Indiana report rates Ohio high in manufacturing production and logistics; low in other business areas, by Marc Ransford, Ball State University Press Release, June 25, 2010
Muncie, Ind.—The 2010 Manufacturing and Logistics Report Card, prepared by Ball State's Center for Business and Economic Research grades all 50 states in several areas, including manufacturing and logistics health, human capital, cost of benefits, and innovation, tax climate and venture capital activities. Michael Hicks, CBER director, believes America's manufacturing output could return to the high point of 2006-07 sometime in 2011-12 as companies ramp up production to meet growing consumer demand.

Editorial: Developments looking good for the area, Warren Tribune-Chronicle, June 25, 2010
Warren, Ohio—While this week, and perhaps for the next month, the spotlight will shine on local auto manufacturing, this is just one development that appears to be shifting momentum in favor of the local economy.

Industry leaders meet to discuss shale drilling, by Grace Wyler, Youngstown Vindicator, June 25, 2010
Pittsburgh—More than 200 representatives from the world’s leading steel and natural-gas companies gathered here for a conference hosted by trade publication Steel Business Briefing on new business opportunities in the growing domestic shale drilling industry.

Facility taking shape, by Marly Kosinski, Warren Tribune-Chronicle, June 25, 2010
Warren, Ohio—Mark Marvin has made good on his promise to bring jobs to the city where he grew up, with several people already hired for his company, Reinforcement Systems of Ohio, LLC.

Steel Institute commends Ryan, Murphy, Youngstown Business Journal, June 25, 2010
Washington—he American Iron and Steel Institute is commending U.S. Reps. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and Tim Murphy (R-Pa.) for their "urgent" call to the House of Representatives to put more pressure on China's currency changes. The changes, AISI officials argue, will continue to harm the steel industry's economic recovery.

Ohio Third Frontier Commission awards money to NE Ohio biomed companies, by Chuck Soder, Crain's Cleveland Business, June 24, 2010
Cleveland—The big winners during the Ohio Third Frontier Commission's Wednesday meeting were biomedical companies, particularly those focused on imaging, as well as venture development group JumpStart Inc. and interns across the state.

Utility to start bond-fund for local manufacturers, Toledo Blade, June 24, 2010
Toledo—FirstEnergy Corp. and its Ohio utility companies will sponsor a coordinated bond-fund program through the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority and two port authorities in northeast Ohio to support lending to local manufacturers.

EPA asked to help keep 214 jobs in N. Baltimore, Toledo Blade, June 24, 2010
North Baltimore, Ohio—Ohio’s governor has asked state environmental regulators to come up with a way to save 214 jobs at Continental Structural Plastics in North Baltimore, which is considering a move to Indiana because of an environmental rule.

Lake County Port Authority gets closer to issuing bonds, by John Arthur Hutchison, Willoughby News-Herald, June 24, 2010
Painesville, Ohio—The Lake County Port Authority board moved a step closer Wednesday to issuing Recovery Zone Facility Bonds to help finance $8.2 million of improvements to the Great Lakes Mall in Mentor and to help Avery Dennison pay for a $9 million expansion project at the Mentor facility.

New Chevrolet Cruze must compete against rivals Civic, Corolla to help GM survive, by Tom Krisher, AP via Akron Beacon Journal, June 24, 2010
Ann Arbor, Mich.—General Motors thinks it can finally sell a good small car. The company's past attempts included the Corvair and Vega, but now it will roll out the Chevrolet Cruze in September — betting it can attract younger drivers and succeed in the most competitive segment of the worldwide auto market.

• Farewell, Cobalt. Hello, Cruze., by Dan O'Brien, Youngstown Business Journal, June 24, 2010
• Lordstown bids farewell to Cobalt, looks forward to Cruze, WCPN IdeaStream, June 23, 2010
  
• Lordstown’s Cobalt rides quietly into history, by Grace Wyler, Youngstown Vindicator, June 22, 2010

GM plans IPO to sell 20% of U.S. cut of firm, Akron Beacon Journal, June 24, 2010
Detroit—General Motors Co. is preparing for an initial public offering that would sell 20 percent of the U.S. Treasury's stake in the automaker and reduce the government to a minority owner, said two people familiar with the plan.

Guaranteed risks in America's "green" loans, by Peter Eavis, Wall Street Journal, June 24, 2010
Washington—Through the Department of Energy, the government is guaranteeing loans to clean-energy companies. But the loan program's success depends on the viability of firms involved. And a closer look at two big recipients shows some of the risks in store for taxpayers. (Subscription)

GE to double investment in energy efficiency, AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 24, 2010
Fairfield, Conn.—General Electric Co. said Thursday that its plan to pour $5 billion in investments into energy efficient and environmentally oriented projects has been met a year ahead of schedule.

Companies ramp up spending, fuel economic growth, by Christopher S. Rugaber and Daniel Wagner, AP via Akron Beacon Journal, June 24, 2010
Washington—Businesses have invested more money in machinery, computers, steel and other metals in three of the past four months. The uptick is fueling economic growth in the second quarter and may lead to more jobs later this year.

Judge denies Toyota plea on shielding trade secrets in product lawsuit, Reuters via Toledo Blade, June 24, 2010
Santa Ana, Calif.—Toyota Motor Corp. lost a key courtroom skirmish with product-liability lawyers Wednesday over rules for safeguarding its trade secrets during litigation that stems from complaints about its cars racing out of control.

Ford to build $450 million car plant in Thailand, AP via Toledo Blade, June 24, 2010
Bangkok—Ford Motor Co. is investing $450 million in a new passenger car plant in Thailand, cementing the country’s status as an Asian manufacturing base for the automaker despite prolonged political unrest.

Third Frontier Commission recommends $7 million in grants for Northeast Ohio imaging, biomedical projects, by Tom Breckenridge, Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 23, 2010
Cleveland—Ohio's high-tech development leaders want to pump nearly $7 million in awards into cutting-edge projects at medical-imaging and biomedical companies in Northeast Ohio.

Toyota names new leaders at North American plants, AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 23, 2010
New York—Toyota Motor Corp. is naming new leaders at five of its factories in North America and replacing two Japanese executives with Americans, saying the moves will give more authority to local managers.

Union: Ford to stop making Escape in Mo. next year, AP via Toledo Blade, June 23, 2010
Jefferson City, Mo.—Ford Motor Co. plans to stop making the Escape in Missouri by the end of next year and shift production of its next-generation sport utility vehicle to Kentucky, a union president said Tuesday.

Chrysler's 4 area plants plan 2-week shutdown, Toledo Blade, June 22, 2010
Toledo—Chrysler Group LLC will shut down its four regional factories the weeks of July 12 and July 19 as the automaker switches over to begin manufacturing 2011 model-year vehicles.

Niles Expanded Metals ready to expand, by George Nelson, Youngstown Business Journal, June 22, 2010
Niles, Ohio—Niles Expanded Metals has been planning for growth for the past few years, and executives say they hope to be able to move forward soon -- perhaps in a month -- on an expansion.

General Motors creates South American unit, AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 22, 2010
Detroit—The Detroit automaker appointed Jaime Ardila as president of GM South America. It will be based in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

• GM creates South America unit, by Tom Murphy and Sharon Terlep, Wall Street Journal, June 23, 2010 (Subscription)

Lordstown’s Cobalt rides quietly into history, by Grace Wyler, Youngstown Vindicator, June 22, 2010
Lordstown, Ohio—After six turbulent years, the General Motors complex here will bid farewell to the Chevrolet Cobalt when the last car rolls off the line this week.

V&M to break ground on project, by David Skolnick, Youngstown Vindicator, June 22, 2010
Youngstown, Ohio—V&M Star and Vallourec, its parent company, will break ground Monday in a ceremony to officially begin the construction of its $650 million expansion project.

Automakers pare paychecks, by Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher, AP via Akron Beacon Journal, June 22, 2010
Detroit—Newly hired members of the United Auto Workers at GM, Ford and Chrysler make about $14 an hour, half what veterans make under their current contract.

Vitamix must pay more than $11 million for infringing on a competitor's patents, jury says, by Janet Cho, Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 21, 2010
Olmsted Township, Ohio—After four years of arguing over the design of one of its commercial blender jars, Vitamix Corp. must pay more than $11 million in damages for infringing on a competitor's patents, a federal jury in Utah decided.

University of Akron creates FirstEnergy Advanced Energy Research Center, by Shannon Mortland, Crain's Cleveland Business, June 21, 2010
Akron—The University of Akron has created the FirstEnergy Advanced Energy Research Center to develop technology to generate efficient electric power with minimal carbon dioxide emissions.

GM hopes Cruze is No. 1 small car, AP via Youngstown Vindicator, June 21, 2010
Ann Arbor, Mich.—Engineers say the new GM leadership has figured out that there’s only a small cost difference between mediocre and great. Now they can spend a little more to make a car better, as long as they work with parts companies to control costs.

Factories grapple with how fast to ramp up, by Kris Maher, Wall Street Journal, June 21, 2010
Canton, Ohio—Timken Co. stands at a crossroads, along with thousands of other manufacturers gearing up for recovery, trying to decide which orders it can fill without overextending itself, and raising anxiety among some customers who might be left out. (Subscription)

By improving energy efficiency, local firms dodge FirstEnergy fee, by Chuck Soder, Crain's Cleveland Business, June 21, 2010
Cleveland—Five companies with operations in Northeast Ohio already have received state approval that will allow them to forgo paying the fee for a given period of time, and a few dozen other businesses and organizations in FirstEnergy's Ohio territories have applied for the same exemption. (Subscription)

Area manufacturers have their say on new Max Hayes, by Dan Shingler, Crain's Cleveland Business, June 21, 2010
Cleveland—Max Hayes High School, slated for a $46 million reconstruction project, is getting some support and input from local manufacturers and other businesses who want their suggestions to be heard before the school is redesigned and rebuilt over the next three years. (Subscription)

Richmond Heights' Nextant Aerospace looks to reach new heights by reconstructing light jets, by Jay Miller, Crain's Cleveland Business, June 21, 2010
Richmond Heights, Ohio—3-year-old Nextant Aerospace LLC has begun selling its 400NEXT twin- engine, eight-seat aircraft and finding buyers willing to plunk down about $3.9 million on a like-new turbojet that flies farther and on less fuel than the plane it once was. (Subscription)

Biden: Michigan plant part of energy 'revolution', AP via Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 21, 2010
Midland, Mich.—Ground was broken Monday on an advanced battery manufacturing facility expected to create hundreds of jobs and, according to Vice President Joe Biden, boost a U.S. energy production "revolution."

Plain Dealer picks top 75 workplaces in Ohio, by Randy Roguski, Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 20, 2010
Cleveland—To assess the region's employers, the PD enlisted an independent workplace consultant, Workplace Dynamics of Exton, Pa. Manufacturers who made the cut include: Invacare Corp., Lubrizol Corp. Sherwin-Williams Company, Swagelok Company, Clark-Reliance Corp., Majestic Steel USA Inc., ShurTech, Swiger Coil Systems LLC, Bowden Manufacturing, Original Mattress Factory, RPM International, Thogus Products Companies and Wateredge Inc.

Glass-decorating firm to open plant in Ohio, AP via Canton Repository, June 20, 2010
Columbus—A Canadian firm that decorates bottles for Jack Daniels, Smirnoff and other companies plans to locate its first U.S. manufacturing plant in central Ohio.

Kent Displays chief likes energy, enthusiasm, by Shaheen Samavati, Cleveland Plain Dealer, June 20, 2010
Kent, Ohio—Albert Green is chief executive of Kent Displays Inc. in Kent. Early this year, Kent Displays launched its first consumer product called the Boogie Board, an electronic writing tablet that uses the company's patented LCD technology.

Wood Co. plant may send 214 jobs to Indiana, by Tom Troy, Toledo Blade, June 20, 2010
North Baltimore, Ohio—Continental Structural Plastics, an auto parts painting business, is considering moving its plant and almost all of the 220 jobs to a vacant facility in Indiana unless cost savings can be found, a company official said Saturday.

Lordstown makes transition from Cobalt to Cruze, by Larry Ringler, Warren Tribune-Chronicle, June 20, 2010
Lordstown, Ohio—Overshadowed in recent months by growing excitement over July's launch of the upscale Chevrolet Cruze, the Chevrolet Cobalt is scheduled to reach the end of the line when the last car rolls off late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

UAW watching foreign owners, by Keith Naughton, Bloomberg News via Akron Beacon Journal, June 19, 2010
Detroit—Bob King, new president of the United Auto Workers union, said organizing the U.S. factory workers of foreign companies is his top priority.

Factory in B.G. to close; 100 workers to lose jobs, Toledo Blade, June 19, 2010
Bowling Green, Ohio—Thomas & Betts Corp. told employees this week that the East Poe Road plant will close by the end of July and the work will be moved to Tennessee.