Porosity and sealing affect engine blocks, wheels and other big auto parts.

MAGDEBURG, Germany—Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Factory Operation and Automation IFF have come up with an automated visual inspection system that is reliable and economic even for one-off production runs.

Chrysler Group LLC is betting big on its new Dodge Dart compact sedan, which hits dealer showrooms in June.

BARRINGTON, NJ—Edmund Optics, a supplier of optical components for vision systems, is awarding $22,500 in grants to university programs in optical science.

LAFAYETTE, IN—Automotive Robotics Proving Labs and Purdue University are planning to build a new, $10 million engine testing facility here.

New technology lets manufacturers operate up to eight dumb cameras on a single controller—greatly enhancing their vision-system capabilities.

Every plant engineer knows that solving simple manufacturing problems can often yield great benefits. This was the case recently for Silver City Aluminum Corp., a Taunton, MA, producer of custom aluminum extrusions and finished parts since 1952.

For the past half century, United Gear and Assembly (UGA) has supplied precision gears, shafts and related assemblies to companies in the automotive, agriculture, forestry, construction, mining, marine and rail industries.

BARRINGTON, NJ—Edmund Optics is accepting applications for its higher education grant program. In an effort to support outstanding undergraduate and graduate optics programs at nonprofit colleges and universities, Edmund Optics will be awarding grants worldwide totaling $80,000.

NEWARK, NJ—The FDA has ordered a manufacturer of dental implants to stop production after finding numerous quality control violations at the company’s assembly plant here.