Surviving 2009: Service Stampings passes cost savings to customers, by Robert Schoenberger, Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 1, 2010
Willoughby, Ohio—William Gaskin, president of the Cleveland-based Precision Metalforming Association trade group, said as lousy as 2009 was, it showed that many stamping plants had enough creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to reinvent themselves.

Timken sells unit to Japan, Akron Beacon Journal, January 1, 2010
Canton, Ohio—Timken Co. announced Thursday the completion of the sale of its needle roller bearings business to Japan's JTEKT Corp. The business unit has facilities in Georgia, South Carolina, Canada, Europe and China.

UAW ready to take over health care of retirees; Deal saves billions for 3 U.S. carmakers, Bloomberg News via Toledo Blade, January 1, 2010
Detroit—The United Auto Workers union is prepared to take over retiree health-care plans from the three U.S. automakers today, President Ron Gettelfinger said.

Hugo Boss will close plant in Cleveland, Akron Beacon Journal, December 31, 2009
Frankfurt, Germany—German clothing maker Hugo Boss AG says it will close a plant in Cleveland that makes men's suits, but pay the 300 workers there through the end of April.

Toyota takes highest spot on auto-recall list for first time, Detroit Free Press via Toledo Blade, December 31, 2009
Washington— In a first, Toyota Motor Corp. led the U.S. auto industry in recalled vehicles this year, thanks to its largest safety-related problem since it began selling vehicles in the United States.

CEOs see light after a dismal 2009, Wall Street Journal, December 31, 2009 (Subscription)
New York—It was a year many chief executives would like to forget. Sales plummeted, consumers disappeared and profits evaporated. But some corporate chiefs found a silver lining—or at least a new impetus to try things differently. The WSJ talks with Siemens CEO Peter Loescher; Jim Owens Caterpillar Inc. CEO; Marco Tronchetti Provera, executive chairman, Pirelli & C. SpA; and Hugh Grant , Monsanto's chairman and CEO.

JumpStart gives two more companies a boost, by Paula Schleis, Akron Beacon Journal, December 30, 2009
Cleveland— JumpStart Inc. announced grants of $250K each to Macedonia, Ohio-based MAX Endoscopy and Wooster-based ABSMaterials.

GM continues with Saab shutdown as talks continue, AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 30, 2009
New York—NEW YORK -- General Motors Co. is pressing ahead with plans to shut down Saab, though it will continue to hear bids for the Swedish car brand, a company spokesman said Wednesday.

• GM gives Saab a last-minute reprieve; extends deadline for Saab sale to Spyker, The Guardian, December 30, 2009

EPA issues new guidelines for shipping hazardous waste, Waste Recycling News, December 29, 2009
Washington—The U.S. EPA has issued new guidelines overseeing export and import of hazardous waste intended for recycling, with special attention given to spent lead-acid batteries being exported for recycling.

OSU teams with manufacturing group to help ailing auto industry, by Tom Breckenridge, Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 28, 2009
Cleveland—The Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network (MAGNET) will join with Ohio State University researchers to offer training and high-tech expertise to the state's struggling automotive sector.

• Partners to bolster Ohio's auto industry, Plain Dealer via Columbus Dispatch, December 30, 2009

Surviving 2009: JBC Technologies manufactures new recipe for success, by Tom Breckenridge, Cleveland Plain Dealer, December 28, 2009
North Ridgeville, Ohio—Joe Bliss, president of JBC Technologies Inc. in North Ridgeville, found a new recipe to keep his company afloat in 2009 and to position it for growth in 2010.

New Buick GMC boss plans course, by Robert Snell and Scott Burgess, Detroit News via Akron Beacon Journal, December 27, 2009
Detroit—General Motors Co. has unveiled the 2011 Acadia Denali that will make its debut at January's North American International Auto Show and officially introduced Brian Sweeney as the new head of Buick GMC brands.

Whirlpool to reopen factory, bring back workers, wire services via Akron Beacon Journal, December 26, 2009
Ottawa, Ohio—Some laid-off workers in Northwest Ohio got a Christmas present when appliance maker Whirlpool Corp. said it will reopen a freezer factory next month and call back an unstated number of employees who lost their jobs last month.

Auto suppliers turn around, by Matthew Dolan and Jeff Bennett, Wall Street Journal, December 26, 2009 (Subscription)
Detroit—Auto-parts suppliers are making a surprising turnaround, defying fears earlier in the year that many would collapse amid the car industry's downturn and the bankruptcy filings of General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.

• Bay-area auto suppliers face an uncertain life after April closure of Toyota's Nummi plant in California, by Stu Woo, Wall Street Journal, December 24, 2009 (Subscription)