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1 week ago | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
PPG Industries, Inc. announced today it would spend $380 million to build a new factory in Shelby, North Carolina, to produce aerospace coatings and sealants. The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based paint and chemicals company said the 198,000-square-foot-factory will eventually employ 110 people. In a May 8 statement, PPG chairman and CEO Tim Knavish said the 198,000-square-foot-factory would help meet growing demand for aerospace products.
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1 week ago | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
“One of the things we weren’t thinking of was bed bugs,” says Greg Baggott. According to an attendee at the Indianapolis Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC), the bugs are a serious concern for firefighters, who are often called on to handle non-fire emergencies that can put them into contact with pathogens and parasites. “They’re picking up these things and taking [them] back to the firehouse, which they’re going to sleep in.
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3 weeks ago | 
industryweek.com | Jill Jusko |Geert De Lombaerde |Anna Smith |Ryan Secard
With all of the recent talk about reshoring production to the United States, many companies have complained about not being able to find local suppliers, especially in certain high-tech industries dominated by companies from China. Thanks to more than a decade of state-sponsored investments, China controls much of the market for powerful batteries needed for electric vehicles, starting with the raw materials needed to produce them.
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1 month ago | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
Gwynne Wilcox, a Biden appointee to the National Labor Relations Board, has resumed her seat there a second time since being fired by the Trump Administration in late January. Wilcox was initially fired from the NLRB on January 28.
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2 months ago | 
industryweek.com | Geert De Lombaerde |Anna Smith |Dennis Scimeca |Ryan Secard
Editor’s note: Welcome to So That Happened, our editors’ takes on things going on in the manufacturing world that deserve some extra attention. This will appear regularly in the Member’s Only section of the site. Would supporters of tariffs consider them a success if they led to one in three manufacturing businesses increasing their domestic production capacity? It strikes us as quite likely that they would raise a glass to that outcome.
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2 months ago | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
President Trump’s first month back in office has seen a blitz of executive and legislative promises, threats, proposals and actions. So, let’s take a step to slow down, focus on what’s happened and see what Trump’s early moves signal about labor policies and how things will be in the next four years. Late last year, Trump made one of his most surprising moves since being re-elected: He named a relative unknown as his nominee for secretary of labor, Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Oregon).
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Feb 12, 2025 | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
Employment in manufacturing rose slightly in January 2025 while the overall unemployment rate fell by 0.1 points. According to the latest preliminary figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, durable-goods manufacturing actually lost some jobs last month, but the loss was offset by larger gains in the smaller nondurable-goods sector. January was overall a quiet month for manufacturing-related jobs growth.
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Feb 5, 2025 | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
With the advent of the second Trump administration comes an anticipated increase in Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity, including workplace raids. Operating under the Department of Homeland Security, ICE has broad powers of investigation. They can investigate worksites, plant undercover agents and conduct armed raids with warrants. Employers found in violation can be debarred from federal contracts and fined.
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Jan 29, 2025 | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
A Constitutional battle is heating up in the National Labor Relations Board. On January 28, two days after his expected dismissal of general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, President Trump went further and dismissed Biden appointee and former chair Gwynne Wilcox. The move challenges Supreme Court precedent for the President’s ability to fire board members and leaves the NLRB with only two sitting members — lacking the legal quorum necessary to issue decisions.
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Jan 22, 2025 | 
industryweek.com | Ryan Secard
Stellantis’ Belvidere, Illinois, plant has a new lease on life. According to the United Auto Workers, who pressured Stellantis to reopen the plant, the Chrysler manufacturer has recommitted to reopening the plant and building a new midsized truck there. At the same time, the company announced it would build the next generation of the Dodge Durango SUV at its Detroit Assembly Complex and increase Jeep parts production at its plant in Toledo, Ohio.
