Regulations & Compliance
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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
LA Gov: $340M More From BP For Gulf Restoration
May 3, 2013 9:50 am | by Janet McConnaughey, Associated Press | News | CommentsBP PLC has agreed to pay $340 million to restore four of the barrier islands that act as hurricane buffers for Louisiana's mainland and create two fish research hatcheries in the state, Gov. Bobby Jindal said Tuesday. The money is part of $1 billion the oil giant agreed two years ago to pay for early restoration work after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Juror: EEOC Verdict In Iowa Sends A Message
May 2, 2013 2:14 pm | by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press | News | CommentsA juror says she wanted to send a message by supporting a historic $240 million verdict for 32 mentally disabled men who faced decades of abuse by a Texas company: Never again. Juror Robin Griebel outlined her rationale for awarding $7.5 million to each former employee of Henry's Turkey Service, while the men, their attorney and relatives celebrated Wednesday's verdict.
Judge Gives Major Break In GM Theft Case
May 2, 2013 2:13 pm | by Ed White, Associated Press | News | CommentsA former General Motors engineer convicted of stealing thousands of pages of hybrid technology was sentenced Wednesday to just a year and a day in prison, far below the punishment sought by the government in a case that involved her husband and an alleged scheme to take the trade secrets to China.
Abused Disabled IA Plant Workers Awarded $240M
May 1, 2013 2:09 pm | by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press | News | CommentsAn Iowa jury on Wednesday awarded a total of $240 million to 32 mentally disabled Iowa turkey processing plant workers for what government lawyers described as years of around-the-clock abuse and discrimination by the Texas company that oversaw their care, work and lodging.
Jury Deliberates In IA Worker Abuse Case
May 1, 2013 10:12 am | by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press | News | CommentsA government attorney asked jurors Tuesday to award damages to 32 mentally disabled workers, saying they were subjected to around-the-clock discrimination by a Texas company that profited from their work at an Iowa turkey plant. qual Employment Opportunity Commission attorney Robert Canino said the former workers for Henry's Turkey Services suffered "broken lives" because of the conditions they endured.
GE Sues Utility As Dredging Restarts On Hudson
April 30, 2013 1:44 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsGeneral Electric Co. said it sued a utility for a share of costs associated with the $1 billion-plus Superfund cleanup of the upper Hudson River on Monday, the day the fourth season of dredging began to remove contaminated sediment from the river.
MS Lawmakers Pass Incentives For Tire Maker
April 29, 2013 10:09 am | by Jeff Amy, Associated Press | News | CommentsA Japanese company will get incentives that could be worth more than $330 million to build a tire manufacturing plant in Clay County. Mississippi lawmakers quickly passed the bill intended for Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. in a Friday special session, with House members supporting it 117-2 and Senate members supporting it unanimously. The entire session took less than four hours.
GM Wants Tough Punishment In Hybrid Secrets Theft
April 26, 2013 5:02 pm | by Ed White, Associated Press | News | CommentsGeneral Motors Co. wants a long prison sentence next week for a former employee and her husband who were convicted of stealing hybrid vehicle technology for potential use by competitors in China. Trade secrets were found on at least seven computers owned by ex-GM engineer Shanshan Du and Yu Qin, according to prosecutors.
Oil Spill Judge: What Is Gross Negligence?
April 26, 2013 10:24 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe judge who will allocate responsibility for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill has told lawyers to give him their views about whether a series of negligent acts can add up to gross negligence. The Justice Department and private plaintiffs' attorneys contend that BP PLC acted with gross negligence before the blowout on April 20, 2010. If U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier agrees, BP's civil penalties could soar.
Japan To Allow Airlines To Resume 787 Flights
April 26, 2013 10:17 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsJapan's transport minister said Friday the government is poised to allow Japanese airlines to resume flying grounded Boeing 787s once they complete installation of systems to reduce fire risk in problematic lithium ion batteries. The approval could come as early as Friday evening following an expected formal safety order from the U.S. federal regulators, Transport Minister Akihiro Ohta said.
S. Korea Demands Talks With N. Korea On Closed Factory
April 25, 2013 2:16 pm | by Hyung-Jin Kim, Associated Press | News | CommentsAfter weeks of threatening rhetoric from the North, South Korea on Thursday promised its own unspecified "grave measures" if Pyongyang rejects talks on a jointly run factory park shuttered for nearly a month. The park in the North Korean border town of Kaesong is the most significant casualty so far in the recent deterioration of relations between the Koreas.
OSHA: OH Plant 'Could Have Prevented' Worker Death
April 25, 2013 2:09 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal agency has cited an Ohio aluminum plant with eight safety violations following the death of a worker who was crushed by a hot metal rack stacked with heavy aluminum. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, said Thursday that Extrudex Aluminum acted with knowing disregard or plain indifference to hazards at the company's plant in North Jackson in northeastern Ohio.
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.
SC Governor Signs Boeing Incentives Bill
April 24, 2013 10:10 am | by Seanna Adcox, Associated Press | News | CommentsSouth Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley on Tuesday signed legislation to provide $120 million in incentives to the Boeing Co. for its expansion plans in the state. "Boeing is a part of the fabric of South Carolina, and this solidifies our relationship with Boeing going forward," Haley spokesman Rob Godfrey said.
U.S. To Seek Limits On Car Touchscreens
April 23, 2013 2:16 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsU.S. traffic safety regulators are expected to propose stronger measures to keep drivers from being distracted by in-car touchscreens. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Administrator David Strickland have scheduled a news conference for Tuesday afternoon to address distracted driving.
EEOC Seeks Damages For Disabled IA Plant Workers
April 23, 2013 2:14 pm | by Ryan J. Foley, Associated Press | News | CommentsA now-defunct Texas company that put mentally disabled men to work at an Iowa turkey plant for decades is due in court to defend itself against allegations that it subjected the men to physical and verbal abuse. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is suing Henry's Turkey Service on behalf of 32 former workers.
U.S. High Court To Look At Daimler Appeal
April 23, 2013 2:07 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Supreme Court says it will hear an appeal from automaker Daimler AG that seeks to shut down a U.S. lawsuit over allegations that its unit in Argentina played a role in that country's 'dirty war" in the 1970s. The justices said Monday they will review a federal appeals court ruling that allowed a lawsuit filed by 22 Argentines in California to proceed.
Energy Dept. Seizes $21M From Electric Car Maker
April 23, 2013 10:30 am | by Matthew Daly, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Obama administration has seized $21 million from troubled automaker Fisker Automotive Inc. just weeks after the company laid off three-fourths of its workers amid continuing financial and production problems. Fisker had received $192 million in federal loans before a series of problems led U.S. officials to freeze the loan in 2011.
NTSB Probes Safety Testing Of Boeing 787 Batteries
April 23, 2013 10:28 am | by Joan Lowy, Associated Press | News | CommentsAs airlines prepare to resume flying Boeing's beleaguered 787 Dreamliners, federal investigators looked Tuesday at how regulators and the company tested and approved the plane's cutting-edge battery system, and whether the government cedes too much safety-testing authority to aircraft makers.
FL Gov. Making Strong Push For Tax Break
April 23, 2013 10:20 am | by Bruce Schreiner, Associated Press | News | CommentsFlorida Gov. Rick Scott is making personal pitches to lawmakers in pushing for a late breakthrough to exempt manufacturers from paying sales taxes on equipment purchases, one of his legislative priorities this year. The governor is meeting with lawmakers to pitch his idea of boosting Florida's manufacturing sector by giving manufacturers a blanket exemption from paying a 6 percent sales tax on equipment purchases, allies said.
Court Denies Beechcraft Challenge Of Lost Contract
April 22, 2013 2:14 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsKansas airplane maker Beechcraft has lost a legal battle to halt work on a high-stakes Air Force contract awarded to rival Sierra Nevada Corp. The U.S. Court of Federal Claims on Friday denied Beechcraft's request for a temporary injunction. The contract for 20 planes for use in Afghanistan is worth more than $427 million. It could be worth as much as $1 billion, depending on future orders.
Haliburton Seeking Settlement Over Gulf Oil Spill
April 22, 2013 2:12 pm | by Michael Kunzelman, Associated Press | News | CommentsBP's cement contractor on the drilling rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 announced Monday that it is trying to negotiate a settlement over its role in the disaster, a focus of trial testimony that ended last week. Halliburton Chief Financial Officer Mark McCollum said during a conference call to discuss first-quarter earnings that talks were at an "advanced stage."
FAA Approves Resumption Of Boeing 787 Flights
April 22, 2013 10:13 am | by Joan Lowy, Joshua Freed, Associated Press | News | CommentsBoeing's beleaguered 787 could be flying again within a week after federal officials approved a fix for its batteries, even though the root cause of a fire on one plane and smoke on another still isn't known. The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it would send airlines instructions and publish a notice next week lifting the 3-month-old grounding order that day.
Cement Maker Fined, To Cut Emissions At CO Plant
April 22, 2013 10:06 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA cement manufacturer in Lyons has agreed to pay a $1 million fine and to install controls to decrease its emissions of the pollutant nitrogen oxide, the U.S. Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency announced Friday. The EPA had accused Cemex, Inc., which operates the Portland cement facility, of illegally modifying its Lyons plant in a way that increased the amount of nitrogen oxide the facility released.
OSHA Last Inspected TX Fertilizer Plant In 1985
April 19, 2013 10:15 am | by Sam Hananel, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Occupational Safety and Health Administration most recently inspected the Texas fertilizer plant that exploded Wednesday night in 1985. Records reviewed by The Associated Press show that OSHA issued the West Chemical & Fertilizer Co., as the plant was called at the time, a $30 fine for a serious violation for storage of anhydrous ammonia.
