U.S. manufacturing technology consumption for the month of February, 2008 totaled $308.50 million, which is 4.4% higher than the total of $295.39 million reported for February 2007. This February, 2008 total, however, was down 4.0% from January, 2008 consumption estimates.  With a year-to-date total of $624.28 million, 2008 consumption is up ...

Toyota has announced that its Columbus, Ind. manufacturing plant, Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing, Inc. (TIEM), will begin manufacturing the company’s line of diesel tow tractors in May. “Demand for Toyota’s tow tractors has grown steadily in the North American market in recent years. Manufacturing these products in the U.S.A. allows ...

Tool provides a simple way to assess the environmental impact of a product.  It calculates a product’s  energy input and carbon output from design-development to disposal at the end of the product's useful life.    The IDC Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) calculator estimates the carbon footprint and embodied energy of any ...

When President Bush signed the stimulus package legislation into law on February 23, 2008, he presented a number of goodies to U.S. manufacturers.   The package includes two major business-related tax incentives that may help reduce the cost of investing in new equipment, as well as spark new orders from customers. One provision of ...

Orders at U.S. manufacturers increased for the fourth month in a row in December, offering hope that the nation’s economy has turned the corner. The U.S. Commerce Department said that the boost in orders placed with U.S. factories rose by 2.3 percent in December; it was the biggest rise since last July.   Orders for some segments were ...

Demand for expensive products, including production machinery, surged in December.  The increase in demand was much bigger than expected and covered a wide variety of products. The boost in demand hinted at some optimism by businesses about the economy.   Orders for durable goods rose by 5.2% last month to a seasonally adjusted ...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently released its annual enforcement statistics report.    In FY 2007, OSHA conducted 39,324 total inspections, a 4.3 percent increase over its stated goal of 37,700. Total violations of OSHA's standards and regulations were 88,846, a 6 percent increase from Fiscal Year (FY) ...

Fastener Groups Announce Formation of Joint Education Committee on Quality   In an effort to provide positive and proactive education on quality for the fastener industry, the National Fastener Distributors Association (NFDA) and the Industrial Fasteners Institute (IFI) have announced the formation of the Fastener Industry Education Group ...

Crown Begins Manufacturing and Sales Operation in Suzhou, China   Crown Equipment Corporation expands its international presence with the opening of its new manufacturing facility and sales operation in Suzhou, China. The expansion allows Crown to serve its global customers more effectively and increases its presence in the worldwide ...