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Daily industrial news and top headlines for plant and maintenance managers
GM May Buy Delphi Steering Operations
March 3, 2009 8:08 am | by Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer | Articles | CommentsThe person, who asked not to be identified because a deal had not been announced, said GM would buy back the factory because it makes critical parts for the troubled automaker. A deal could be announced as soon as Tuesday.
Should We Give GM And Chrysler Another Chance?
March 3, 2009 8:01 am | Articles | Comments"No matter how much money you throw at the automakers, that won't solve the problem. It will actually make things worse" says Viraf Baliwalla, a consumer advocate for car buyers and founder of Automall Network (www.automallnetwork.com) a professional vehicle buying service. "But there is a less risky solution".
Economy Shrinks At Fastest Pace In 26 Years
February 27, 2009 9:43 am | by Jeannine Aversa, AP Economics Writer | Articles | CommentsThe Commerce Department report released Friday showed the economy sinking much faster than the 3.8 percent annualized drop for the October-December quarter first estimated last month. It also was considerably weaker than the 5.4 percent annualized decline economists expected.
Potential For Massive Jobs Expansion
February 27, 2009 9:39 am | Articles | CommentsEnvironmental Defense Fund today released a groundbreaking online map that identifies and profiles more than 1,200 companies in key manufacturing states poised to grow their business and create new jobs when Congress passes a cap on global warming pollution.
Leak-Proof System
February 26, 2009 7:40 am | Articles | CommentsPolyconn's Duratec piping system offers an innovative compressed air and inert gas distribution system designed to be absolutely leak-proof, install quickly and easily, and to maintain plant costs. Duratec pipe is available in 100-ft. or 300-ft. coils—significantly reducing the number of joints in a system.
Small In Size, Big In Features
February 24, 2009 12:34 pm | Articles | CommentsThe Power Probe Micro Torch is small in size, but offers many features and ease of use.
Rotary Screw Technology
February 24, 2009 12:30 pm | Articles | CommentsSullair Corporation offers its new ShopTek™ lubricated rotary screw air compressor. According to the company, these compressors combine Sullair's proven rotary screw technology in a compact belt-drive package which establishes new standards for continuous-duty compressors to meet the needs of small horsepower markets.
Tools & Equipment For Your Every Need
February 24, 2009 12:15 pm | Articles | CommentsFor over 40 years, Neu Tool & Supplyhas offered thousands of tool and equipment items from hundreds of manufacturers.
Rollers For Those Hostile Environments
February 24, 2009 12:01 pm | Articles | CommentsRalphs-Pugh Companyhas developed a series of rollers to counter the harsh conditions in battery manufacturing and storage and charging station environments.
Company Chosen By Army Corps Of Engineers To Boost Energy Efficiency And Cut Costs
February 24, 2009 9:23 am | Articles | CommentsHoneywell (NYSE: HON) has received a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help the Department of Defense and other agencies increase energy efficiency, leverage renewable eneargy and save water. The work will be performed under the federal Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs) program and builds on the Department of Energy contract Honeywell recently secured to implement up to $5 billion of similar projects in government facilities across the globe.
Online Layoff Tracker Captures Economy's Carnage
February 24, 2009 9:06 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | Articles | CommentsLayoff Tracker can be planted on a Web site or a computer desktop to provide a running tally of the pink slips being handed out by major employers around the country. The tracker complies the numbers from news reports and company announcements.
Steel’s Revival May Provide Roadmap For Auto Industry
February 24, 2009 9:00 am | by Daniel Lovering and Tom Krisher, AP Business Writers | Articles | CommentsThe 57-year-old steelworker from Port Vue, PA, lived through painful restructuring that drastically reshaped the domestic steel industry. The most recent crisis, from 1998 through 2003, involved dozens of bankruptcies, huge job cuts and mill closures.
What About The Other Mobile Workers?
February 20, 2009 11:39 am | by Stephen Woram, CEO, Form Automation Solutions | Articles | CommentsIt’s a common site at any factory, power plant, refinery, or other production facility: a worker, armed with pen and clipboard, making rounds, checking non-instrumented equipment, and filling out forms. Big companies love their data collection forms.
Indicators Suggest Recession Will Continue Through 2009, But Intensity Will Ease
February 19, 2009 6:10 am | Articles | CommentsIndex(TM) (LEI) for the U.S. increased 0.4 percent in January, following a 0.2 percent increase in December and a 0.7 percent decline in November.
The Auto Dead Zone
February 19, 2009 6:04 am | Articles | CommentsThe cover page of Chrysler's restructuring plan, submitted along with GM's late Tuesday, tells you all you really need to know about these 100-page-plus tomes. Replete with pictures of World War II Army Jeeps, dead men in starched collars -- and the now-obligatory "hybrid" logo and plug-in car -- the first page declares that Chrysler "is the Quintessential American Auto Company."
25 ‘Go Brennan’ Scholarships For Students Seeking Careers In Manufacturing Now Available Via YouTube Promotion
February 19, 2009 6:00 am | Articles | CommentsIt’s “lap three” for teen race car driver Brennan Palmiter’s “Go-Brennan” YouTube Scholarship promotion that offers up to 25 scholarships of $500 each to students seeking careers in manufacturing. Sponsored by the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association (FMA) Foundation and SolidWorks Corporation, the “GO-Brennan” Scholarships are tied to FMA’s sponsorship of 17-year-old stock car driver Palmiter’s 2009 racing season.
Hydraulic Institute Launches New Positive Displacement Pump e-Learning Course
February 19, 2009 5:56 am | Articles | CommentsHydraulic Institute (HI) has launched its latest pump industry e-Learning program titled “Positive Displacement Pumps: Fundamentals, Design and Applications.” The comprehensive Positive Displacement (PD) Pump course is an Internet-delivered educational program designed to provide individual users with a broad, comprehensive knowledge of PD pumping technologies. The material is visual and interactive, allowing students to take full advantage of the latest learning technology.
ISM Launches Knowledge Center Offering
February 19, 2009 5:53 am | Articles | CommentsThe latest tool for supply professionals seeking to acquire the Certified Professional in Supply Management® (CPSM®) qualification is here. Institute for Supply Management™ (ISM) now offers a CPSM® Bridge Exam Online Review Course through the ISM Knowledge Center.
Registration RedShift:2009 Now Open
February 19, 2009 5:44 am | Articles | CommentsRedPrairie Corporation announces registration is open for its upcoming user conference, Red Shift :2009, Engineered Evolution. Red Shift , to be held May 11 - 14 at the Marriott Rivercenter in San Antonio, TX, generates new ideas and information-sharing on how to improve workforce, inventory and transportation operations through product updates, customer-led breakout sessions and various networking opportunities.
Successful Automation’s Best Kept Secret
January 23, 2009 12:47 pm | by Roy Kok, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Kepware Technologies | Articles | CommentsSure, the engineer is proud of his HMI and the plant manager pleased with his KPI dashboard and how effectively the plant is running with the implementation of his new MES solution. The historian and analytic solution get all the credit when a plant control crisis is averted.
A Green View
November 21, 2008 12:15 pm | by Anna Wells | Articles | CommentsIn response to an increasing emphasis on energy visibility as a cost calculation, Infor has developed Infor EAM Asset Sustainability Edition, a new solution that integrates energy management with asset management. With Infor EAM Asset Sustainability Edition, Infor has redefined enterprise asset management from a solution that helps you maintain and extend the life of your assets to a solution that also can help you lower costs by reducing your energy consumption.
Water Conservation: The Business Case
October 9, 2008 6:44 am | by William F. Harfst, Harfst and Associates, Inc. | Articles | CommentsRecord-breaking droughts have plagued the Southeast and the arid Southwest. Georgia is caught in the grip of a drought that is the worst in 100 years of record keeping while at the same time 30 million people in the Southwest witnessed water reserves in Lake Mead and Lake Powell, both part of the Colorado River system, decline to near-record low levels.
Time To Align
September 12, 2008 8:13 am | by David Zdrojewski, Founder & CEO, VibrAlign, Inc. | Articles | CommentsA well trained aligner can accomplish a precision shaft alignment in one or two moves virtually every time. This is true whether the aligner uses laser tools or dial gauges to measure the misalignment— and I'm talking about making shaft centers collinear to within a few thousandths of an inch.
Opportunities In A Tough Electrical Market
September 12, 2008 8:13 am | by Bob Zak, President, Powerit Solutions | Articles | CommentsIndustrial manufacturers consume roughly one-third of the power utilized in the US. This fact is not lost on utilities and energy service providers. Lucrative programs and new incentives exist today for industrial companies as power providers try to find ways to tap into the demand side and create more capacity.
Circuit Breaker Replacement & Retrofill For Uptime, Compliance
June 25, 2008 12:47 pm | by Mike Rice, Vice President, Square D Services, Schneider Electric | Articles | CommentsCircuit breakers are key to an industrial facility’s power distribution system. That’s why it’s not surprising that several warning signs of an aging system relate to these devices, such as nuisance tripping or a main breaker failure.
