Today's Manufacturing Pulse
Stellantis to pour $1.08B into next‑gen EV line at Mulhouse plant
President Emmanuel Macron announced Stellantis will invest more than €1 billion (about $1.08 billion) in a next‑generation electric‑vehicle production line at its Mulhouse facility, slated to start in 2029 as part of France’s push to electrify two‑thirds of new cars by 2030.
Also developing:
By the numbers: TIEA Connectors raises $8M Series A
Gaskins: How Data and Data Analytics Improve Asset Utilization and Loaded Miles
Patrick Gaskins explains how real‑time fleet data and predictive analytics are reshaping trucking operations. By giving dispatchers minute‑by‑minute visibility, carriers can match loads to trucks, cut empty miles, and lift loaded‑mile percentages. Integrated network‑wide platforms further align operations, sales, and finance, turning backhaul decisions into profit‑center choices. The result is higher revenue per tractor and a more resilient, cost‑efficient fleet in a market plagued by volatile fuel costs and driver shortages.
Agnikul Tests New Agnite Rocket Engine, Claims It Can Be 3D Printed in Just 7 Days
Agnikul Cosmos successfully hot‑fired its Agnite booster engine, a one‑metre, single‑piece Inconel rocket engine printed in just seven days. The monolithic design eliminates welding, machining and assembly, cutting manufacturing cost to roughly one‑tenth of conventional methods. The engine uses electric‑motor‑driven...
70% of Solar PV Factories Show ‘Major’ Defects – Intertek CEA
Intertek CEA’s 2025 Global PV Manufacturing Quality Report found that 71% of the more than 340 solar‑panel factories inspected were graded C or D, indicating multiple major or critical defects. No facility earned an A+ rating and only 2% achieved...
Boeing 777-8 Freighter Mid-Fuselage and Wings Come Together
Boeing announced that the first 777‑8 freighter’s mid‑fuselage has been joined to its 235‑foot composite wings, marking a key assembly milestone at the Everett final‑assembly plant. Production of the 777‑8F began in July 2025, but the program’s market launch has been...
Metso Sets Benchmark with Grate Kiln, Delivering Superior Iron Ore Pellet Quality for DR Processes
Metso introduced its Grate Kiln system, a next‑generation pelletising solution designed to meet the stringent demands of direct‑reduction iron (DRI) and low‑carbon steelmaking. The kiln combines rotary technology, independent grate‑kiln‑cooler control, and advanced combustion to deliver pellets with high cold‑crush...
Rohde & Schwarz Joins FormFactor’s MeasureOne Partner Program
FormFactor and Rohde & Schwarz have joined the MeasureOne partner program to deliver integrated, turnkey on‑wafer RF test solutions. The collaboration merges FormFactor’s advanced probing platforms with Rohde & Schwarz’s high‑end vector network analyzers and signal generators, covering frequencies up...
Skyways – Head of Flight
Skyways, an Austin‑based autonomous cargo aircraft startup, announced a $37 million contract with the U.S. Air Force to expand its unmanned logistics platform. Backed by investors such as Y Combinator, the company designs, builds, and operates its aircraft for commercial and...
Cochin Shipyard Sign JV to Develop Electric Mobility, Energy Storage Technologies
Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) and HBL Engineering Ltd have signed a joint‑venture to create electric‑propulsion and energy‑storage solutions for the maritime sector. The partnership will develop advanced marine batteries, battery‑management systems, electric motors, power electronics and charging infrastructure for both...
YIQIAO Expands Integrated Hose and Fitting Production
Guangzhou YIQIAO Technology Group announced a major expansion of its integrated “Hose + Fitting” manufacturing model, consolidating high‑pressure hoses and precision fittings under one roof to eradicate the industry’s tolerance‑stacking problem. The move leverages three specialized Guangzhou facilities and introduces...
PrimeFlight to Be Alaska’s Cargo Handling Agent for New US-UK Route
Alaska Airlines will launch a daily nonstop wide‑body service between Seattle and London Heathrow on May 21, 2026, and has appointed PrimeFlight Cargo as its handling agent at LHR. PrimeFlight will also begin cargo handling for Alaska at Sacramento International...
West Coast Port Row over Booking Systems Threatens Supply Chain Efficiency
A dispute is brewing on the U.S. West Coast as Advent eModal, the dominant provider of container appointment software, threatens to block carriers from using third‑party aggregation tools. The West Coast MTO Agreement mandates truckers to book slots, but eModal’s...
Melania Trump Debuts Figure 03 Humanoid Robot at White House Summit
First Lady Melania Trump walked onto the White House’s “Fostering the Future Together” summit flanked by Figure 03, a new humanoid robot from Figure AI. The high‑profile demo highlights the company’s push to mass‑produce AI‑powered robots for everyday use, a...
BAIC Unveils 11‑Minute Charge Sodium‑Ion EV Battery with 450 Km Range
Beijing Automotive Group’s R&D unit announced a sodium‑ion battery prototype that can fully charge in about 11 minutes and deliver a CLTC range of 450 km. The pack boasts over 170 Wh/kg energy density and operates from –40 °C to 60 °C, positioning...
Meta's AI Ray‑Ban Glasses Stalled in EU Over Battery, AI and Supply Rules
Meta Platforms' AI‑powered Ray‑Ban smart glasses have hit a trio of EU obstacles—mandatory removable batteries by 2027, strict AI regulations, and supply shortfalls from partner EssilorLuxottica—forcing the company to seek an exemption and postponing a European rollout.
From Transport to Handling: Neura Demonstrates End-to-End Mobile Manipulation for Intralogistics
Neura Mobile Robots showcased an end‑to‑end mobile manipulation system at LogiMAT, pairing its X Move 1200 AGV with the MAiRA M cognitive cobot. The integrated platform not only transports goods but also autonomously grasps, stores, and retrieves items, eliminating manual handovers. This...
Brazil Unveils First Domestically Assembled Supersonic Fighter, the F‑39E Gripen
Brazil has unveiled the F‑39E Gripen, its first domestically assembled supersonic fighter, marking the first time a Latin American nation has produced such an aircraft. The jet is part of a $4 billion deal for 36 fighters, with 15 built locally,...
Samsung to Launch GaN Foundry and SiC Pilot Line, Targeting Power Market
Samsung Electronics will begin mass production at its 8‑inch GaN power‑semiconductor foundry line in the second quarter of 2026 and start sample production of silicon‑carbide (SiC) devices in the third quarter. The move positions Samsung as a new player in...
Renasens Raises €10m to Scale Textile Recycling Tech
Renasens, a Swedish start‑up, secured €10 million (approximately $10.8 million) in seed funding to scale its textile‑recycling technology that uses supercritical CO₂ to recover fibres from blended waste. The capital, led by Extantia with participation from Course Corrected and Norrsken Launcher, will...
Amazon Acquires Fauna Robotics, Moves Into Kid‑Size Humanoid Market
Amazon has bought Fauna Robotics, the startup behind the $50,000 Sprout kid‑size humanoid robot. The deal, whose terms were not disclosed, gives Amazon a foothold in a market analysts value at over $5 trillion by 2050 and pits it against rivals...
Clean Air Advantage
Compressed air ranks as the fourth utility in pharmaceutical manufacturing, accounting for a large share of operating expenses and demanding absolute purity. Electricity makes up more than 80% of a compressor’s life‑cycle cost, driving firms to seek energy‑efficient solutions. Variable‑speed‑drive...
Hitachi Rail to Build a Premium Dining Railcar in Japan
Hitachi Rail will build Seibu Railway’s new premium dining car, the Fine Dining Train “vies,” slated for service in March 2028. The design draws on Hitachi’s Laview express train platform, leveraging large windows, spacious interiors, and advanced control systems. The project...
Türkiye Expands Serial Production of Long-Range Missiles
Turkey's state‑owned defence firm ROKETSAN confirmed that serial production and deliveries of its domestically developed TAYFUN long‑range ballistic missile and SOM air‑launched cruise missile are proceeding as scheduled. The TAYFUN missile boasts hypersonic speed and resistance to GPS jamming, while...
China’s Lidar Giants Pivot to Robotics as Jensen Huang Praises Chinese Supply Chain
China’s top lidar manufacturers Hesai Group and RoboSense are redirecting capital into robotics, with Hesai earmarking roughly $28.9 million to create perception and actuation modules for robots and RoboSense delivering 303,000 units while posting its first quarterly profit. Both firms posted...
High-Tech Switches as the Key to Project Success
Europe’s rail networks are facing higher traffic, tighter construction windows, and the need for uninterrupted service. Voestalpine Railway Systems addresses these challenges by fully pre‑assembling and testing turnouts in a factory environment, shifting complex work off the track. The company...
LPBF Prints Zinc–Silver–Copper Alloys For Biodegradable Implants
Researchers used laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) to 3D‑print zinc‑silver‑copper alloys and demonstrated in‑vitro cytocompatibility, indicating the material could serve as a biodegradable implant. Zinc offers a middle‑ground degradation rate between magnesium and iron, while silver and copper add antimicrobial...
How Explosion-Proof Visual Monitoring Is Transforming Safety in Hazardous Industrial Automation
Explosion‑proof camera systems are now certified to ATEX, IECEx and NEC standards, allowing safe visual monitoring in zones with flammable gases, dust or vapors. Unlike isolated sensors, these cameras provide real‑time imagery that reveals corrosion, ice buildup, or misplaced tags...
The Rise of Humanoid Robots to Catalyse Labour Relations
Hyundai is moving to install Boston Dynamics' Atlas humanoid robots across its car factories and has taken a controlling stake in the robotics firm. The South Korean union has warned that the rollout could trigger a massive employment shock, demanding...
CRAFT Method Gives 3D Printed Thermoplastics Spatial Control over Crystallinity
Researchers from Sandia, UT Austin, Oregon State, Arizona State, Lawrence Livermore and Savannah River labs unveiled a lithographic 3D‑printing technique, dubbed CRAFT, that uses 365 nm light to regulate crystallinity in poly(cyclooctene) at the voxel level. By varying LED intensity from...
Tesla’s Newest “Folding V4 Superchargers” Are Key to Its Most Aggressive Expansion Yet
Tesla has introduced a folding V4 Supercharger that lets 33% more units fit on a single truck, slashing deployment time by half and cutting installation costs about 20%. The new V4 cabinet delivers up to 500 kW per stall for passenger...
Precision In Depth: Extraction Workflows For CFETs And Buried Power Rails
Chip designers are turning to complementary field‑effect transistors (CFETs) and buried power rails (BPRs) to extend Moore’s Law beyond the 5 nm barrier. By stacking n‑ and p‑type devices vertically and routing power beneath the active layers, these architectures double density...
BASF Starts up First Production Plant for 3D Printed Catalysts in Ludwigshafen
BASF has commissioned the world’s first production plant dedicated to 3D‑printed catalysts at its Ludwigshafen complex, using its X3D additive‑manufacturing technology. The X3D process creates catalyst structures with high mechanical strength and open porosity, reducing pressure drop, increasing active surface...
The Wellness Economy's Best-Kept Secret: A 75-Year-Old Finnish Compounder With 24% ROE
A 75‑year‑old Finnish sauna‑heater maker, the only pure‑play public company in a fragmented market, commands over 20% of global sauna‑heater sales and delivers a 24% return on equity. The global wellness economy, now valued at $6.8 trillion, fuels a $900 million sauna‑equipment...
AI Counts Potatoes on Line with Minimal Training
#AI on the Assembly Line: Instant Potato Counting with Minimal Training by @IlirAliu_ #ArtificialIntelligence #MachineLearning #ML #MI https://t.co/voofupOVbE
Pine64 FOSDEM 2026 Update Details PineNote and PineTab2 Progress
Pine64 used its FOSDEM 2026 showcase to reveal notable strides on the PineNote and PineTab2, including e‑ink video playback and functional camera support. The company demonstrated the PineNote running DOOM and a pre‑release QuillOS, while PineTab2 showed H.264 decoding and improved...
Robots Deploy 100 MW Solar on 1‑GW AES Project
Robots install 100 MW of solar panels on 1-GW AES project #energysky -- via Solar Power World: https://t.co/twW6hPg4bg
5-Axis Toolpath Creates Seamless Spiral Deposition
Mesmerizing Time-Lapse of Smooth, Continuous Spiral Deposition with a 5-Axis Toolpath via @WevolverApp #EmergingTech #Innovation #TechForGood #Technology #Tech https://t.co/ziZJBXrx62
Chick-Fil-A Deploys $50 Million to Build Lubbock Distribution Hub, Boosting West Texas Expansion
Chick-fil-A announced a $50 million investment in a new distribution and warehouse facility in Lubbock, Texas, slated to begin construction in May 2026. The hub will support the chain’s rapid restaurant rollout across West Texas, improve logistics efficiency, and create about...
Automation Slashed Easter Peep Production Time From Days to Minutes
#HowThingsAreMade? Easter Peeps? In 1953, Bob Born of Just Born applied #Automation to Peep production reducing the manual time of 27 hours a tray down to 6 minutes. (Business Insider) #FoodProcessing #Manufacturing https://t.co/303bnDz5nV
Unverified ICC Warning Likely Overstates Industrial Crisis
Unverified and likely overstated that the International Chamber of Commerces warns of 'worst industrial crisis in living memory' @TheInsiderPaper
USA Rare Earth Secures $3.1B Funding and $73M Deal, Targets 2028 Production
USA Rare Earth (USAR) closed a $1.6 billion U.S. government grant and $1.5 billion private investment, then agreed to buy Texas Mineral Resources for $73 million. The capital boost aims to bring its rare‑earth processing to market by 2028, fueling a projected $2.6 billion...
Ford Recalls 254,640 SUVs over Software Flaw that Disables Rear‑view Camera and ADAS
Ford Motor Co. is recalling 254,640 Lincoln Navigator, Lincoln Nautilus, Lincoln Aviator and Ford Explorer SUVs in the United States because an image‑processing software module can reset and shut down the rear‑view camera and key driver‑assist features. The fix will...
Dangote Refinery Leverages Middle‑East Crisis to Expand Africa’s Downstream Market
Aliko Dangote’s refinery has lifted its ex‑depot gasoline price to N1,285 per litre – its fifth hike in March – as the U.S.–Israel war on Iran pushes crude to $120 a barrel. The move deepens Dangote’s downstream foothold while sparking...
Decathlon Doubles Order Capacity with Exotec Robots at European Warehouses
Decathlon, the world’s largest sporting‑goods retailer, announced that its seven European warehouses using Exotec’s Skypod robots have seen productivity surges, including a 100% increase in orders at its Portugal hub. The automation cut picker walking distance by up to 90%...
Tetra Pak Rolls Out Single-Serve Wine Cartons in Australia, New Zealand
Tetra Pak has introduced a new single‑serve wine and RTD packaging line in Australia and New Zealand, using its 250 ml Tetra Prisma Aseptic Edge combined with the DreamCap 26 Pro cap. The DreamCap features a screw‑and‑flip tethered design made from renewable plant‑based material,...
Hexagon’s Octave Brings Seamless Digital Thread for Industrial Environments
Hexagon AB is spinning off Octave, a new company that consolidates its Asset Lifecycle Intelligence, Safety Infrastructure & Geospatial, ETQ, Bricsys and Projectmates divisions. Octave’s platform will create a seamless digital thread across design, build, operate and maintain phases, delivering...
CoroDrill DE10: Complete, Easy-to-Use Solution for High-Volume Hole Making
Sandvik Coromant has completed its CoroDrill DE10 lineup by adding two new tip geometries, M5F and M5C. The exchangeable‑tip system uses a pre‑tension interface for rapid, secure changes, targeting short‑hole drilling across mixed‑material environments. M5F excels at flat‑bottom and stepped holes, while...
How Chef Robots Coordinate to Maximize Throughput
Chef Robotics unveiled robot‑to‑robot (R2R) communication, allowing multiple Chef robots on a shared conveyor to exchange real‑time tray position data via built‑in wireless radios. This coordination lets downstream robots target trays precisely, boosting line speeds to as high as 150...
New Platform Gives Industrial Robots Real‑World Vision
Visual Object Intelligence Platform: Empowering Industrial #Robots to See, Understand, and Handle the Real World via @ZappyZappy7 #Robotics #Engineering #ArtificialIntelligence #Innovation #Technology https://t.co/aXMz0KoKHn
The Hidden Costs of Traditional 3D Tools and the Smarter Way to Build Interactive Experiences
Traditional real‑time 3D tools impose hidden financial, operational, and organizational costs that stall adoption across design, marketing, and training teams. The primary pain points are developer dependency, lengthy iteration cycles, and the need for multiple licensed software stacks. Unity Studio,...
Hidden $100M Family Firms Crave AI Guidance
My buddy runs a company helping manufactures implement ai. He showed me the leads he’s getting. It’s nuts. Family businesses I’ve never heard of making $100m a year. They know the need ai but no idea what to do. Crazy...