Manufacturing & Technology News articles from November 2004

Manufacturing & Technology News archives from November 2004

Foundry industry is in a state of shock.(ECONOMIC RECOVERY BYPASSES U.S. FOUNDRY INDUSTRY)
November 4, 2004... The United States foundry and metal castings industry is literally falling apart. Hundreds of foundries have gone out business in recent years due to unrelenting pressure from cheap imports, the departure of large manufacturers and skyrocketing...

Chinese add auto capacity to a glutted world market.
November 4, 2004... The growth of the automobile industry in China is presenting a formidable challenge to U.S. auto suppliers, workers and communities, according to testimony received by the United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC). With...

Solid growth for solar industry.
November 4, 2004... The worldwide solar photovoltaics industry is growing at a hefty clip, but not in the United States. Worldwide solar cell production has increased by an average of 27 percent annually during the past five years, and production last year...

Global economy enjoys a sustained period of stability.
November 4, 2004... Things are looking better than they have in perhaps decades with regards to global economic growth and stability, according to John Taylor, undersecretary for international affairs at the U.S. Treasury. The global economic growth rate is...

NCMS creates lean mfg. users forum.
November 4, 2004... The National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (NCMS) has created a lean product development forum for manufacturers. The users group "will focus on companies that are in some state of learning or implementing the principles and philosophies of...

Californians hope to reverse loss of mfg.
November 4, 2004... The first annual "Made in California" manufacturing conference is going to be held in Palm Springs on December 3. More than 300 manufacturers, economic development leaders and state officials will try to figure how to improve the...

Another consultancy recommends companies move most IT to India.
November 4, 2004... India's information technology services industry is more capable than many people believe or understand, says Erik Keller, a research fellow with AMR Consulting. "It took Japan Inc. more than 30 years to obtain a strong position in key U.S....

Information sector jobs stagnate.
November 4, 2004... Employment in the information sector of the United State economy was not strong during the 12 months ending in March 2004, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Among the 14 states in which there were more than 75,000 employees working...

NAM's election strategy worked: the good guys win.
November 4, 2004... The National Association of Manufacturers feels it did its part to help re-elect President Bush and a stronger Republican majority in Congress and it hopes its efforts are rewarded. NAM's "Prosperity Project" aimed at educating workers at...

Ballot initiatives; dems improve in states.
November 4, 2004... Tort reform was on six state ballots on election day Nov. 2. Results from votes in California, Colorado, Nevada, Wyoming, Oregon and Florida were mixed, according to the National Conference of State Legislators. Californians voted to limit who...

U.S.-China Commission wants U.S. to act.
November 4, 2004... The United States - China Economic and Security Review Commission spent a day in Akron, Ohio, in late September, conducting a field hearing on the health of the U.S. manufacturing sector. It was a dour event, with more than a dozen people...

'We have a barn fire, too': eroding industrial base raises concern deep within the military.
November 19, 2004... The decline of basic U.S. industries is beginning to stir angst among procurement officials and buyers within the defense community. The rapid decline in the number of metal foundries, the loss of expertise and capabilities, and the growing...

Cheaper online airfares available outside U.S.
November 19, 2004... The online airfare Web sites run by companies in the United States are among the worst performing in the world in finding the lowest priced airfares, according to a study conducted for the Pew Charitable Trusts and Consumer Reports Web Watch....

Venture financing remains steady in third quarter.
November 19, 2004... The venture capital industry invested $4.3 billion in 601 companies during the third quarter of this year, down from $5.9 billion in the second quarter, according to the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). For the first nine months of...

Manufacturing CEO comes up a little short in a run for Congress; here's what he learned.
November 19, 2004... It's not often that a manufacturing company CEO decides to run for Congress based on his convictions that the United States is losing its industrial base to unfair imports. Jack Davis, owner of I Squared R Element Co., changed his party...

Rising tide lifts machine tools.
November 19, 2004... The machine tool industry is rebounding after five years of decline. Machine tool consumption increased by 42.2 percent during the first nine months of this year to $2.15 billion, as compared to the same period in 2003, reports the U.S. Machine...

Gas prices force chemical industry offshore.
November 19, 2004... The high cost of natural gas is "destroying" the competitiveness of the U.S. chemical industry, says the American Chemistry Council (ACC). U.S. gas prices are the highest in the world, topping $8.00 per million BTU. By comparison, gas prices in...

U.S. ceramic tile industry 'is just about finished'.
November 19, 2004... One of the last remaining ceramic tile manufacturers in the United States is in a "titanic" battle for survival. Summitville Tiles of Summitville, Ohio, which has been in business since 1912, is struggling to compete against cheap imports that...

Quotable.
November 19, 2004... "Every little community in the country now has a Wal-Mart. It's putting the local merchants out of business and you've got super big retail giants that are making lots of money. In my industry, it's Home Depot and they buy tile for half...

Bush decision favoring China over U.S. petitioners continues to reverberate through industry.
November 19, 2004... President Bush's decision earlier this year to refute the unanimous decision by the six members of the International Trade Commission to take action against Chinese imports of ductile iron waterwork fittings continues to send reverberations...

WTO tells U.S. to drop Byrd Amendment.
November 19, 2004... The European Union and Japan both have huge trade surpluses with the United States ($94 billion last year for the EU and $66 billion for Japan), but they still think the United States is engaged in unfair trade practices. The EU and Japan say...

R & D budget in jeopardy.
November 19, 2004... Federal budgets for science and technology programs will come under intense pressure in coming weeks and years. "Research is in trouble in the long term," says one House aide involved in S & T issues. If tax cuts are made permanent and there is...

The view from Ohio: the politics of resentment.
November 19, 2004... The loss of 250,000 manufacturing jobs in Ohio over the past four years looked like it would help Democratic challenger Sen. John Kerry in his quest for the White House. But Kerry was unable to capitalize on the opportunity and President Bush...

Quotable.
November 19, 2004... "Once the minority [in the] House and Senate are comfortable in their minority status, they will have no problem socializing with the Republicans. Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when...