percent gain in February, which was revised lower.
Solar Plane To Make Historic Flight
April 24, 2013 12:20 pm | by CBS News | Videos | CommentsThe Solar Impulse, a solar power plane, is being prepped to fly across America - and right into aviation history. "Miracle on the Hudson" pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger met with CBS's John Blackstone to watch the takeoff, and discusses the importance of the flight.
Rugged Computers Enable True Workforce Mobility
April 24, 2013 10:35 am | by Dale Kyle, CEO of Handheld US | Articles | CommentsWirelessness alone doesn't make for truly usable mobile devices — just ask the professionals who’ve dropped cell phones into water, vibrated tablets to death on their dashboards, or watched PDA screens shatter as they hit the ground. To continue to drive true workforce mobility, data devices need to be compact, connectable, quick and able to withstand whatever they encounter — whether that’s a river, a sandstorm or a warehouse floor.
Administration Had Advance Warning On Fisker
April 24, 2013 10:15 am | by Matthew Daly, Associated Press | News | CommentsNewly released documents show that the Obama administration was warned as early as 2010 that electric car maker Fisker Automotive Inc. was not meeting milestones set up for a half-billion dollar government loan, nearly a year before U.S. officials froze the loan after questions were raised about the company's statements.
Ford's 1Q Profit Reaches $1.6B
April 24, 2013 10:13 am | by Dee-Ann Durbin, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsFord Motor Co. reported a better-than-expected $1.6 billion profit in the first quarter as growing demand in the U.S. and China for its new vehicles helped overcome steep losses in Europe and South America. Ford said Wednesday that first-quarter net income rose 15 percent from a year ago. Worldwide sales rose 10 percent to nearly 1.5 million.
Toyota: Top Selling Automaker Despite China Fall
April 24, 2013 10:11 am | by Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsToyota held onto its status as the world's top-selling automaker in the first quarter of this year, although the three-way race with General Motors and Volkswagen is proving tight, as its sales fall in China and Japan. Toyota Motor Corp. reported Wednesday it sold 2.43 million vehicles during the January-March period.


