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Luxury vehicle makers have a way of upping the ante, with features that seem more and more unique, opulent and, perhaps, unnecessary.When INFINITI recently unveiled its newest QX65 SUV, it led with the vehicle’s unorthodox paint color: dubbed Sunfire Red, this coating is described by the company as “something people will remember.”That’s because the rich paint hue, inspired by a "fiery morning...

A member of the Senate’s transportation oversight committee said this week that he hopes to effectively “seal off” the U.S. from vehicles made by Chinese automakers.U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, said during remarks ahead of the New York Auto Show that he would introduce a bill in the coming weeks to strengthen an existing ban on Chinese vehicles, Reuters reported.Rules finalized under the...

Most people look at the abandoned former General Motors plant site in Janesville, Wisconsin and see a fenced-off, 250-acre plot contaminated with heavy metals and “forever chemicals” after decades of automotive manufacturing. But some just see a nice new home for an AI data center complex.According to Politico, the site, which has sat idle for years, could now be snapped up by a Colorado-based...

The plan is to move into factory fastening by combining Makita’s battery and motor technologies with Panasonic's fastening and IoT tech.Power tool maker Makita announced Tuesday that it plans to acquire the power tool business of fellow Japanese manufacturer Panasonic.Panasonic created a new division, known as Electric Works Company, to house its power tool business prior to the sale. Under the...

Welcome to another episode of Gen Z in Manufacturing, a podcast where I talk to young people about their journeys in manufacturing, how they intend to influence the industry and what they are looking for from an employer.For this episode, I welcome Adam Zaouague, a 21-year-old automation and data specialist for Reata Engineering & Machine Works, an industrial machinery manufacturer for...

Ferraris go pretty fast. It’s crucial that drivers be able to see out the windows when they’re doing 200 MPH. But that’s just not the case with a recent batch of luxury sports cars the Italian automaker built for the U.S. So, they’re being recalled.The company sent out an alert for 80 12Cilindri models, which retail for around $500,000, because the windows are too tinted. Earlier this month,...

General Motors Flint Assembly plant has been operating for 80 years, and it's the automaker’s longest operating site in North America.And while it’s pushed a vast quantity of vehicles off its lines in that time, you might not believe just how big that number is: GM announced this month that Flint has just produced its 16 millionth vehicle.This milestone achievement took the form of a Lakeshore...

Harley-Davidson notified an undisclosed number of workers that it would reduce its global workforce, Wisconsin Public Radio reported. A company spokesperson confirmed the layoffs but did not specify the number of impacted workers or where they work. WPR cited the sub-district director of the United Steelworkers District 7, who stated that none of the union’s 500-plus members at Harley-Davidson...

Sofidel is one of the largest manufacturers of paper products in the world, but it’s primarily known in Europe, specifically in Italy, where the company is based. However, the toilet tissue and paper towel producer is making major moves in the U.S., where market leaders like Kimberly-Clark, Procter & Gamble, and Georgia-Pacific dominate.Last October, Sofidel announced plans for a major U.S....

It’s a fresh example of the potential dystopian future of work.The Wall Street Journal is reporting that a factory in South Carolina has deployed a new humanoid robot to its assembly line.The bot, called Digit, is operating in a stamping press area at a Schaeffler auto parts plant, repetitively moving baskets of parts to a conveyor line. And while this type of robotics is a bit emerging in...