Switch Maritime, Incat Crowther Hydrogen Fuel Cell-Electric Ferry Hits Design Stage
Switch Maritime and Incat Crowther have entered the detailed design phase for New York’s first hydrogen fuel‑cell‑electric ferry. The 28‑meter vessel will carry 150 passengers at 25 knots, powered by 720 kg of compressed hydrogen, offering a full‑day range without shore‑side charging. Backed by a $2 million NYSERDA grant, the project includes a ZEF‑150 demonstration unit at the Brooklyn Navy Yard and builds on the companies’ prior Sea Change ferry experience. The drop‑in technology mirrors diesel operational profiles, avoiding schedule changes or costly grid upgrades.
Why TSN Is Automation’s New Baseline
Time‑sensitive networking (TSN) is emerging as the new baseline for industrial automation by delivering guaranteed, deterministic packet delivery across shared Ethernet links. Built on IEEE 802.1 standards, TSN separates high‑priority control traffic from lower‑priority data such as video, preventing network‑induced delays...
SCANGRIP Introduces Danish-Made Work Lights for Trade Professionals
SCANGRIP, the Danish LED work‑light leader, launched three new models—AREA 10 CONNECT, NOVA 10 CONNECT and VEGA 4 CONNECT—in North America. The fixtures deliver 4,000‑10,000 lumens at 6,000 K, feature IP65 protection, Bluetooth dimming via the SCANGRIP app, and a compact reinforced‑plastic build. A key innovation is...
Tariffs Turned UK Manufacturers Away From the US Market in 2025
British manufacturers have sharply reduced their focus on the United States in 2025 due to President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariff regime, according to the UK Trade Barometer survey of 2,000 firms. Export activity migrated to Asia and Europe, with China,...
Witron Breaks Company Order Intake Record
WITRON announced a record-breaking order intake, fueled by new contracts with major food retailers such as REWE, Tesco, Walmart and Ahold Delhaize. The company also completed a transition to a dual‑foundation governance model, reinforcing its independence and long‑term stability. Parallel to...
Study Finds Gaps in Visibility and Execution for Supply Chain Operators
Sage’s 2026 State of Supply Chain Report, based on a survey of over 200 retail and wholesale operators, reveals that many small and mid‑size businesses lack the visibility and execution capabilities needed to handle ongoing disruptions. Only half of the...
Brain-Like Chips and LIDAR Sensors May Enable Safer Human-Robot Teamwork
Fraunhofer researchers unveiled NeurOSmart, a system that fuses high‑resolution LIDAR sensing with neuromorphic AI chips to enable safe human‑robot collaboration. The LIDAR sensor uses MEMS mirrors with AlScN material to create a 3‑D view, while AI algorithms pre‑process data directly...
German-Norwegian Partnership Launches Dedicated Offshore Wind Working Group
Norwegian Offshore Wind and the German‑Norwegian Chamber of Commerce have launched a dedicated offshore wind working group to deepen cross‑border collaboration in the North Sea. The initiative follows the Hamburg North Sea Summit where energy ministers pledged 300 GW of offshore...
CollPlant Targets Formulation Bottleneck with New DLP Bioprinting Kit
CollPlant has introduced BioFlex, a ready‑to‑print DLP bioprinting kit built on recombinant human collagen and a biodegradable polymer. The kit includes pre‑validated photo‑active agents and detailed formulation guidelines, aiming to cut bioink development time for tissue‑modeling and organ engineering. By...
First Solar Asks US to Review Alleged TOPCon Patent Infringement by 10 Competitors
First Solar has filed a Section 337 investigation with the U.S. International Trade Commission against ten crystalline‑silicon panel makers, alleging infringement of its tunnel‑oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) patent (U.S. 9,130,074). The patent was validated by the USPTO at the end of 2025...
Iran War Shakes Up Global Shipping Routes
The U.S.-Israeli strike on Iranian targets and Tehran's retaliatory actions have caused a sudden shutdown of maritime traffic in the Gulf of Oman, especially the Strait of Hormuz. Ship groundings and heightened naval alerts have crippled oil tanker movements and...
EV Batteries and Solar Panels versus Climate Change
A University of Michigan study published in Nature Climate Change finds that recent advances in EV battery chemistry largely neutralize the extra degradation expected from a 2 °C warmer climate. Batteries built between 2019‑2023 would see average lifetime reductions of only...
FACC Achieves Highest-Ever Annual Revenue, Significant EBIT Increase in 2025 Review
FACC reported record 2025 revenue of €984.4 million, an 11.3% increase over the prior year, while EBIT surged 49.4% to €42.3 million, lifting the margin to 4.3%. The gains stem from the CORE efficiency program and the newly operational Croatia plant, which...
ASML Plans to Expand Beyond Chip Lithography Into Advanced Packaging
ASML, the sole supplier of EUV lithography machines, announced plans to move into advanced packaging, a technique essential for AI chips and high‑bandwidth memory. The company will spend the next 10‑15 years researching equipment for chiplet stacking, bonding, and larger‑die...
MSC Downgrades India-Europe/Med Network Amid Transshipment Cargo Lift Woes
Mediterranean Shipping Company announced a downgrade of its India‑Europe and Mediterranean services, cutting vessel capacity on the Himalaya Express (HEX) from roughly 14,000 TEU to about 9,000 TEU. The IPAK service, run with the Shipping Corporation of India, will also...
US Navy SPY-6 Approaches FRP with Raytheon Already Having “a Hot Production Line”
Raytheon says its SPY‑6 radar family is already operating on a hot production line and is poised to shift into full‑rate production once the U.S. Navy grants final approval. Low‑rate initial production is nearing completion after extensive testing across the...
EnergyBin Report: Most Solar Panels on Secondary Market Are for Residential Market
EnergyBin and Buckstop’s fifth PV Module Price Index shows the secondary solar market is dominated by 400‑525 W crystalline‑silicon panels, 98% of which target residential installations. From 2020‑2025, more than 8.7 million modules were listed for resale, with 98% being new, all‑black,...
Tratos Group Signs Agreement with Exel Composites to Support Grid Modernization
Tratos Group of Italy has signed a four‑year, £22 million framework agreement with Finland’s Exel Composites to supply carbon‑fiber composite conductor cores for grid modernization projects through 2029. The partnership gives Tratos secure access to high‑performance, corrosion‑resistant cores that enable higher...
Indian Rocket Startup Agnikul Completes Static Fire Test of Three-Engine Cluster
Indian private launch firm Agnikul released a 40‑second static‑fire video of its three‑engine cluster for the Agnibaan orbital rocket. The engines, fully 3D‑printed and driven by electric‑motor pumps, were calibrated to synchronize six pumps, six motors and six control algorithms....
Why Novo Nordisk's Ireland Expansion Is Key to Fighting Off Eli Lilly
Novo Nordisk announced a €432 million ($506 million) investment to expand its Athlone, Ireland facility, increasing capacity for oral products such as the newly launched Wegovy pill. The expansion is intended to secure supply outside the United States and help the company...
IATA Flags Growing Risks Despite January’s Air Cargo Demand Growth
IATA reported that global air‑cargo demand rose 5.6% year‑on‑year in January 2026, while capacity increased 3.6% to a record‑high ACTK level. Africa led with an 18.2% demand jump, whereas the Americas saw a sixth consecutive month of decline. Asia‑Pacific capacity...
Group With Global Ties to EPR Legislation Chosen to Implement California’s Responsible Textile Recovery Act
California’s CalRecycle has appointed Landbell USA as the Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) to implement SB 707, the Responsible Textile Recovery Act. Landbell, a subsidiary of the global Landbell Group, brings three decades of extended producer responsibility experience and operates 42 PROs...
‘It’s Not Just All the Big Companies’: Warehouse Robotics Use Expands
Warehouse robotics are moving beyond Amazon and Walmart as subscription‑based models lower entry barriers. A 2025 MHI study shows robot usage in warehouses jumped to 48%, with 64% of respondents adopting robotics‑as‑a‑service (RaaS) or SaaS solutions. Mid‑size firms like Superior...
Voting Is Open for the 2026 Plant Engineering Product of the Year Program
Plant Engineering has opened voting for its 2026 Product of the Year program, inviting qualified print and online subscribers to select the most innovative products across manufacturing and non‑manufacturing sectors. The voting window runs until April 30, 2026, and nominees are showcased...
SolidSail Mast Factory Starts Production of CFRP Masts for Wind Propulsion
SolidSail Mast Factory (SMAF) in Lanester, France, launched full‑scale production of carbon‑fiber‑reinforced polymer (CFRP) masts on 12 February 2026. The plant, a joint venture between Chantiers de l’Atlantique and five regional composite specialists, will fabricate masts up to 70 metres long, supporting sails...
Dedicated Trucking Comes of Age
Dedicated, or contract, trucking is maturing into a $100‑150 billion market within the broader $541 billion private‑dedicated segment. Major carriers such as Werner and A. Duie Pyle rely on dedicated contracts for 5 % and 18 % of revenue respectively, highlighting the model’s profitability. E‑commerce growth...
Securing Your Supply Chain: The Complete Guide to Sourcing Verified OCTG Materials
Supply chain risk is rising for oil‑and‑gas and heavy‑industry firms, prompting a sharper focus on sourcing verified oil country tubular goods (OCTG). Global demand reached 16 million metric tons in 2024, with seamless tubes accounting for more than half. Verification—through mill...
KNAPP Redefines the Competitive Edge at MODEX 2026
KNAPP North America will showcase its latest warehouse‑automation portfolio at MODEX 2026, including the award‑winning AeroBot three‑dimensional robot and the high‑throughput Evo Shuttle 2D/1D systems. The company will also unveil KNAPP Brain, the industry’s first AI layer built specifically for digital...
Teledyne FLIR Defense Signs Memorandum of Understanding with STORM Adapt Group at EnforceTac 2026
Teledyne FLIR Defense and Norway’s STORM Adapt Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding at EnforceTac 2026 to integrate FLIR’s SkyCarrier quadcopter and Black Recon micro‑UAS with STORM’s Rapid Adapt and Deploy System (RADS). The MoU creates a vehicle‑mounted, modular platform that...
XTI Aerospace's Drone Nerds Business Expands Creality Line with New SPARKX I7 3D Printer
XTI Aerospace’s Drone Nerds unit announced the addition of Creality’s SPARKX i7 3D printer to its product line. The i7 features AI‑assisted setup, real‑time monitoring, and an automatic filament‑switching system that supports up to four‑color prints. The printer is marketed...
Deloitte Unveils Physical AI Solutions Built with NVIDIA Omniverse Libraries to Help Accelerate Industrial Transformation
Deloitte announced an expanded partnership with NVIDIA to launch physical AI offerings built on the Omniverse platform. The new services combine high‑fidelity digital twins, advanced computer‑vision models, and secure edge‑robotics tools for industries such as automotive, life‑sciences, and manufacturing. Deloitte’s...
The Supply Chain Control Tower: Myth & Reality (Part I)
The article traces the evolution of supply‑chain control towers from early 1990s pilots to today’s AI‑enhanced platforms. It highlights how the internet enabled multi‑tenant cloud solutions, yet true end‑to‑end visibility still requires stitching together disparate systems. The pandemic acted as...
CHN Energy Switches on 2 GW Solar Plant at Coal-Mining Subsidence Area
China Energy Investment Corp. (CHN Energy) has commissioned the 2 GW Phase II of its Lingwu photovoltaic project, bringing the site’s total capacity to 4 GW and completing half of the planned 6 GW mining‑subsidence solar cluster in Ningxia. The base will deliver roughly...
How to Blend OT Expertise with Custom Software Development
Industrial automation is moving beyond traditional COTS SCADA and MES platforms toward custom software that delivers richer user experiences and cross‑domain insights. This shift requires new capabilities such as UX design, DevOps pipelines, and API development that many OT teams...
Stratasys Earns EcoVadis Gold Sustainability Rating
Stratasys Ltd. received an EcoVadis Gold Medal, ranking it in the top 5% of over 150,000 evaluated companies. The upgrade from last year’s Silver rating highlights stronger sustainability management and expanded ESG reporting. The company cited progress in Scope 3 emissions...
Clark: Mileage or Home Time? Understanding Driver Retention Trade-Offs in Today’s Trucking
The article compares over‑the‑road (OTR) and regional/local trucking pay models, highlighting that OTR drivers can earn more through mileage‑based rates but face longer time away, while regional drivers enjoy steadier hourly wages and home time. It explains how these compensation...
Russian Rolling Stock Production Shrinks Substantially in 2025
Russian rolling stock output contracted sharply in 2025, with total freight wagon production falling 29.5% to roughly 52,700 units and locomotive output dropping between 15% and 44% across categories. Only metro and tank wagons recorded modest growth, while hopper wagons...
PV-Assisted Heat Pump Prototype with Dual Condenser Reaches 7.59 Coefficient of Performance
Spanish researchers have built a dual‑condenser air‑to‑water heat pump that synchronises domestic hot‑water production with daylight, dramatically increasing photovoltaic self‑consumption. The prototype replaces the single condenser with an additional top‑mounted unit and uses a minute‑level control algorithm. Tests showed solar...
SEEPEX Unveils SJA Pumps for Improved Rock Blasting and Mine Operations
SEEPEX introduced its BN series pumps featuring Smart Joint Access (SJA), a design tailored for rock blasting and other mining applications. The pumps provide a large inspection opening for rapid joint checks, a compact equal‑wall stator for high‑pressure operation, and...
Maritime Vessel Uptake of Alt Fuels Proceeds ... Slowly
In February 2026 DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insight recorded 17 new orders for alternative‑fuel vessels, 14 of which were LNG‑powered container ships. The remaining three orders were for dual‑fuel ethane gas carriers. Overall, 37 alternative‑fuel vessels were ordered in the first...
Osaki Electric Signs EMS Development Pact with Kyocera, Taiwan Plastics
Osaki Electric has entered a development pact with Kyocera and two Taiwan Plastics Group affiliates to co‑create an AI‑driven energy management system called SmaRe:C. The platform integrates solar generation, lithium‑iron‑phosphate battery storage and an edge AI terminal to optimise electricity...
From First Discussion to Final Delivery of a High‑End Industrial AFM
Nanosurf’s industrial‑grade atomic force microscope (AFM) development hinges on a seamless handoff from concept to commissioning, guided by application engineer Dr. Marco Corbetta. He joins customers during initial requirement gathering, defines verifiable specifications, and later conducts Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT)...
Russia Analyst Flags Defense Industry Slowdown
Former deputy energy minister Vladimir Milov’s open‑source analysis shows Russia’s defense‑industrial output, which surged in 2023‑24, is now decelerating sharply. Production of weapons, electronics and combat vehicles fell to roughly half of prior-year levels by late 2025, with some categories...
Bridging the Payment Gap: Why Suppliers Are Taking Control
Supply‑chain cash flow is tightening as buyers cling to cash, pushing late‑payment rates to 55% and on‑time payments down to 37%. SAP Taulia’s survey of 10,854 suppliers shows a five‑year high 66% interest in early‑payment programs. Suppliers are counter‑acting by adopting...
Why It’s Critical to Close Open Steps in Cell Therapy Manufacturing
Cell therapy manufacturing is vulnerable to contamination because living cells cannot be terminally sterilized. Regulatory bodies such as EU GMP Annex 1 and the FDA now require risk‑based contamination control strategies that prioritize closed, sterile, and automated processes. Closing open steps...
What ‘Good’ Looks Like in Modern Procure-to-Pay Execution – New Series
The new Spend Matters series shifts focus from AI‑centric visions to the day‑to‑day execution of procure‑to‑pay (P2P) platforms. It argues that execution quality—not platform age, vendor, or AI features—determines whether organizations enjoy predictable, scalable processes or suffer friction and rework....
RENA Secures 1.2 GW TOPCon Equipment Order in India
RENA Technologies won a contract to deliver a 1.2 GW TOPCon wet‑chemical processing line for Celloraa Energy’s new solar‑cell factory in Gujarat, India. The equipment suite includes InEtchSide 4+, BatchPolyClean N600, BatchEtch N600 and BatchTex N600, and is designed to halve water consumption while eliminating...
LEGACY MOTOR CLUB Adopts 3D Printing for NASCAR Race Car Parts
Legacy Motor Club, a NASCAR Cup Series team, installed two BigRep STUDIO large‑format 3D printers to produce prototypes, tooling, and functional components in‑house. The shift eliminated a two‑to‑three‑week outsourcing lag, allowing engineers to print and test parts such as a...
How America’s Former Steel Heartland Secured a $3.5bn Eli Lilly Facility
Eli Lilly announced a $3.5 billion life‑sciences manufacturing complex in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania, slated to open in 2031. The facility will produce the company’s next generation of weight‑loss drugs and employ roughly 850 engineers, scientists and technicians. The deal, the largest life‑sciences...
Inside the Elizabeth Line’s Next-Gen Alstom Trains
Alstom is adding ten nine‑car Aventra trains at its Derby Litchurch Lane Works, expanding the Elizabeth line fleet from 70 to 80 units. The £370 million project, underpinned by £220 million of UK government funding, responds to the line’s 800,000‑daily‑rider demand and...