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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
La. Manufacturer Sues To Force Use Of Its Product
April 5, 2010 4:21 am | CommentsBATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A Louisiana company is suing city and parish officials to force them to use a road building material it manufactures. Bear Industries Inc. argues that its product, a calcium sulfate blend, would allow the city-parish to build roads more cheaply, saving taxpayers money.
Imperial Sugar Appeals $8.8M OSHA Fine, Denies Wrongdoing
April 5, 2010 4:17 am | CommentsSAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — A hearing is scheduled for May 18 in Savannah on the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's attempt to fine Imperial Sugar Co. $8.8 million. Explosions and a fire killed 14 people and injured many others at Imperial's Port Wentworth, Ga. refinery in 2008. OSHA issued 124 citations at Port Wentworth.
V-Vehicle Founder Ousted, Venture Capitalists Take Over
April 5, 2010 4:15 am | CommentsMONROE, La. (AP) — Founder Frank Varasano has been replaced as chief executive officer of V-Vehicle Co., the San Diego-based company created to build fuel-efficient cars, the company says. Ray Lane, a managing partner of V-Vehicle's largest investor — the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers LLP — is running the company while officials look for a full-time CEO, according to a brief statement released Friday.
OSHA, CSB: U.S. Refineries Marred By Safety Violations
April 5, 2010 4:12 am | by Seth Borenstein, AP Science Writer | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. oil refineries have an ongoing problem with accidents that turn deadly, losing four times as much money from such incidents than refineries in the rest of the world, according to an insurance company report obtained Friday by The Associated Press. The problem is highlighted by a deadly string of explosions, including one that killed four people Friday at a Tesoro Corp.
BMW Hiring 200 At Greer, S.C. Plant
April 5, 2010 4:10 am | CommentsGREER, S.C. (AP) — Automaker BMW Manufacturing Co. plans to hire about 200 temporary production and logistics workers at its South Carolina plant. The Greenville News reported last week that applicants need a stable work history, a high school diploma or GED and be capable of working 10-hour shifts.
3 Dead, 4 Injured In Wash. Oil Refinery Explosion
April 2, 2010 4:55 am | CommentsANACORTES, Wash. (AP) — Three people are dead and four critically injured after an explosion and fire at an oil refinery in Washington state shook homes and shot flames into the night sky. Tesoro Corp. says three people died in the fire at its refinery in Anacortes, Wash., about 70 miles north of Seattle.
Hiring Reaches 3-Year High, Manufacturing Continues Climb
April 2, 2010 4:43 am | by Christopher S. Rugaber, AP Economics Writer | CommentsWASHINGTON (AP) — The nation's economy posted its largest job gain in three years in March, while the unemployment rate remained at 9.7 percent for the third straight month. The increase in payrolls is the latest sign that the economic recovery is gaining momentum and healing in the job market is beginning.
Hyundai's Montgomery Plant Sets Monthly Production Record
April 2, 2010 4:29 am | CommentsMONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Montgomery's Hyundai plant reports that it produced more vehicles in March than ever before in a single month. A preliminary report says the plant produced more than 28,000 vehicles last month. That broke the plantrecord of 27,157 set in May 2007.
French Workers Protest Plant Closure With Bomb Threats
April 2, 2010 4:27 am | CommentsCREPY-EN-VALOIS, France (AP) — Workers at a factory north of Paris are threatening to set fire to a huge gas tank to protest the planned closure of the factory. About 50 workers at Sodimatex, which makes car rugs, have been occupying the site in Crepy-en-Valois since Thursday. They want to pressure the company for better compensation.
Last Corolla Rolls Off Nummi Assembly Line
April 2, 2010 4:25 am | by Brooke Donald, Associated Press Writer | CommentsFREMONT, Calif. (AP) — California's sole auto plant shut down Thursday as the last car rolled off the assembly line and thousands of now unemployed workers walked out the doors, some crying. A red Toyota Corolla was the last of nearly 8 million vehicles that have moved through production at New United Motor Manufacturing Inc.
OSHA Fines Bimbo Bakeries $230,000
April 2, 2010 4:23 am | CommentsLOS ANGELES (AP) — State regulators have fined Bimbo Bakeries more than $230,000 for violations of health and safety laws at three of its California plants. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health said Thursday that citations were issued at Bimbo Bakeries in Montebello, Escondido and South San Francisco.
Accident Kills Two At Kansas Fertilizer Plant
April 2, 2010 4:22 am | CommentsLAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — An industrial accident at a Kansas fertilizer plant has left two workers dead and another injured. The incident occurred around 2:30 p.m. Thursday at the MagnaGro International plant in Lawrence. Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical Chief Mark Bradford says a worker fell into a tank of a nonhazardous substance he wouldn't identify.
Neb. CommScope Manufacturing Shut Down
March 31, 2010 8:17 am | CommentsOMAHA, Neb. (AP) — CommScope Inc. has announced it will close its Omaha plant late next year, eliminating about 400 manufacturing jobs. The Omaha plant, operating as a Connectivity Solutions Manufacturing Inc. subsidiary, manufactures parts used in cable networks. CommScope said Wednesday those operations would be relocated to its other U.
GM, DOE Partner On Jatropha Biofuel Research
March 31, 2010 4:48 am | CommentsDETROIT (AP) — General Motors Co. will spend the next five years working with federal authorities to study whether oil from a weed can become a sustainable source for biodiesel, the automotive company said Tuesday. The partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy will study whether the jatropha plant can be a dependable biofuel crop.
Body Parts Found At Medical Waste Company
March 31, 2010 4:39 am | by Maria Sudekum Fisher, Associated Press Writer | CommentsKANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Officials in Kansas have been trying to identify several body parts, including six heads, found in a truck at a medical waste company. The body parts were found last week in 12 large red plastic tubs inside a delivery truck at Stericycle Inc., a company that disposes of medical waste.
