Recently added articles from Manufacturing & Technology News:

Manufacturers and farmers form alliance to battle against proponents of free trade.

Dec 15, 2006; McCormack, Richard ... A new coalition is being formed by farmers, manufacturers and labor officials who are frustrated with multinational companies' control of a trade agenda they say is devastating the U.S. economy. The coalition has the backing of Nucor, the country's most respected steel manufacturer, the ...

DARPA creates program aimed at overcoming production problems.

Dec 15, 2006 ... After years of discussion and prodding from the private sector, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has created a new manufacturing program aimed at fostering a radical transformation of the industrial base. The "Disruptive Manufacturing Technologies" initiative being ...

OECD ranks China No. 2 in global R & D.

Dec 15, 2006 ... China is becoming a powerhouse in research and development, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). China this year is expected to move into second place in the world in R & D spending, with a total investment projected at $136 billion. This would ...

Europe launches huge R & D program.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The largest research program in the history of Europe is about to get underway. The Seventh European Framework Program For Research and Technological Development will receive a formal kick-off on Dec. 22, when the European Commission issues its first calls for proposals. The ...

GAO audits U.S.-China commission.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is undertaking an audit of the United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC), at the request of Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.). "We've been in operation for five years and they think it's time to look and see if we're meeting our ...

Doctorate awards reach new record.

Dec 15, 2006 ... Science and engineering doctorates hit an all-time high in 2005, reports the National Science Foundation. Last year, 27,974 doctorates were awarded, up from 26,272 in 2004. The 2005 number surpassed the previous all-time high of 27,273 reached in 1998. "Although there has been a three-year ...

Momentum drives manufacturing training program nationwide.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The "Dream It, Do It" campaign aimed at training young people for exciting careers in the manufacturing sector is beginning to blossom. The two-year old program is emerging from a pilot stage and is beginning to attract attention, money and commitment in different parts of the country ...

A 'Statement of Purpose'.

Dec 15, 2006 ... About 50 individuals attending a meeting of the Coalition for Competitive Markets in Colorado spent about 90 minutes crafting a common "Statement of Purpose." The proclamation "establishes a very important and substantial common ground among the groups," said one attendee. "It was a clear ...

Bureau of Labor Statistics includes Chinese worker compensation costs in International Comparison.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The total hourly cost of a production worker in the United states rose slightly last year to $23.65, but that doesn't come close to the hourly compensation costs for a worker in China, according to the Foreign Labor Statistics division of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. ...

Bush's pick for nation's top regulator is scuttled by confirmation committee.

Dec 15, 2006 ... President Bush's controversial nomination of Susan Dudley to become the nation's top regulatory official has been dropped by the Senate. Critics claim that Dudley, who is director of regulatory studies at the privately funded Mercatus Center at George Mason University, has espoused ...

Report: regulations are not killing Mfg. Jobs in Virginia.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The state of Virginia, which is ranked by Forbes as being the most attractive state in the country for business, lost one-fifth of its manufacturing jobs between 2000 and 2005, a drop of 66,000 to 296,000, but few of those were lost due to the burden of regulations, according to a report ...

A look back at the Congressional debate over trade with China.

Dec 15, 2006 ... When President Clinton signed legislation granting China with permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) on Oct. 10, 2000, it was widely argued that the legislation would usher in a new period of democratic reforms in China, along with open markets for U.S. goods. At the signing ceremony, ...

Arguing in favor of PNTR House debate--May 24, 2000.

Dec 15, 2006 ... David Dreier (R-Calif.): Today's vote on trade with China is probably the most important vote that we will face in this session of Congress. Make no mistake about it. This vote is a win-win-win for America's workers, America's first-class businesses, and the very important goal of ...

House members arguing against PNTR.

Dec 15, 2006 ... Joe Moakley (D-Mass.): If we do not reconsider [China's trade] status every year, we are going to lose what little chance we have of effecting any change in China. China needs to change. If we grant the Chinese government permanent normal trade relations, we will be giving away what little ...

U.S. senate debate--arguing in favor: September 19, 2000.

Dec 15, 2006 ... Patty Murray (D-Wash.): If Congress fails to grant PNTR to China, we will hinder our broader relationship with that country, make it harder for us to promote change there and damage America's workers and industries as they compete with other countries for a place in China's market. The ...

U.S. Senate debate--arguing against.

Dec 15, 2006 ... Robert Byrd (D-W.V.): The Senate is about to make a grave mistake. It is hard for me to believe that after a year which has seen the Chinese Government rattling sabers at Taiwan, continuing to brutally repress religion, and, generally, behaving like the "Bobby Knight" of the international ...

President clinton's remarks upon senate passage of HR-4444 (Sept. 19, 2000).

Dec 15, 2006 ... There is much more at stake here than our economic self interests. It's about building a world in which more human beings have more freedom, more control over their lives, more contact with others than ever before, a world in which countries are tied more closely together, and the ...

President clinton's remarks upon signing of China PNTR (Oct. 10, 2000).

Dec 15, 2006 ... ... Opening trade with China will not, in and of itself, lead China to make all the choices we believe it should. But clearly, the more China opens it markets, the more it unleashes the power of economic freedom, the more likely it will be to more fully liberate the human potential of its ...

Manufacturing czar takes leave before facing a congressional storm.

Dec 15, 2006 ... The federal government's manufacturing "czar" is calling it quits. Al Frink, an executive with a carpet manufacturing company in Los Angeles prior to his appointment in July, 2004, has announced he will step down from the post of Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing at the Department of ...

Manufacturing policy recommendations implemented.

Dec 15, 2006 ... * Create an Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services to serve as chief advocate for the manufacturing sector and implement recommendations. * Create an Office of Industry Analysis to assess the cost competitiveness of American industry and evaluate the impact of ...