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Workplace ergonomics is getting a lot of attention nationwide in response to a sharp increase in incidents of repetitive strain injuries, such as carpal tunnel syndrome. For the affected employee, such injuries often mean repeated surgery, intractable pain and the inability to work. For the employer, ultimately, they mean higher costs.

To move your company to a better place, it matters more where you are than where you want to go. And before you can see clearly where you are, you must clarify your perspective.

A lot can happen in 0.5 second, especially in the world of assembly. One or more rivets can be simultaneously inserted. Multiple beads of adhesive can be dispensed. And two thermoplastic pieces can be ultrasonically welded into a usable part.

Steel is not about to disappear anytime soon as the dominant material used in the home appliance industry. Unlike automakers, which are turning to aluminum, carbon-fiber composites, magnesium, plastic and other lightweight materials, steel still rules in the world of refrigerators, dishwashers and dryers.

MINDEN, NV—General Electric has opened an printed circuit board assembly plant here to provide prototypes and testing for its measurement and control products. The plant’s state-of-the-art surface mount assembly line represents a $4.3 million investment.

PULASKI CITY, TN—Magneti Marelli has opened a $54 million assembly plant here to make automotive lighting. The facility is expected to produce 5 million assemblies annually by 2016.

SMYRNA, TN—A maintenance technician has been killed in an accident at the body shop of Nissan’s assembly plant here. The technician, Michael Hooper, 43, had worked at the plant for 21 years.

INDIANAPOLIS—Indiana gained 8,020 manufacturing jobs from April 2012 to April 2013, an increase of 1.4 percent. It’s the second year in a row that industrial employment in Indiana posted a gain.

Multinationals are using overseas subsidiaries to avoid paying billions in federal taxes. Is that a problem? How would you fix it? Should the federal government provide a tax break for repatriated corporate earnings?

U.S. manufacturers are betting big on advanced batteries for electric vehicles. Will their investments pay off? Share your thoughts!

A recent wordworking project has given me a greater appreciation of assembly line challenges. Has a home project ever informed your work in the assembly plant?

Color affects mood and perception. It’s amazing how a slight change in color can alter the look and feel of a room. I found this out first-hand recently after doing a little painting at home. Whenever I step into an assembly plant, I always try to take a quick look at the color of its floor, walls and equipment. Usually, it’s nothing to get too excited about.

Carbon-fiber composites offer numerous benefits to automotive manufacturers, such as weight reduction. However, they pose a wide variety of joining challenges to engineers, who must choose between adhesive bonding or mechanical fastening. Each assembly process has many pros and cons.

Carbon-fiber composites offer numerous benefits to automotive manufacturers, such as weight reduction. However, they pose a wide variety of joining challenges to engineers, who must choose between mechanical fastening or adhesive bonding. Each assembly process has many pros and cons that must be evaluated.

Traditionally, it has been difficult to manufacture large quantities of carbon-fiber composites. That drawback has hindered widescale use of the lightweight material in the mainstream auto industry. However, engineers in Germany have developed a new process that makes it possible to use injection-molding technology.

A European consortium called ACOMPLICE (Affordable Composites for Lightweight Car Structures) recently embarked on a two-year program to develop low-cost materials for mainstream automotive applications.