Know What's Happening in Manufacturing
Know What's Happening in Manufacturing
Japan pours $6.3B into physical AI robotics to secure 30% global market share by 2040
Japan has launched a national initiative to dominate the emerging physical AI market, targeting a 30% share worldwide by 2040. A shrinking workforce and a 14‑year population decline have turned automation into a survival tool for factories and critical infrastructure. The government has earmarked roughly $6.3B to accelerate AI‑powered robotics.
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By the numbers: BlackRock acquires 5% stake in Samsung Heavy Industries
Bangladesh’s ready‑made garment sector, responsible for nearly 80% of the country’s export earnings, is moving water‑reuse from pilot projects to mainstream operations. The industry targets a 20% cut in total wastewater across the Greater Dhaka watershed, where 5.3 million cubic metres of effluent are produced daily. A new World Bank analysis underscores the economic upside, showing that commercial returns now outweigh pure environmental motives. The shift reflects mounting water stress in a region that contributes about 40% of national GDP.
India’s industrial production index accelerated to a 5.2% year‑on‑year gain in February 2026, outpacing the 4.0% forecast and the 2.7% growth recorded a year earlier. Manufacturing led the surge with a 6.0% increase, while mining and electricity showed modest deceleration....
Mercedes‑Benz Trucks has begun sales of its electric eArocs 400 construction truck, available for order in 13 European countries. Production will start at the Wörth plant in Q3 2026 with the Paul Group installing the drivetrain, targeting a small series of 150...
Ross Lovegrove partnered with Google DeepMind to create an AI‑human designed metal chair using 3D printing. The process began with feeding the AI a library of Lovegrove’s sketch concepts, fine‑tuning a text‑to‑image model to learn his aesthetic language. Lovegrove then...
Agibot announced the production of its 10,000th humanoid robot, a milestone that underscores a rapid shift from niche pilots to large‑scale commercial deployment. The company accelerated production from 5,000 to 10,000 units in just three months, a four‑fold speed increase...
Ferroglobe South Africa warned it could shut all smelters if reduced electricity tariffs are not secured by 1 April. Electricity costs have surged more than 900% since 2007, now exceeding 50% of production expenses and eroding profitability. CEO Marco Levi said...
Toyota reported a 3.9% drop in global production for February, delivering 749,673 vehicles, marking the fourth consecutive month of decline. The slowdown was driven by an 11.5% plunge in Chinese output and a 2.6% dip in domestic Japanese production, both...
Lufthansa Cargo unveiled its summer freighter schedule, adding a second weekly transpacific flight from Ho Chi Minh via Shanghai to Los Angeles and reinstating a weekly service to Delhi, bringing Indian connections to six per week. The carrier also boosted its North American...
Ukrainian drone maker General Chereshnya and U.S. firm Wilcox Industries have announced a joint venture to produce first‑person‑view (FPV) and interceptor drones on U.S. soil. The partnership will localize component manufacturing and seek Blue UAS certification to satisfy Pentagon and...
U.S. lawmakers have introduced the Critical Minerals Investment Tax Modernization Act, which would lift the depletion allowance for domestically mined rare earth elements and scandium from 14% to 22%. The move is a direct response to Beijing’s April 2025 export...
Lockheed Martin announced it will increase annual production of its Precision Strike Missile (PSM) from roughly 150 units to more than 600 per year under a newly approved Department of Defense framework. The move, driven by heightened demand for high‑speed,...
Rise Baking Company announced a 115,000‑square‑foot expansion of its Pleasant View, Utah facility, boosting its manufacturing capacity and aligning production with growing demand for items such as pies and cookies. The project will bring the plant’s total footprint to roughly...
Manufacturers are turning to advanced technologies to boost product traceability, a critical factor for quality control and regulatory compliance. The guide outlines six methods—including RFID tagging, blockchain ledgers, IoT sensors, barcode/QR scanning, centralized databases, and integrated quality checks—to create end‑to‑end...
Aimplas, the Spanish Plastics Technology Centre, launched the EU‑funded BioSupPack consortium to turn brewery spent grain into high‑performance bioplastics. The 18‑partner project validated PHB and PHA materials, including 99 % biobased coatings and compostable barrier films, and demonstrated enzymatic recycling of...
China’s Jushi has commissioned a 100,000‑tonne‑per‑year electronic glass fibre line at its Huai’an zero‑carbon intelligent manufacturing base, the world’s largest of its kind. The new line lifts Jushi’s share of the global electronic glass fibre market to roughly 28%, reinforcing...
Industrial firms are replacing reactive and preventive upkeep with data‑driven maintenance models powered by IoT. Predictive maintenance uses sensor data to forecast equipment failures, while prescriptive maintenance adds decision logic that recommends or automates optimal actions. The transition relies on...
Geothermal Engineering Ltd (GEL) has deployed Watson‑Marlow 630 and Qdos peristaltic pumps to dose acids, alkalis and transfer lithium brine at its United Downs geothermal‑lithium plant, which began commercial zero‑carbon lithium carbonate production in February 2026. The pumps provide precise,...
Fraunhofer ISE demonstrated that metallurgical gases from Thyssenkrupp’s Duisburg steel plant can be turned into methanol in a pilot plant, leveraging a digital twin to fine‑tune the process. Over 5,000 operating hours, the simulation identified optimal inlet temperature, recycle ratio...
Siemens announced a $165 million investment to expand manufacturing in North and South Carolina, targeting the booming AI and data‑center market. The rollout includes new carbon‑neutral facilities in Raleigh and Wendell, NC, and expanded plants in Spartanburg and Roebuck, SC, adding...
In this episode, host Kevin Lawton talks with Ben Hull, Director of Sales at Item (pronounced "EET-em"), about the company's modular T-slot aluminum extrusion system—often likened to industrial Legos—that lets warehouses and manufacturers quickly design and reconfigure workstations, carts, and...
Electric vehicles rely heavily on Gulf‑sourced aluminum, but the U.S.–Iran conflict has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, forcing major smelters in Bahrain and Qatar to cut or halt output. Toyota and Nissan have already trimmed production by roughly 40,000 units,...
Industrial humidification systems are engineered for continuous operation in large‑scale facilities, delivering precise relative humidity across expansive production floors. The guide highlights adiabatic and dry‑fog technologies, which add moisture efficiently without raising temperatures, and stresses the role of high‑precision sensors...
The Indian government approved 29 electronics component projects under the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme, committing roughly $855 million (₹7,104 crore) in capital. The approved initiatives, led by firms such as Dixon Display, Lohum Cleantech and Indo‑MIM, aim to produce goods worth about...
NASA’s February 19 investigative report blames both Boeing and NASA for the 2024 Starliner failure that left its crew stranded on the International Space Station for nine months before a SpaceX capsule returned them. The 311‑page document details software glitches,...
Liebherr announced that its new 100‑ton R 9100 G8 mining excavator is now available for purchase and will enter series production in the June quarter for the backhoe version and September for the face shovel. Field validation at PT Madhani...
Al Taweelah smelter damage raises new risks for UAE aluminium supply, bauxite flows, and Gulf freight markets. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/03/al-taweelah-smelter-damage-raises-new.html
𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱. That’s the real shift I’m seeing from NVIDIA’s GTC. Using Isaac Lab, robots are learning through reinforcement learning in simulation: ▪️ Millions of trials ▪️ No step-by-step instructions ▪️ Learning by reward and feedback That’s how a machine learns...
SmartRay has launched the ECCO X 050G, a new 3D sensor that extends the ECCO X family to handle highly reflective and transparent surfaces such as glass. The compact unit delivers up to 40 kHz scan rates, 2.2‑2.9 µm vertical resolution and 163 million points...
SecurePrint3D, founded in 2023, unveiled a patented hardware‑enforced print‑authorisation system designed to close the authorisation gap in distributed additive manufacturing. The technology embeds cryptographic controls directly into 3D printers, ensuring only approved digital files can be produced. Founder Ranjith Gopalakrishnan...
HCL Software released CAMWorks 2026, adding native Swiss‑type CNC functionality that automates complex programming, synchronizes multiple machine axes, and includes a segmentation manager for long‑part machining. The update also integrates tightly with SolidWorks, 3DExperience SolidWorks and Solid Edge, allowing toolpaths to update...
Western Australia has launched its first nuclear foundations training program to ready the state’s manufacturing and industrial workforce for the AUKUS nuclear‑powered submarine initiative. The $2.5 million Australian‑dollar (about $1.65 million USD) Defence Industry Reskilling and Upskilling Grants will fund up to...
IDTechEx’s new report estimates that 21‑34% of the world’s platinum‑group metals (PGMs) come from recycled scrap, driven largely by spent automotive catalysts. Companies such as Umicore, DOWA, Johnson Matthey and Tanaka Precious Metals can recover platinum, palladium and rhodium at purities...
The provided source material contains no verifiable information about General Motors deploying generative AI to visualize cars before physical prototypes. Without reliable data, a factual article cannot be produced.
SDI expects a faster 2026 ramp-up at its Columbus aluminum mill as automotive product capability nears completion. https://www.metalnomist.com/2026/03/sdi-aluminum-mill-ramp-up-accelerates.html
World Steel Association data show global steel production slipped to 141.8 million metric tons in February 2026, a 2.2% decline year‑on‑year and 3.7% below January. China, which supplies over half the world’s steel, posted a modest 1% month‑over‑month increase but remained...
More than 100 Chinese companies, including battery giant CATL and EV maker BYD, are racing to mass‑produce perovskite solar cells. The sector already boasts gigawatt‑scale production lines, such as UtmoLight’s 1.8 million‑cell annual facility and GCL Optoelectronic’s $724 million plant targeting 2 GW....
The United States’ 50% tariff on aluminum imports, lifted from a 10% rate in 2018, is being called counterproductive as the Iran‑Israel conflict chokes shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Industry analysts say the duty adds a “Midwest premium” that...
ABx Group’s subsidiary ALCORE Limited has lodged an Environmental Effects Report for its hydrogen fluoride pilot plant in Bell Bay, Tasmania, marking a regulatory milestone. Civil design is complete, a building permit has been applied for, and the first equipment...
Helium is a key supply for making semiconductor chips. We just blew up 30% of the world supply. No helium means no AI chips. No AI chips means no AI data centers. Supply shock will be felt in the markets🩸
High-Precision Industrial #Robot Built for the Future of Smart Factories by @XueJia24682 #SupplyChain #Automation #Logistics https://t.co/OBNMNwnl9U
JX Advanced Metals Corp. announced a plan to invest roughly ¥100 billion ($623 million) each year, targeting its chip‑related material businesses as semiconductor demand surges. The new annual budget represents an increase from the ¥90 billion average spent over the past three years....
Motion 2 Arrives: VinMotion’s Next-Gen Humanoid for Industrial #Logistics by @CyberRobooo #AI #Robotics #Engineering #Innovation #Technology https://t.co/1yMagg0Mmx
"Learn to weld" will go down like "learn to code." Lot of companies building AI "brains" for robots that should, among other things, know how to weld. Idea that AI won't disrupt blue collar work feels like fallacy.
Ohio-based Werk‑Brau Co. has joined the Sweden‑originated Open S Alliance, which seeks to create a universal standard for automatic excavator couplers. The alliance aims to deliver clarity, safety and true compatibility across the attachment marketplace. By adopting the Open S standard, Werk‑Brau...
“ALL fertilizer plants shut” in Bangladesh isn’t true. Most capacity is offline due to gas shortages—but not all. Still serious. Still a warning. Energy shortages don’t stay in energy. They hit food next. #EnergyCrisis #FoodSecurity
Dual-Arm #Robot Achieves Precision Pouring Under External Disturbance via @ZappyZappy7 #Robotics #Technology #RPA #Innovation #Automation https://t.co/pMBVaFJWRY
Athens‑based Erasmus Shipinvest has placed an order for up to eight kamsarmax newbuilds at China’s Jiangsu New Hantong Ship Heavy Industry, breaking its long‑standing reliance on Japanese yards. The firm order includes four 82,000 dwt vessels priced at about $37 million each,...
Sustainability Victoria has opened Round 6 of the Victorian Circular Economy Recycling Modernisation Fund, offering manufacturers grants from AU$50,000 (≈US$33,000) up to AU$1 million (≈US$660,000). The funding targets equipment for recycling soft plastics, e‑waste, tyres, liquid paperboard and textiles, aiming to boost...
‘In an era of AI-generated programs, quick-fix trends, and metric obsession, monozukuri brings back the soul of S&C: human craftsmanship.’
Vertical Aerospace announced on March 27 that Italy‑based Isoclima S.p.A. will become a strategic supplier for the transparency suite on its Valo eVTOL, providing canopies and glazing systems. The partnership is designed to support the aircraft through certification, production ramp‑up,...
