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Building Materials Blamed In Bangladesh Disaster
May 23, 2013 | by Farid Hossain, Associated Press | Comments
The defects and errors that led to the world's deadliest garment-industry accident extend from the swampy ground the doomed Rana Plaza was built on, to "extremely poor quality" construction materials, to the massive, vibrating equipment operating when the eight-story building collapsed.
GM Recalling Cadillac SUVs To Tighten Wheels
May 23, 2013 8:02 am | Comments
General Motors Co. is recalling more than 27,000 Cadillac SUVs worldwide because the wheels can...
Solar Plane Completes 2nd Leg Of Trip In Texas
May 23, 2013 8:25 am | Comments
A solar-powered plane has landed in Texas, completing the second leg of a trip across the United...
3 Former Execs Sue Carbon Motors Over Pay
May 23, 2013 8:12 am | Comments
Three former executive vice presidents of a company that planned to build high-tech police cars...
New Rules To Keep Mercury From Calif. Landfills
May 23, 2013 11:30 am | CommentsNew California rules will require the makers of new thermostats to do a better job of keeping old ones containing the neurotoxin mercury out of landfills. Since 2006 it has been against state law to sell mercury thermostats in California, but millions of old ones are still in use. Tens of thousands of them are replaced every year.
Tesla Repays DOE Loan Nine Years Early
May 23, 2013 11:15 am | by Joel Hans, Managing Editor, Manufacturing.net | CommentsTesla Motors, the California-based electric vehicle manufacturer, has announced that it has paid off its 2010 loan from the Department of Energy (DOE) in full as of today. The payment of $451.8 million repays the full loan with interest. The company claims it is the only American automaker to have fully repaid the government of its loans.
Nissan To Recall 840,000 Vehicles
May 23, 2013 10:21 am | CommentsNissan Motor Co. said Thursday it will recall around 840,000 March and Cube compact cars, including 263,942 units in Japan, produced between February 2002 and August 2004, due to faulty steering wheels. The bolts connecting the steering wheels and steering columns in the two models may not have been screwed on properly and could lead to a loss of control.
Dutch Arrest Meat Works Owner In Horse Meat Probe
May 23, 2013 10:15 am | by Mike Corder, Associated Press | CommentsInvestigators from the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority arrested the man on suspicion of fraud and detained him for further questioning. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of six year's imprisonment, according to prosecutors.
Doctors Save Ohio Boy By 'Printing' An Airway Tube
May 23, 2013 9:36 am | by Marilynn Marchione, AP Chief Medical Writer | CommentsIn a medical first, doctors used plastic particles and a 3-D laser printer to create an airway splint to save the life of a baby boy who used to stop breathing nearly every day. It's the latest advance from the booming field of regenerative medicine, making body parts in the lab.
Unemployment Aid Applications Fall To 340K
May 23, 2013 9:30 am | by Paul Wiseman, AP Economics Writer | CommentsThe number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell by 23,000 last week, further evidence that the job market is slowly returning to health. Applications for unemployment aid declined to a seasonally adjusted 340,000 in the week ending May 18, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Dover To Spin Off Communications Businesses
May 23, 2013 9:28 am | CommentsEquipment maker Dover Corp. said Thursday that its board has approved a plan to spin off some of its communication technologies businesses into a new publicly traded company. The new company will be known as Knowles Corp. and products will include acoustic components such as microphones, speakers, receivers and transducers. It also will produce communication infrastructure components, Dover said.
Chevy Spark To Be Among Lowest-Price Electric Cars
May 23, 2013 8:13 am | CommentsGeneral Motors Co. says the Spark EV subcompact will be among the lowest-priced electric cars in the U.S. The electric Spark will have a starting price of $27,495 when it goes on sale next month in California and Oregon. GM also is offering a low-mileage lease for $199 per month, with $999 due when the lease is signed.
Made In The USA Back In Style For Small Businesses
May 23, 2013 8:04 am | by Joyce M. Rosenberg, AP Business Writer | CommentsReverie is one of a growing number of small businesses that are chipping away at the decades-old trend of manufacturing overseas. They're doing what's known as reshoring, moving production back to U.S. factories as labor costs grow in countries like China and India and shipping also becomes more expensive.
Bernanke Signals Fed To Maintain Stimulus Efforts
May 23, 2013 7:42 am | by Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer | CommentsLawmakers pressed Bernanke to explain when the Fed might start to scale back its purchases. Bernanke said the pace could be reduced over the next few meetings, if the job market shows "real and sustainable progress." And he wouldn't rule out curtailing the purchases by Labor Day.
Glaxo, U.S. Partnering To Develop New Antibiotics
May 23, 2013 7:38 am | by Hzl-Laj, The Associated Press | CommentsGlaxoSmithKline PLC says it's starting an unusual collaboration with the U.S. government to develop several antibiotics for both bioterrorism threats and bacterial infections resistant to current medicines. Antibiotic resistance will become a global crisis, experts predict, because most drug companies have cut investment in antibiotics.
Survey Shows China Manufacturing Contracting
May 23, 2013 12:42 am | by Joe McDonald, AP Business Writer | CommentsA survey shows China's manufacturing contracted this month, adding to signs a fragile recovery in the world's No. 2 economy is slowing. HSBC Corp. said Thursday the preliminary version of its monthly purchasing managers index fell to a seven-month low of 49.6 from April's 50.4 on a 100-point scale. Numbers below 50 show a contraction.
Ford To End Auto Production In Australia
May 22, 2013 10:03 pm | by Kristen Gelineau, Associated Press | CommentsThe closure of the U.S. automaker's plants in the state of Victoria will mean the loss of 1,200 jobs and will transform the company into an import-only brand in Australia. Ford began making cars in Australia in 1925 and is the third largest auto manufacturer in the country.
Median CEO Pay Rises To $9.7M In 2012
May 22, 2013 2:14 pm | by Christina Rexrode, AP Business Writer | CommentsAfter years of pressure from corporate governance activists unhappy about big payouts, many companies have revamped their compensation formulas. They have awarded a bigger chunk of compensation in stock to align pay more closely to performance and have become more transparent about how compensation decisions are made.
Solar Industry Pushes For More Use In Georgia
May 22, 2013 2:09 pm | by Ray Henry, Associated Press | CommentsThe solar industry in Georgia is pushing a power monopoly to expand its use of solar energy as it plans to meet the state's electricity needs over the next two decades. State utility regulators heard testimony Tuesday on the energy plans from Southern Co. subsidiary Georgia Power, which must submit new plans every three years.
Italy Seizes $1.5B From Steel Family
May 22, 2013 2:05 pm | CommentsProsecutors allege in the order Wednesday that the real estate, stocks and other financial assets belonging to the Riva family were obtained through the misuse of funds belonging to the Ilva steel plant. Brothers Emilio and Adriano Riva, founders of the company that owns the plant, are currently under investigation for fraud.
New Show Brings Messy Workplaces To Television
May 22, 2013 2:03 pm | by David Bauder, AP Television Writer | CommentsIn its initial incarnation, employees were given the power to determine who should be laid off within companies that needed to shrink for economic reasons. The show drew awful advance publicity — one magazine called it a step toward public executions — and never aired.
Lea Industries Recalls 63,000 Children's Beds
May 22, 2013 10:21 am | CommentsLea Industries is recalling more than 63,000 children's beds in the U.S. and Canada because a support rail could break, putting users at risk of falling. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said Tuesday that two injuries have been reported since 2009. There have been 22 reports of incidents involving the recalled beds in the U.S. and one in Canada.
Boeing Examining Speed-Ups On 787, 737
May 22, 2013 10:19 am | CommentsIt's already doubling 787 production, from 5 per month last year, on its way toward 10 per month by the end of this year. The efficiency of the 787, Boeing's newest plane, has made it very popular with airlines. The company has orders for more than 800 that it hasn't built yet.
Evian Giving Its Water Bottle A Makeover
May 22, 2013 10:17 am | by Candice Choi, AP Food Industry Writer | CommentsEvian is giving itself a facelift to keep up with its sleek, young competitors on store shelves. The water, which is owned by French food and beverage company Danone, is unveiling a new bottle for the first time in 14 years as it looks to reinvigorate its image and win back market share in the premium water category.
