Regulations & Compliance
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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Trina Solar Lowers 3Q Guidance
November 12, 2012 2:01 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsTrina Solar Ltd. lowered its third-quarter guidance on Monday, citing industry-wide oversupply and lower prices. The Chinese solar panel maker estimates shipments in the third quarter between 375 and 385 megawatts, down from previous guidance of 450 to 480 megawatts. The company said margins were squeezed by anti-dumping duties in the U.S. and an inventory write-down.
China Seeks To Stem Environmental Protests
November 12, 2012 10:09 am | by Gillian Wong, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Chinese government will require that future industrial projects include assessments of their risk to social stability, following several large protests around the country over pollution, a top official said Monday. The government will also increase transparency and public involvement in decisions regarding large projects with potential environmental impact, Minister for Environmental Protection Zhou Shengxian said.
Judge Approves Bid Procedures In A123 Bankruptcy
November 9, 2012 2:15 pm | by Randall Chase, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsA judge ruled that bankruptcy proceedings for A123 Systems can move forward after the advanced battery maker reduced the fee that would have to be paid to the lead bidder for its assets should the deal fall apart. Creditors had been concerned that other bidders were being frozen out because of bid protections that could be claimed by Milwaukee-based auto-parts maker Johnson Controls, the lead bidder.
Evolving Robot Safety Standards
November 8, 2012 4:18 pm | by Eric Esson, National Sales & Marketing Manager, Frommelt Safety Products | Articles | CommentsSeveral aspects of industrial safety standards are changing and require constant monitoring and a bit of common sense to keep current. Technological advances and alternative guarding methods are being devised every day, and companies should be doing everything within their power to eliminate the opportunity. A great place to start is by conducting thorough Risk Assessments and referencing current standards and regulations.
EU Probes Chinese Subsidies Of Solar Panels, Parts
November 8, 2012 1:21 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe European Union is considering imposing tariffs on Chinese-made solar panels and parts after a complaint from European manufacturers alleged that Beijing is subsidizing the industry. EU's executive arm is already looking into a complaint that Chinese manufacturers are "dumping" solar panels on Europe — selling them at below-market rates.
Panel: Chinese Imports Hurt U.S. Solar Industry
November 7, 2012 2:17 pm | by Josh Lederman, Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal trade panel found China responsible Wednesday for harming the U.S. solar panel industry, clearing the final hurdle for U.S. attempts to impose steep tariffs on Chinese solar companies. The U.S. International Trade Commission voted unanimously that Chinese companies have materially injured U.S. manufacturers.
EPA Penalizes NE's Behlen Manufacturing
November 6, 2012 10:27 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsBehlen Manufacturing has agreed to pay a penalty of nearly $60,000 for several EPA violations at its plant in Columbus, Neb. The Environmental Protection Agency says Behlen also agreed to spend a minimum of nearly $75,600 to install anti-pollution equipment.
China Launches WTO Case Against EU Solar Subsidies
November 5, 2012 10:17 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsChina has filed a World Trade Organization case challenging subsidies provided by some European Union members to help promote the solar panel industry, adding to a flurry of trade disputes that Beijing is locked in with Europe and the United States.
EPA: Hyundai, Kia Overstated Gas Mileage
November 2, 2012 10:17 am | by Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsHyundai and Kia overstated the gas mileage on most of their models from the past three years in an embarrassing blunder that could bring sanctions from the U.S. government and millions of dollars in payments to car owners. Because of the inflated mileage, discovered during an audit by the Environmental Protection Agency, the automakers must retrofit the window stickers on the cars, the agency said.
Maine Firm Sues Microsoft Over Windows 8 Elements
November 2, 2012 10:07 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe lawsuit claims Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft Corp. is using elements known as live tiles, rectangular icons linked to websites, apps and other items. SurfCast says it developed the tiles, referred to on its website as "dynamically updating icons" containing refreshed real-time content, in the 1990s.
Aircraft Repair Company Exec Pleads Guilty
October 31, 2012 2:06 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsAn executive at a California airplane repair company has pleaded guilty to endangering aircraft by cutting corners with replacement parts not certified by regulators. The U.S. attorney in Sacramento said Tuesday that Jerry Edward Kuwata, of Granite Bay, admitted to using uncertified parts and falsely certifying that the Federal Aviation Administration approved their use in aircraft repair.
Japanese Auto Supplier Pleads Guilty To Price Fix
October 31, 2012 2:01 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsJapanese auto supplier Tokai Rika Co. Ltd. has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $17.7 million fine for price-fixing, the U.S. Department of Justice said Tuesday. The Nagoya, Japan-based company fixed the prices of heater control units that were sold to Toyota Motor Corp. in the U.S. between 2003 and 2010, the government said.
Iowa Woman Sues Deere Alleging Race Discrimination
October 31, 2012 10:27 am | by David Pitt, Associated Press | News | CommentsA Des Moines woman who claims she was subjected to racial slurs by co-workers, including finding a doll whose face was painted black hanging outside her home with threats to quit her job at Deere & Co., has filed a discrimination lawsuit against the company.
Japan's Rebuilding Money Spent On Unrelated Jobs
October 30, 2012 10:24 am | by Elaine Kurtenbach, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsAbout a quarter of the $148 billion budget for reconstruction after Japan's March 2011 tsunami and nuclear disaster has been spent on unrelated projects, including subsidies for a contact lens factory and research whaling.The findings of a government audit buttress complaints over shortcomings and delays in the reconstruction effort.
Asian Steel Giants Under Scrutiny
October 26, 2012 10:35 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe civil lawsuit lodged by Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. against South Korean steelmaker Posco that opened Thursday for hearing may have implications reaching not just those involved, but farther to other Japanese businesses troubled by technology leaks, according to the plaintiff.
Scientist Being Sentenced In Utah For Trade Theft
October 26, 2012 10:32 am | by Paul Foy, Associated Press | News | CommentsFederal investigators say the 42-year-old chemist emailed a secret drug recipe from a Utah company to a brother-in-law in India. They say the relative planned to undercut prices charged by Logan-based Frontier Scientific Inc. for a rare organic chemical with applications ranging from prescription drugs to solar cells and batteries.
Mitsubishi Overcharges Defense Ministry Since 1970
October 25, 2012 1:53 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsMitsubishi Electric Corp. has overcharged the Defense Ministry and others since around 1970 at the latest by reporting longer-than-actual working hours spent for ordered projects, an investigation by the Board of Audit of Japan showed Thursday.
Judge Approves Solyndra Bankruptcy Plan
October 24, 2012 2:24 pm | by Randall Chase, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsA Delaware judge is overruling government objections and approving a bankruptcy exit plan for failed solar power company Solyndra LLC. Under the plan approved Monday, the Department of Energy stands to recover little if any of a $528 million loan to Solyndra from the Obama administration.
Former Mamtek CEO Granted MO Public Defender
October 23, 2012 11:33 am | by Alan Scher Zagier, Associated Press | News | CommentsBruce Cole initially arrived in rural Missouri with promises of an international business that would provide the town of Moberly with hundreds of jobs. On Monday, the former Mamtek U.S. CEO was back in Missouri's Randolph County, this time in shackles and an orange jail jumpsuit, too broke to afford a lawyer to answer criminal charges of theft and fraud connected to the failed artificial sweetener factory.
AL Voters To Decide Union Organizing Issue
October 19, 2012 2:24 pm | by Phillip Rawls, Associated Press | News | CommentsIf passed, Alabama's Amendment 7 would prohibit unions from organizing by card check, where they get more than half of the employees at a company to check a box on a card saying they want a union to represent them. The only method available for union organization would be a secret ballot.
UK Court Sides With Samsung In Apple Suit
October 19, 2012 10:11 am | by Raphael Satter, Associated Press | News | CommentsBritain's Court of Appeal has backed a judgment that Samsung's Galaxy tablet computer is "not as cool" as Apple's iPad — and therefore doesn't infringe Apple's rights. The panel's upholding of the findings of by a lower court endorses the U.K. judgment which made headlines around the world when it was handed down in July. Judge Colin Birss had then gushed over Apple's design, while knocking back the company's case against its rival.
Korean Firm Charged With Stealing Kevlar Secrets
October 18, 2012 2:27 pm | by Matthew Barakat, Associated Press | News | CommentsProsecutors indicted a South Korean company and five of its employees on Thursday for stealing the recipe for making Kevlar body armor from the DuPont Co. The indictment in U.S. District Court in Alexandria alleges that Kolon Industries engaged in a seven-year conspiracy to steal secrets on the manufacturing process for Kevlar and a similar product called Twaron produced by a large Japanese chemical company, Teijin Limited.
Chattanooga VW Wants Higher Emission Clearance
October 18, 2012 2:22 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsVolkswagen officials underestimated emissions from the paint shop at the company's auto assembly plant in Chattanooga. According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the carmaker has asked the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Air Pollution Control Bureau for a variance. Bob Colby, who heads the agency, said the company had to calculate what it thought nitrogen oxides emissions would be as the plant was being built in 2008.
WTO Backs Ruling Against China Duties On U.S. Steel
October 18, 2012 2:18 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsAn appeals panel of the World Trade Organization has upheld a ruling that China unfairly imposed import tariffs on a high-technology U.S. steel product. In a ruling Thursday, the WTO appeals panel said China was wrong in the way it put duties on U.S.-made grain-oriented flat-rolled electrical steel.
GM Wins Dismissal Of Lawsuit Over Einstein Image
October 18, 2012 2:16 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal judge in California has dismissed a lawsuit challenging the use of Albert Einstein's image in a magazine ad by General Motors. Judge Howard Matz this week noted that Einstein died nearly 60 years ago. He says Einstein's "persona should be freely available ... even in tasteless ads."
