Job Creation & Labor
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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Energizer To Cut 10 Percent Of Workforce
November 9, 2012 10:24 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsEnergizer plans to cut roughly 10 percent of its workforce as part of a cost-cutting overhaul. The St. Louis-based company said Thursday that it expects to shed about 1,500 employees. When finished, the restructuring should lead to $200 million in pretax yearly savings, Energizer said. It aims to have most of its restructuring steps finished by the end of September 2014.
Adapting For The “Chronologically Gifted” Worker
November 8, 2012 5:17 pm | by Rachel Leisemann Immel, Associate Editor, IMPO | Articles | CommentsJosh Kerst, vice president of Humantech, debunks common myths about the older workers in the industry, and offers key changes that manufacturers can make to embrace a safe and productive older workforce. “The workforce is getting more chronologically gifted,” says Josh Kerst, vice president of Humantech, an ergonomics and workplace improvement company.
Q & A With Bernie Anger, GE Intelligent Platforms
November 8, 2012 4:08 pm | by Mike Schmidt. Associate Editor, Manufacturing Business Technology | Articles | CommentsAs automation technology has developed over the years, workers have been forced to adapt and refine the necessary skills to utilize and maintain various systems. According to Bernie Anger, General Manager Control and Communication System for GE Intelligent Platforms, there is a shortage of individuals with the expertise necessary to accomplish these tasks and usher in the future of automation.
Hawker Beechcraft To Close 3 Facilities, Cut Jobs
November 8, 2012 1:19 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsWichita-based airplane maker Hawker Beechcraft says it's closing facilities in three states and laying off more workers in Kansas. The company said Wednesday that 240 employees will lose their jobs with the closing of Hawker Beechcraft Services facilities in Little Rock, Ark.; Mesa, Ariz.; and San Antonio, Texas.
CAT: Production Cuts Will Run Into 2013
November 7, 2012 10:21 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsCaterpillar Inc. says it will continue to idle factories and cut production into next year due to a slowdown in demand for its mining and construction equipment. Mike DeWalt is director of investor relations for Peoria-based Caterpillar. Crain's Chicago Business says DeWalt said that Caterpillar has been hard hit by a slowdown in mining.
Danish Vestas To Cut 3,000 More Jobs
November 7, 2012 10:16 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsVestas Wind Systems A/S, the world's largest maker of wind turbines, plans to cut 3,000 more jobs. Its announcement Wednesday came alongside figures Wednesday showing that its third-quarter loss almost trebled to €175 million ($224 million) amid stiff competition and a market slowdown.
IN's Oldest Ethanol Plant Shuts Down, Idling 40
November 6, 2012 10:23 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsIndiana's oldest ethanol plant has shut down indefinitely. New Energy Corp. President Russ Abarr tells the South Bend Tribune (http://bit.ly/RNOBg7) the plant shut down last week, idling 40 employees. Abarr says an undetermined number of workers will stay on the job as the plant that opened in 1984 prepares to remain idle for at least several months.
Auto Industry Could Ease IN Manufacturing Slowdown
November 5, 2012 2:03 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsIndiana's manufacturing industry has seen its recovery stall, and experts predict things will get worse as many of the state's largest companies feel the effects the European financial crisis and slowing growth in China. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the state lost an estimated 1,400 manufacturing jobs in September.
Canadian Company Plans Steel Plant In Great Falls
November 5, 2012 1:55 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA Canadian company announced plans to build a structural steel manufacturing plant in north-central Montana to make oil production modules for companies working in the oil sands of Alberta. Quebec-based ADF Group said it is buying 100 acres of land near Great Falls to build a 100,000-square-foot facility. It expects to hire 200 workers in the coming year, the Great Falls Tribune reported.
Jobs Dwindle During Green Power Debate
November 5, 2012 10:21 am | by Nicholas Riccardi, Associated Press | News | CommentsRomney and Obama prominently collided during the campaign over the fate of the tax credit. Romney has called for its expiration, while Obama supports its renewal. Amid the gridlock, Vestas has closed offices and laid off hundreds of U.S. workers. Wind businesses from South Carolina to Washington state also have cut jobs.
Post-Storm Construction Hiring May Aid U.S. Economy
November 5, 2012 10:13 am | by Alex Veiga, Matthew Perrone, AP Business Writers | News | CommentsHiring in the long-depressed U.S. construction industry will get a boost from the rebuilding that will follow Superstorm Sandy. Those jobs, in turn, could raise economic growth, analysts say. Boats and cars destroyed by Sandy will have to be replaced, too, likely leading to some increased manufacturing.
Honda Announces $200M Investment, 200 Jobs In Ohio
November 2, 2012 2:23 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsHonda said Thursday it will make more than $200 million in new investments at two plants in western Ohio, creating at least 200 new manufacturing jobs. The automaker says the expansions for the Anna engine plant and Russells Point transmission plant were announced to mark Honda's 30th anniversary of auto production in the United States.
Fiat Says It Must Fire 19 Workers To Rehire Others
November 1, 2012 1:38 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsItalian carmaker Fiat says it will have to fire 19 workers at its Naples factory to make room for an equal number a Rome court has ordered rehired. Fiat said Wednesday it does not have enough work at the plant, which has closed for 20 days this year due to shrinking demand, to add the workers to its force of 2,150.
Japanese Company Expanding Indiana Factory
October 31, 2012 10:22 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA Japanese company says it will spend about $38 million to expand an auto parts factory in southeastern Indiana. Hitachi Powdered Metals announced Wednesday it would build a second facility at its site in Greensburg and plans for operations to start there next August.
KY Plastics Plant Reopening In Madisonville
October 31, 2012 10:20 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA plastics company that has plants in four other Kentucky cities plans to reopen a facility in western Kentucky, creating 400 new full-time jobs in Madisonville. Berry Plastics Corp. announced Tuesday it will begin reconfiguring the Madisonville plant, with production expected to begin next year. The company closed the facility, which had about 140 workers, earlier this year after redistributing production to other locations.
U.S. Manufacturing Needs A Brand Makeover
October 31, 2012 8:07 am | by Eileen Markowitz, Thomas Industrial Network | Blogs | CommentsGreat things are possible when bright, ambitious young people have the opportunity to apply skills and knowledge to real-world applications, and contribute meaningfully to the growth of a company, a sector — and ultimately the economic vitality of our nation. To engage this new generation, we must restore — and elevate — the U.S. manufacturing brand.
Plans To Close Indiana Factory Draws Protest
October 30, 2012 2:18 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsSeveral dozen people lined the road outside a northern Indiana factory to protest a company's plans to close it and move its production work to Mexico. People shouted "Keep our jobs in America!" and "Made in the U.S.A.!" during the protest outside the Cequent Performance Products factory. Mich.-based TriMas Corp. announced this month it expected to shut down the 450-worker plant that makes trailer hitches.
Strikes Loom Ahead For Bombardier
October 29, 2012 2:24 pm | by Ross Marowits, The Canadian Press | News | CommentsBombardier could face strikes in both of its business units as workers at its rail plant in La Pocatiere, Que., have taken a step towards joining Learjet employees in the U.S. on separate picket lines. The strike in Wichita, Kan., has reached four weeks, the longest in the business aircraft unit's history, surpassing a three-week strike in 2006.
Gilman Promotes Skilled Trades At High School Job Fair
October 26, 2012 12:48 pm | by Gilman USA | News | CommentsWeiland, COO of Gilman USA, represented the company at Grafton High School’s inaugural Manufacturing Job Fair Oct. 23. The goal of the job fair was to introduce students to potential careers in manufacturing and skilled trades. Ten local manufacturing firms exhibited at the job fair.
Developing The Workforce Of Tomorrow (Part 2)
October 26, 2012 8:12 am | by Patricia Riedl, Booz & Co.; Maria Ferrante, PMMI | Articles | CommentsFor many years, manufacturing has been characterized as a less than desirable career choice, so the Gen Ys look at manufacturing as a last resort — or not an option at all. Parents are under the impression that jobs are not stable, pay is low and the environment is dirty. But the reality is that today’s manufacturing jobs require a highly skilled workforce to operate and maintain high tech, highly automated equipment.
After Government Lifeline, Peugeot Finds 600 Jobs
October 25, 2012 1:56 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsHours before a high-stakes meeting with the government, Peugeot Citroen says it has found a company able to take over the site of the auto plant it wants to close and hire 600 of the workers whose jobs were on the block. The announcement comes a day after France offered Peugeot a $9.1 billion lifeline in loan guarantees but demanded influence in decision-making.
New Machinery Ready At Steelmaker Gerdau's Plant
October 24, 2012 2:21 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsSteelmaker Gerdau is unveiling new machinery at a Michigan steel facility as part of the company's ongoing expansion. The company on Wednesday is marking the completion of construction of a continuous caster at its North American special steel facility in Monroe, about 35 miles southwest of Detroit.
BASF Plant Being Constructed In Ascension Parish
October 24, 2012 2:20 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsBASF is building a formic acid production plant in Ascension Parish that will create 20 new jobs. Gov. Bobby Jindal and company executives were at the groundbreaking Tuesday, at the company's 2,600-acre complex in Geismar, which is home to nearly two dozen chemical plants.
Ford Closes Belgian Plant In 2014; 9,500 Jobs Hit
October 24, 2012 10:31 am | by Raf Casert, Associated Press | News | CommentsFord will close a car plant in Belgium — one of its main European factories — by the end of 2014, a move that will result in 4,500 direct job losses and 5,000 more among subcontractors. Half a century after construction on the Genk plant started, Ford told a management council there that production was winding down since slumping European sales has forced a restructuring of its plants.
Dow Chemical To Slash 2,400 Jobs, Close 20 Plants
October 24, 2012 10:26 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Dow Chemical Co. will eliminate about 2,400 jobs and close roughly 20 manufacturing facilities as part of a restructuring plan aimed at coping with slowing economic growth in Europe and elsewhere. The manufacturing giant said Tuesday that the job cuts amount to 5 percent of the company's workforce worldwide.
