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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
Big Brother Takes The Wheel
January 4, 2013 8:00 am | by Meaghan Ziemba, Associate Editor, PD&D | Blogs | CommentsWhile I am all for the advancement of automobile safety, I wonder if placing black boxes in cars is stepping over the privacy boundary? A recent article, “Black Boxes in Cars Raise Privacy Concerns” discussed the placement of event data recorders, also known as black boxes, being placed in new cars and light trucks – such a development caused me to raise an eyebrow.
Judge: Ohio GM Workers Can Sue Over Back Pay
January 3, 2013 2:05 pm | by John Seewer, Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal judge says General Motors workers in northeast Ohio can move forward with a lawsuit against the automaker and the United Auto Workers. The union's request to dismiss the lawsuit was turned down late last week. Nearly 30 workers at GM's Lordstown factory say they were improperly classified as temporary employees after losing their jobs and then being rehired.
Fiscal-Cliff Deal No Recipe For A Robust Economy
January 3, 2013 2:02 pm | by Christopher S. Rugaber, Paul Wiseman, AP Economics Writers | News | CommentsHousing is rebounding. Families are shrinking debts. Europe has avoided a financial crackup. And the fiscal cliff deal has removed the most urgent threat to the U.S. economy. So why don't economists foresee stronger growth and hiring in 2013?
Upstate NY Factory Faces $75K In Fines For Hazards
December 21, 2012 2:03 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsFederal workplace safety regulators say a factory in the Mohawk Valley put its workers at risk with a series of violations. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has recommended almost $75,000 in fines against Nationwide Tarp Inc., which makes tents and other canvas products in Amsterdam.
Nokia, RIM Settle Old Disputes In New Patent Pact
December 21, 2012 9:48 am | by Matti Huuhtanen, Associated Press | News | CommentsNokia Corp. and Canadian smartphone rival Research In Motion have agreed on a new patent licensing pact which will end all existing litigation between the two struggling companies, the Finnish firm said Friday. The agreement includes a "one-time payment and on-going payments, all from RIM to Nokia," Nokia said, but did not disclose "confidential" terms.
China To Overhaul Struggling Solar Panel Industry
December 20, 2012 2:16 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsChina's government says it will encourage mergers among producers of solar panels to strengthen an industry that has suffered huge losses due to excess production capacity and price-cutting wars. The announcement, which analysts have expected for months, comes as Beijing faces trade sanctions by the United States and possibly Europe over complaints its support for solar panel producers violates trade rules.
Federal Incentives For Wind Set To Expire Soon
December 20, 2012 2:05 pm | by Dirk Lammers, Associated Press | News | CommentsWind energy advocates are pushing for the credit renewal. The American Wind Energy Association, quoting a study by Navigant Consulting, said a new U.S. manufacturing sector and 37,000 jobs could be lost by the first quarter of 2013 if Congress fails to act.
German Prosecutors Charge Ex-Porsche Chiefs
December 19, 2012 10:13 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsGerman prosecutors have charged two former Porsche executives with market manipulation in connection with the sports car company's failed takeover of Volkswagen AG, officials said Wednesday. Prosecutors in Porsche's home city of Stuttgart accuse former chief executive Wendelin Wiedeking and ex-chief financial officer Holger Haerter of making misleading statements about the company's intentions in 2008.
Gov't Warns Mitsubishi Over Improper Recall Handling
December 19, 2012 10:10 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe government on Wednesday gave a verbal warning to Mitsubishi Motors Corp. for its improper handling and explanation of minivehicle recalls prompted by oil leaks. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism is expected to inspect the company soon over the four recalls reported since November 2010.
Taiwanese Exec Guilty Of LCD Screen Price Fixing
December 19, 2012 10:08 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal jury in San Francisco has convicted a former executive at a Taiwanese company of participating in a global LCD screen price-fixing conspiracy. The U.S. Department of Justice says Shiu Lung Leung could face up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for his role in illegally fixing computer screen prices in the U.S.
Smartphone Makers Post Wins On Separate Continents
December 19, 2012 10:07 am | by Paul Elias, Associated Press | News | CommentsApple and Samsung, the world's top two smartphone makers, each scored a significant victory on different continents that will allow both to keep selling their products without legal interference this holiday season. A federal judge rejected Apple's demands to block U.S. sales of three smartphones made by Samsung. The ruling came weeks after a jury found that Samsung infringed six Apple patents.
U.S. Fines Toyota $17M For Delayed Safety Reports
December 18, 2012 10:27 am | by Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsThe U.S. government has hit Toyota Motor Corp. with a record $17.4 million fine for failing once again to quickly report problems to federal regulators and for delaying a safety recall. The fine against the world's biggest automaker from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the agency that monitors vehicle safety, is the maximum allowed by law.
Judge Denies Apple Request To Ban Samsung Phones
December 18, 2012 10:24 am | by Paul Elias, Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal judge rejected Apple Inc.'s demands that its chief rival in the more than $100B global smartphone market cease selling models a jury recently found illegally used Apple technology. The immediate impact of the ruling means that Samsung can continue to sell three of the older-generation smartphones still on U.S. shelves that a San Jose jury in August found ripped off technology Apple used to create its iPhone.
Bangladesh Probe: Fire Sabotage, Owner Negligent
December 18, 2012 10:16 am | by Julhas Alam, Associated Press | News | CommentsA Bangladesh government committee investigating the garment factory fire that killed 112 people last month said in its findings that the blaze was sabotage, probably by someone who worked there. But the panel said that no matter who set the fire, the owner of the factory also should be punished for the deaths because he neglected worker safety.
U.S. Tightens Standards For Soot Pollution
December 17, 2012 2:14 pm | by Matthew Daly, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Obama administration on Friday imposed a new air quality standard that reduces by 20 percent the maximum amount of soot released into the air from smokestacks, diesel trucks and other sources of pollution in its first major regulation since the election. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said the new standard will save thousands of lives each year as people "benefit from the simple fact of being able to breathe cleaner air."
Ford Hybrid Fuel Economy Falling Short
December 17, 2012 10:18 am | by Dee-Ann Durbin, AP Auto Writer | News | CommentsFord said Friday that it's talking to the government about the fuel economy of its hybrid cars after a report suggested they're falling short of targets. Consumer Reports said last week that Ford's new C-Max hybrid didn't meet the published fuel economy of 47 miles per gallon, averaging 38 miles per gallon in the magazine's testing.
Judge: Superfund Law Applies To Canadian Company
December 17, 2012 10:05 am | by Nicholas K. Geranios, Associated Press | News | CommentsA federal judge ruled Friday that his court has jurisdiction to apply the U.S. Superfund law to a Canadian company that acknowledges polluting Lake Roosevelt in Washington state. U.S. District Judge Lonny Suko of Yakima ruled against Teck Metals Ltd. of Vancouver, British Columbia, in a long-running case involving pollution of the lake in northeastern Washington. Cleanup has been estimated to cost up to $1B.
EU Approves Common Patent Rules
December 11, 2012 2:14 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe European Union has approved a common patent system to cut red tape and streamline patent procedures across much of Europe. The European Parliament on Tuesday concluded the drawn-out decision-making process, backing a cluster of packages by a wide majority to end nearly four decades of fighting and negotiating over the issue.
U.S., EU Looking At World's Biggest Free Trade Pact
December 11, 2012 10:15 am | by Desmond Butler, The Associated Press | News | CommentsAfter years of battling each other on trade issues, U.S. and European officials are contemplating a dramatic change in direction: joining together in what could be the world's largest free trade pact in an attempt to boost their struggling economies.
Sanctions Hit Iranian Manufacturing Hard
December 10, 2012 10:13 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA conservative Iranian news website says the number of manufacturing companies in the country facing financial crisis has increased four-fold over the past four years to nearly 1,600. The Monday report by tasnimnews.com reflects the impact of Western sanctions against Iran over its disputed nuclear program. The website says the report has been drawn up by a government department but didn't elaborate.
Belarus Decrees Forced Employment For Some Jobs
December 7, 2012 2:16 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsBelarus' authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko has signed a decree that bans some industrial workers from leaving their jobs, threatening them with draconian fines if they do. Lukashenko's decree, signed Friday, follows a statement he made a week ago on a visit to a wood-processing plant. It's intended to stem the exodus of workers to neighboring Russia, where salaries are higher.
OR Pushes Forward Stalled Clean-Fuel Standards
December 7, 2012 2:12 pm | by Jonathan J. Cooper, Associated Press | News | CommentsOregon's stalled effort to reduce greenhouse gases from cars and trucks could get new life soon, as the state pushes for a new pollution-reporting mandate for fuel providers and the Legislature prepares to take a fresh look at the program.
Couple Convicted Of Stealing GM Trade Secrets
December 3, 2012 10:15 am | by Ed White, Associated Press | News | CommentsA former General Motors engineer with access to the automaker's hybrid technology was convicted Friday along with her husband of stealing trade secrets for possible use in China. Shanshan Du won a transfer within GM in 2003 to be closer to the technology and then copied documents until she accepted a severance offer and left the company in 2005, prosecutors said.
DOJ Asserts Federal Interests In A123 Bankruptcy
November 29, 2012 2:01 pm | by Randall Chase, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsGovernment attorneys say failed battery maker A123 Systems Inc. needs the government's consent in order to sell its assets. The Justice Department told a Delaware bankruptcy judge Tuesday that any sale of A123's assets must protect the government's interests. The Department of Energy gave the Waltham, Mass., company a $249 million grant three years ago.
BP Suspended From New U.S. Gov't Contracts
November 28, 2012 2:08 pm | by Josh Lederman, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Obama administration put a temporary stop to new federal contracts with British oil company BP on Wednesday, citing the company's "lack of business integrity" and criminal proceedings stemming from the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010.
