Toyota's Plants Shut Down; New Seat Belt Warning; Heineken Sold Cheap | Today in Manufacturing Ep. 134

Also on the podcast, tile maker fined another half million, Whirlpool settles over self-starting stoves, new humanoid robots designed for manufacturing jobs, Kia to make cars with ocean plastic and startup starts trials for extra-large unmanned sub.

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The Today in Manufacturing Podcast is brought to you by the editors of Manufacturing.net and Industrial Equipment News (IEN).

This week's episode is brought to you by Sigga Technologies. While it has always been at the forefront, more manufacturers are giving even more attention to how maintenance programs can be a prominent driver of these strategies. Register now to watch Jeff Reinke's new interview with Stephen Timms, Sigga CEO, to hear how manufacturers are increasing tool time two hours per day per technician.

Every week, we cover the five biggest stories in manufacturing, and the implications they have on the industry moving forward. This week: 

Whirlpool Out $11.5M Due to Stoves that Turn On by Themselves - @3:09

Last week, Whirlpool agreed to pay an $11.5 million civil settlement after it failed to report problems with 17 models of its electric radiant heat cooktops.

Tile Maker Faces Another Half Million in Fines After 14th Worker Injured - @13:22

Nox US is a vinyl tile manufacturer facing more than a half million dollars in fines after a fourteenth worker in just six years suffered an injury.

Heineken Sells Russian Operations for 1 Euro - @25:33

Heineken is out of Russia, but at what cost?

Seat Belt Warnings Are About to Get a Lot More Annoying - @38:10

The NHTSA is proposing new rules that would force automakers to put seat belt warning systems throughout the vehicle, including front and rear passenger seats.

All Assembly Lines at Toyota's Auto Plants in Japan Have Been Shut Down - @51:40

On Tuesday, Toyota shut down 28 assembly lines across 14 plants in Japan.

In Case You Missed It

New Humanoid Robot Coming for Manufacturing & Warehouse Jobs - @1:01:32

Apptronik is a Texas company that designs general purpose robots. The company wants to change the way we live and work.

The Ocean Cleanup Pulls 55 Tons of Plastic Out of the Ocean - @1:09:41

Kia plans to use recycled plastic from a 55-ton haul recently reclaimed from the Pacific Ocean in its new EV models.

Startup Begins Sea Trials for Extra-Large Unmanned Submarine - @1:13:09

Cellula Robotics's Extra Large Unmanned Underwater Vehicles, the Solus-XR XLUUV, has officially embarked on its sea trials, which will help with the company's development of its long-range hydrogen fuel cell powered autonomous underwater systems.

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