WASHINGTON-National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) President John Engler is applauding the unanimous Senate confirmation of William G. “Woody” Sutton to serve as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing and Services, sometimes referred to as the manufacturing “czar.”
CLEVELAND-Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. is considering building tire factories in Eastern Europe and Asia by using money from the recent sale of its engineered-products business. MORE
WOLFSBURG, Germany-Volkswagen AG, Europe's largest carmaker, is considering adding a U.S. auto-assembly plant in a move that might also result in the company moving its U.S. operations out of Michigan. MORE
ANN ARBOR, MI-New orders received by North American-based robotics companies rose 39 percent in the first half of 2007, according to the Robotic Industries Association. MORE
SMYRNA, TN-Nissan North America recently produced its 3 millionth Altima sedan, just 15 years after the first Altima rolled off the assembly line. MORE
BEIJING-Lenovo Group, the world's third-largest personal computer maker, recorded a near 13-fold increase in net profit for the first quarter of 2007 as it reported strong growth in PC shipments. MORE