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An investigation into a Chinese factory that manufactures the popular Labubu toys alleged several labor rights violations, including underage employment, blank contracts, overtime schedules above legal limits and “unrealistic” production targets. China Labor Watch (CLW) , an independent U.S.-based civil and social organization, conducted the investigation at a Shunjia Toys facility that makes Labu...

The automaker will phase out its plug-in program with model year 2026, killing not only the Wrangler but also the Jeep Cherokee 4xe and the Chrysler Pacifica PHEV. Despite this change, Stellantis says it will still be focused on electrification, rather, more competitive offerings. These include, according to the company, non plug-in hybrids and “range-extended” electrics – which are still in devel...

New Hampshire’s House of Representatives voted to pass a bill that would make “hard labor” a sentencing option for certain prisoners. According to the legislation , such labor would include manufacturing or assembling work that requires “significant physical exertion,” intended to serve as “punitive retribution and societal deterrence.”  The bill stated that the sentence would apply in the case of...

Semitrailer and truck body manufacturer Wabash National Corporation announced plans to idle two facilities in Little Falls, Minnesota, and Goshen, Indiana. The company expects the actions to result in approximately 270 layoffs. A Wabash SEC filing mentioned 56 job cuts in Minnesota and 214 in Indiana. WARN Notices revealed that impacted positions will include maintenance and production coordinator...

https://www.ien.com/operations/video/22957901/aerospace-firm-pays-15m-for-pushing-shoddy-ejection-seat-parts Teledyne Electronic Safety Products (Teledyne ESP), an aerospace and defense electronics company based in Chatsworth, California, has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle allegations it sold parts to the Department of Defense that were not up to contract specifications. The firm’s False Cla...

U.S. Steel faces a lawsuit from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) after the company allegedly took unlawful action against a pregnant worker who suffered a miscarriage after months of work assignments inconsistent with her doctor’s restrictions. The complaint claims that U.S. Steel violated the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act by failing to provide the employee with “reasonable accom...

On Christmas morning in 2023, the cargo vessel Genius Star XI was on its way from Vietnam to California, navigating through heavy weather in the North Pacific Ocean while carrying massive lithium-ion batteries, when a fire broke out in the cargo hold.  The crew put out the fire, but then, three days later, as the ship sought refuge at the nearest port in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, another fire started...

Low earth orbit is a vast place, but that doesn’t mean it’s empty. And as countries across the globe are increasingly using this space for connectivity and research, satellite populations are skyrocketing – and we may witness some close calls. It was recently revealed that a SpaceX satellite nearly collided with another, unexpected satellite, the source of which is still not fully understood. Acco...

Welcome to another episode of Gen Z in Manufacturing , a podcast where I talk to young people about their journeys in manufacturing, how they intend to influence the industry and what they are looking for from an employer. For this episode, I welcome Gabe Schulze, a 25-year-old industrial engineer at Path Machining + Automation . Schulze holds a bachelor’s and master’s in industrial engineering an...

Another community filed a lawsuit against a group of fire truck manufacturers, alleging a price-fixing conspiracy that forced cities and fire departments to overpay for their vehicles. The latest legal action comes from the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, and targets REV Group, Oshkosh Corporation, Pierce Manufacturing (owned by Oshkosh) and Rosenbauer America. The city of La Crosse, Wisconsin, filed...

Earlier this week, Ford scrapped the fully-electric F-150 Lightning and pivoted away from aggressive EV plans after losing $13 billion on the category since 2023. As consumer demand wanes and the company plans to take another $19.5 billion hit in Q4, Ford is shifting gears toward extended-range gas-powered vehicles and hybrids. The ripple effects throughout the supply chain will be far-reaching, i...

About two weeks ago, I was on a plane in Minneapolis that touched down a bit later than scheduled. As soon as that seat belt light turned off, a line of anxious passengers with tight, some impossible, connections, smashed into the center aisle. Some would make it, some would not, and maybe if this odd Mazda concept from the 1990s made it to market, everyone would have made their flights. 

Volkswagen announced that it plans to establish a research hub at its Transparent Factory in Dresden, Germany. The company noted that this realignment will phase out vehicle production at the site by the end of the year — marking the automaker’s first plant closure in Germany, according to the New York Times . Transparent Factory Dresden , famous for its glass walls, opened in 2001 and began produ...

Anhueser-Busch’s U.S. brewing footprint will soon be reduced by three facilities in moves that will impact more than 400 workers, according to reports. The brewer of Bud Light and Michelob Ultra has sold its plant in Newark, New Jersey , to property developer the Goodman Group, and will close down other breweries in Merrimack, New Hampshire, and Fairfield, California, early next year. A company sp...

On Monday, OSHA announced more than $986,000 in safety violations for the largest transformer manufacturer in North America.​ According to the U.S. Labor Department, OSHA inspectors visited Virginia Transformer Corp.'s (VTC) plant in Pocatello, Idaho, in June 2025. The visit was a follow-up after a pair of inspections last year found cranes used to handle heavy loads with faulty brakes and sw...

A former plant worker received an eight-year prison sentence for committing wire fraud and cheating his employer out of nearly $500,000, the Department of Justice announced .  The perpetrator, 57-year-old John Laakso — who also went by John Trebesch — reportedly worked as a contractor and later became an engineering manager at GAF Materials Corporation’s roofing factory in Savannah, Georgia. His r...

Next month, Mecum Auctions hopes to cash in with a 1995 Corvette ZR1 Phase 5 engine still sealed in its original crate. The engine will go up for sale at Mecum's Kissimmee (kuh-si-mee) 2026 sale. The factory‑sealed LT5 crate engine underscores a growing demand for standalone powerplants as collectibles. Mecum has seen a surge in “component collectibles” as enthusiasts are increasingly bidding...

Jaguar’s longtime design chief Gerry McGovern – and designer of the 00 – has reportedly been fired this past week.

Last Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that Taylor Farms New Jersey, a vegetable processing subsidiary of bagged salad maker Taylor Farms, faces more than $1 million in fines following an inspection triggered by a workplace fatality in Swedesboro, New Jersey.  The investigation began in May 2025 after a worker was killed while cleaning a machine, and OSHA inspectors found 16 willfu...

Within the studio’s ‘Invent and Integrate’ design approach, Mask Architects has unveiled a fully self-chargeable solar motorcycle named Solaris. At its core, Solaris looks a little bit like any other bike, but upon charging, retractable photovoltaic wings unfold, collecting rich sunlight to supply energy to the bike’s lithium storage unit. The project serves as an exploration of autonomous mobilit...

Welcome to another episode of Gen Z in Manufacturing , a podcast where I talk to young people about their journeys in manufacturing, how they intend to influence the industry and what they are looking for from an employer. For this episode, I welcome 23-year-old Roman Andrew, an applications engineer at Fristam Pumps USA.   Andrew spent nearly two years interning at Fristam Pumps while in college,...

Last Friday, Able Groupe pleaded guilty to a pair of felony charges for smuggling illegal baby formula into the United States.  According to the Justice Department, the company, which also did business as Little Bundle and Huggable, sold European infant formula to U.S. consumers beginning in the spring of 2019 on LittleBundle.com.  https://www.ien.com/food-beverage/video/22955484/guilty-pleas-foll...

Aluminum manufacturer Novelis suffered a third fire in two months at its plant in Oswego, New York. The company announced on its website that the fire began around 8:45 a.m. on Nov. 20 and that multiple local fire departments extinguished it by 3:25 p.m. The company added that all workers safely evacuated. The Wall Street Journal cited anonymous sources who said the incident appeared to occur in t...

In March 2024, a nearly 1,000-foot-long container ship lost power and crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, causing the structure to collapse. Six highway workers were killed in the accident and estimates for replacing the bridge are as high as $5.2 billion. And now it looks like the whole tragic accident was caused by a single loose wire.

Ford has revealed a new sales strategy that’s incorporating the biggest e-commerce seller in America. The automaker recently announced that, starting this week, buyers can purchase pre-owned Ford vehicles on Amazon.