Industry News

Coldwater Machine Co., Coldwater, Ohio, an engineered solutions and precision machining company that manufactures and integrates assembly automation and special machines, announced a 27,500-sq.-ft. expansion to its manufacturing space, enlarging the facility to 132,500 sq. ft.

Fairmont Supply, Washington, Pa., which distributes industrial maintenance, repair and operation supplies in the United States, appointed Paul Fichiera CEO.

GF Machining Solutions LLC, Lincolnshire, Ill., named Ellison Technologies Inc., Los Angeles, as its distributor to serve customers in Indiana.

Vero Software Ltd., Cheltenham, England, hired Regional Account Manager Heidi Hays to represent the Edgecam and Surfcam brands in the Rocky Mountain region.

A new program at Focus: Hope is designed to get Detroit-area women into fields that have historically been dominated by men. The 13-week training class was made possible by a $370,000 donation by General Motors. The training program enables women to earn four certificates required in IT and manufacturing.

Gallup found in its 2017 "State of the American Workplace" report that 25% of manufacturing workers are engaged at work—eight percentage points lower than the national average of 33% employee engagement, the lowest in this metric. Why, and what can be done about it? Gallup consultants offer five suggestions.

The online magazine Fast Company reports that while the rest of the auto industry increasingly uses robots in manufacturing, Toyota has taken a contrarian stance by accentuating human craftsmanship: "The central role that people play in this corner of [Toyota's] Georgetown plant is repeated throughout the factory and exemplifies the uniqueness of Toyota's manufacturing philosophy."

Rockford (Ill.) Systems LLC and Master Lock Co. LLC, Oak Creek, Wis., have a new joint initiative designed to accelerate the adoption of safety technologies throughout the North American manufacturing sector.

Schütte LLC, Jackson, Mich., appointed Jeffrey Reinert CEO for North American operations.

Haimer Mexico, Santiago de Querétaro, Mexico, brought in Alonso Acevedo as general manager.

Cincinnati Inc., Harrison, Ohio, named industry veteran Rakesh Kumar vice president of sales, marketing and service.

Okuma America Corp., Charlotte, N.C., a manufacturer of CNC machine tools, welcomed Kitchener, Canada-based Praemo, which is in applied industrial internet of things and artificial intelligence, to Partners in THINC.