Manufacturing & Technology News articles from September 2008

Manufacturing & Technology News archives from September 2008

Does U.S. government have the courage to determine the real value of imports? U.S. trade deficit might be substantially higher.
September 15, 2008... The U.S. trade deficit in manufactured goods might be 10 to 15 percent higher than the federal government has been reporting for the past 20 years. By allowing importers, retailers and foreign manufacturers to use the so-called "first-sale...

Foreign 'power brokers' bail out ailing U.S. financial institutions.
September 15, 2008... The financial power in the world is moving away from traditional Western financial institutions and toward a new set of "global power brokers" that are helping "rescue" the United States from its financial crisis, according to McKinsey Global...

U.S. companies face another foreign blockade: antitrust laws.
September 15, 2008... Foreign countries are using anti-trust laws to "crush" U.S. technology companies in their home markets, according to the Pacific Research Institute. Rival companies "have abused antitrust laws to gain advantage over competitors," says a study...

Turning the outsourcing tide, from the eyes of Bremen Castings: 'another product back home'.
September 15, 2008... Over the last 10 years, Bremen Castings has seen a continuous flow of manufactured products purchased by U.S. companies and products produced overseas being imported into the country because of the low cost of making these items outside the...

Polyurethane industry complains about foreign competitors' illegal production practices.
September 15, 2008... Countless U.S. industries are competing against Chinese companies that would not be allowed to operate in the United States, and whose products would be considered illegal. Companies making polyurethane foam used in upholstered furniture and...

Looking to federal spending to generate economic growth.
September 15, 2008... A $100-billion, two-year program aimed at creating a "green economic recovery" would create two million jobs in the United States and help "secure America's energy security and combat global warming," says a new report from the Center for...

ABB glides on global growth.
September 15, 2008... Things are going very well for ABB. The Zurich, Switzerland-based company increased orders by 31 percent during its second quarter, setting a single-quarter record of $11.3 billion. "It was also the first quarter in which orders from emerging...

Federal budget deficit zooms off the map.
September 15, 2008... The federal budget deficit surged to $486 billion for the first 11 months of 2008, more than $212 billion more than for the same period in 2007. But the feds are expected to have a good month in September of this year, when taxpayers start...

British release Mfg. revival strategy focused on global supply chains, green tech., innovation & skills.
September 15, 2008... The British government is launching a new "manufacturing strategy" aimed at making sure the country retains a robust and healthy manufacturing sector. After consultations with the country's Ministerial Advisory Group on Manufacturing, the...

SBIR funding could increase.
September 15, 2008... The Senate Small Business Committee has approved a proposal to substantially increase funding for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act would increase the percentage of federal research and...

NAM is very pleased with McCain's vp pick.
September 15, 2008... The National Association of Manufacturers is ecstatic about John McCain's selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to be his running mate. NAM executive vice president Jay Timmons, who worked for Republican Sen. George Allen before joining NAM, was...

Wisc. MEP delivers the bacon.
September 15, 2008... The Wisconsin Manufacturing Extension Partnership center has helped keep Wisconsin's economy in good shape over the past five years. Services provided by the center have resulted in $931 million worth of business for Wisconsin manufactures, and...

Best states for manufacturing.
September 15, 2008... Missouri, Utah, Florida, Alabama, North Dakota and Indiana are the best states in the country for manufacturing and logistics, according to the Ball State University's latest "National Manufacturing and Logistics Report Card." Those states all...

Federal R&D funding stagnates.
September 15, 2008... "Federal funding of academic science and engineering research and development failed to outpace inflation for the second year in a row," according to the National Science Foundation. Federally funded academic research increased by 1.1 percent...

Further consolidation of IT trade associations.
September 15, 2008... The disappearance of high-volume electronics manufacturing from the United States is playing out in the trade association world of Washington, D.C. The AEA, which was once called the American Electronics Association but dropped the word...

'Dangerous Business: The Risks of Globalization for America'.
September 15, 2008... Americans of a certain age know that something is profoundly wrong. Their nation is not what it used to be. But what exactly has gone wrong? In his new book Dangerous Business: The Risks of Globalization for America, author Pat Choate...

Washington manufacturing group takes message to the states.
September 15, 2008... The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a joint venture between the management of large steel companies and the United Steel Workers, is putting some manufacturing shoe leather into the upcoming election campaign. The group will hold a...

Competitiveness council makes recommendations.
September 15, 2008... The new American president in November should enact a 100-day energy action plan, says the Council on Competitiveness. The Council recommends a plan that has six "drivers": * An executive order that mandates federal purchases of the highest...

JDA acquires i2: does the end of an era in supply chain applications signal the beginning of a new landscape?(Guest Editorial)
September 15, 2008... When I learned of the acquisition of i2 by JDA ($346M cash deal or 1.3 times trailing revenue/ 7.5 times trailing EBITDA) and I began to think about what to write, I couldn't help but take the tone of a newspaper obituary: Supply Chain...

Denial--the 51st state.
September 15, 2008... The 51st state of the Union can't be the District of Columbia nor Puerto Rico. No, we've already expanded the United States of America by the largest one yet--the State of Denial. It is a vast territory and includes American men and women of...

Department of Commerce names new members to manufacturing council.
September 15, 2008... The Commerce Department's Manufacturing Council has named a new set of members, and some of them are not the likely cast of multinational corporate characters typically appointed by the Bush administration. Among the new members are vocal...

Commentary: manufacturers know all about economic collapse.
September 30, 2008... It is sad what has happened to the United States. For years, as editor of Manufacturing & Technology News, I have heard dozens of domestic manufacturing company CEOs talk about an impending "collapse" of the U.S. economy. These were the men...

An inside look at the U.S. printed circuit board industry.
September 30, 2008... A recent article in Manufacturing & Technology News entitled "Printed Circuit Boards To Become Part of DOD's Trusted Production Program" (March 14, 2008) states that the National Security Agency and the Department of State agree with a National...

New coalition to press for policies that favor America.
September 30, 2008... A broad group representing domestic manufacturers, farmers, labor unions, trade associations and concerned citizens has formed a new coalition aimed at telling the next U.S. government to put America's economic interests first. The "Coalition...

Air Force Science Board worries about DARPA's lack of Mfg. R&D.
September 30, 2008... The U.S. Air Force's Scientific Advisory Board isn't pleased with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) diminishing support of manufacturing technologies. In response to a Defense Science Board report about the Department of...

Will Lehman's fate be America's? U.S. economy is rudderless and reeling from direct hits.
September 30, 2008... We were promised a "New Economy" of high-tech tradable services to take the place of the offshored manufacturing economy. Wondering what had become of the "New Economy," Duke University's Offshoring Research Network searched for it and located...

Commerce secretary and NAM president got it wrong.
September 30, 2008... It wasn't long ago that Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez believed the U.S. economy was on the verge of an upswing. At his National Summit on American Competitiveness held in Chicago in May, Gutierrez said that stimulus checks totaling...

Attendance holds up at machine tool show.
September 30, 2008... The Association for Manufacturing Technology's big machine tool show in Chicago Sept. 8 through 13 was a success. The International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) attracted 92,450 attendees, up a half percentage point from the last show...

States are offering billions to attract foreign producers.
September 30, 2008... States are throwing hundreds of millions of dollars at European companies to entice them into opening new manufacturing facilities, according to a report in the Financial Times. The state of Tennessee provided Volkswagen with $577 million in...

New report card ranks colleges based on sustainable practices.
September 30, 2008... The nation's universities are beginning to adopt "sustainable" policies and practices, but most of them have a long way to go. Only 15 out of 300 of the nation's largest universities (or 5 percent) managed to achieve an "A-minus" rating in the...

Mass layoffs plague manufacturers.
September 30, 2008... The number of mass layoff events in the United States is climbing steadily. The number of mass layoffs involving more than 50 people and reported to the Bureau of Labor Statistics skyrocketed during the month of August, increasing to 1,772...

Your factory can be a television star.
September 30, 2008... A Canadian television documentary company is looking for factories that are planning major renovations or overhauls within the next two years to be showcased on its TV show. The "Factory Renovations" show will highlight manufacturing plants...

Customs creates an anonymous reporting system for illegal imports.
September 30, 2008... The Customs and Border Protection has created a program that allows companies to report illegal import and export activities. The program is aimed at preventing international trade violations, and allows American manufacturing companies to...

MAPI Worries about negative impact of tax bill.
September 30, 2008... The tax reform bill making its way through Congress is going to place a big tax burden on American manufacturers, argues the Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI. The bill, the Tax Reduction and Reform Act (H.R.-3970), will result in "huge job losses,"...

Ford motor, Dow to host national economic 'summit'.
September 30, 2008... Here comes yet another national "summit" on what to do about the plight of U.S. manufacturing. This one, planned by the Detroit Economic Club, will take place June 15-17, 2009, in Detroit and, like every national summit so far, "will engage...

Twenty teams selected for final wearable battery competition.
September 30, 2008... The Department of Defense has selected 20 teams to compete for the final $1-million prize for making a "wearable" battery that can provide 20 watts of electrical power for 96 hours and weigh less than 8.8 pounds. After an initial assessment of...

Senate passes anti-piracy bill.
September 30, 2008... The U.S. Senate has passed a tough counterfeit enforcement bill that would substantially toughen the penalties for companies and people importing fakes and dangerous products into the United States. The "Enforcement of Intellectual Property...

Steel industry continues to press U.S. for action against Chinese subsidies.
September 30, 2008... The United States steel industry continues to press the United States government to confront China over the unprecedented growth of its steel industry through illegal subsidies, currency manipulation "and non-market behavior," says the American...