ATI Industrial Automation will break ground on an expansion of its corporate and manufacturing headquarters in Apex, NC, on April 21, 2017. The expansion will increase the facility to 185,000 square feet and create 275 new jobs.

Parlec Inc. sold its tooling division to Techniks Industries, based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The tooling unit will retain the Parlec brand name, while the remaining presetting business will operate as Omega Tool Measuring Machines.

MRC Global became the preferred provider of pipe, valve and fitting products and services to PBF Energy under a five-year agreement. It will also serve PBF's recently acquired Torrance and Chalmette refineries.

AMETEK agreed to acquire all outstanding shares of MOCON, a Minneapolis gas analysis instrumentation maker, at $30 per share in cash. The aggregate enterprise value is approximately $182 million.

Valfilm, a subsidiary of Brazil's Valgroup, announced a 40,000 square foot expansion at its Findlay plant, adding seven new production lines and up to 20 jobs, and will move its North American corporate headquarters from California to Findlay.

Cardinal Health won a $46.5 million fixed-price contract from the US Department of Defense to supply laboratory supplies and wares to the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and federal civilian agencies, with a completion date of April 12, 2022.

Cloacina is nearing completion of a Mempac-I package wastewater treatment plant designed for a winery in Livermore, California, capable of treating 25,000 GPD. The system is scheduled to be operational by the end of April 2017.

Northwest Pump & Equipment has acquired the assets of Clackamas, Oregon-based Performance Pump, which offered over 20 lines of industrial pumping equipment. Performance Pump product lines and staff will join Northwest Pump.

Milliken & Company acquired Keystone Aniline Corporation, a global leader in dyes, pigments, pigment dispersions and polymers, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The acquisition aims to offer customers a broader array of advanced colorant solutions.

Axalta Coating Systems agreed to acquire Valspar's North American Industrial Wood Coatings business from Sherwin-Williams and Valspar for $420 million in cash, as part of regulatory approvals for Sherwin-Williams' acquisition of Valspar.

RenewAire transitioned into a new 111,000-square-foot facility in Waunakee, Wisconsin, more than double the size of its previous building, to meet growing demand for energy recovery ventilators. The facility achieved LEED Gold, Green Globes, and ENERGY STAR certifications.

Borealis and Nova Chemicals have signed a preliminary agreement with Total Petrochemicals and Refining to form a joint venture to build a 1000 ktpa ethylene cracker in Port Arthur, Texas, and a 625 ktpa Borstar PE plant in Bayport, Texas. The JV is expected to be established in late 2017 with a final investment decision then, and start-up planned for late 2020.

Medical device manufacturer Insulet Corp. will break ground on a new 195,000-square-foot assembly plant in Acton, Massachusetts, to produce insulin pumps.

Crown Equipment Corp. will open a second factory in Greencastle, Indiana, leasing and equipping a facility across from its existing plant. The expansion is expected to create 100 jobs by 2021.

Stren-Flex, a manufacturer of synthetic lifting products, will lease a 16,000-square-foot building in Simpsonville, South Carolina, to manufacture and distribute overhead lifting products. The project represents over US$1 million in capital investment and will create more than 25 jobs.

Schneider Electric acquired Renewable Choice Energy, a leader in helping commercial, industrial and institutional clients navigate clean energy purchasing options. The acquisition enhances Schneider Electric's position in the renewables market and bolsters its advisory services for power purchase agreements.

BeijingWest Industries (BWI) will invest over $80 million to build a 276,000-square-foot automotive brake and suspension parts plant in Greenfield, Indiana, creating up to 441 jobs by 2021. Production is expected to begin around May 2019.

Capital Power Corporation has entered into an agreement to acquire Decatur Power Holdings, LLC, which owns the 795 MW Decatur Energy Center natural gas-fired power plant in Decatur, Alabama, from an affiliate of LS Power for US$441 million.

AAR has been awarded a multi-year power-by-the-hour component support contract from ASL Aviation Holdings to support approximately 100 passenger and cargo aircraft, including ATR aircraft.

Liftech Equipment Cos. of Syracuse, New York, has acquired Capitaland Material Handling, headquartered in Altamont, New York. No financial terms were disclosed.

Trane Technologies plans a $22 million capital investment to upgrade its Tyler, Texas manufacturing facility, including a $6.5 million first-phase remodel. The project will create 50 new jobs and retain 469 existing jobs.

Franke Foodservice Systems acquired Sertek LLC, a manufacturer of commercial kitchen equipment based in Dublin, Ohio, to strengthen its quick-service restaurant chain market business.

Ice Energy, in partnership with NRG Energy, will start installing up to 1,800 Ice Bear 30 ice battery systems on commercial and industrial buildings in Orange County, California, under a 25.6 MW storage contract with Southern California Edison. The installations are part of SCE's 250 MW energy storage procurement.

POC Medical Systems Inc. opened a new 24,000 sq. ft. research and manufacturing facility in Livermore, California. The company recently raised $21 million in Series A funding for its MammoAlert breast cancer screening test.

Palziv North America plans to invest nearly $5.2 million and add 40 jobs to expand its manufacturing center in Louisburg, North Carolina. The company manufactures cross-linked, closed-cell polyethylene foams.

4M Industrial Oxidation, a company commercializing a new carbon fiber production method, announced a reverse merger with Woodland Holdings Corporation.

Continental Diamond Tool Corp. is planning a new $12 million facility in New Haven, Indiana, to more than double its workforce from 70 employees, with construction possibly starting in April 2017.

Estun Technology North America, a subsidiary of Nanjing Estun Automation, will acquire and invest $9 million in Barrett Technology for a 30% stake, to collaborate on micro servo systems and collaborative robots.

Grupo Phoenix will invest $48.7 million to expand its Phoenix Packaging Operations plant in Dublin, Pulaski County, Virginia, creating 145 new jobs. It is the company's third expansion there.

Arconic has installed a new Very Thick Plate Stretcher at its Davenport, Iowa facility, with a $150 million investment, to produce aerospace-grade aluminum plates.

Triumph Precision Components, a subsidiary of Triumph Group, has been awarded a $15 million contract by BAE Systems to manufacture gun bodies for the M777 howitzer for India.

The Erapsco/Sonobuoytech Systems joint venture between Sparton Corp and Ultra Electronics USSI was awarded subcontracts valued at $14.8 million for sonobuoy technology systems from foreign sales. Production will take place at facilities in Indiana and Florida.

Arconic completed installation of a Very Thick Plate Stretcher at its Davenport, Iowa facility, backed by customer contracts including one with Airbus valued at approximately $1 billion. The $150 million project was completed on time and $40 million under budget.

Schneider Electric is expanding its Seneca, South Carolina facility, creating 56 new jobs and launching a new product line of motor control centers and enclosed drives, expected to be operational by Q3 2017.

Anderson Process, a Wisconsin-based process equipment supplier, acquired Werner-Todd Pump Co, a pump distributor and service provider in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, in Q1 2017.

KSB sold its Houston, Texas-based subsidiary KSB AMRI Inc to Bray International Inc, effective January 31, 2017.

Wisconsin Oven Corp. bought a 130,000-square-foot former Plymouth Tube facility in East Troy, Wisconsin, for $1.7 million to expand its industrial oven production. It plans to hire 80 to 90 employees between 2017 and 2019.

Loews Corporation has agreed to acquire Consolidated Container Company, a rigid plastic packaging manufacturer, from Bain Capital Private Equity for approximately $1.2 billion, with closing expected in the second quarter of 2017.

Triumph Group secured a $15 million contract from BAE Systems to manufacture gun bodies for M777 Howitzer weapons. The gun bodies will be delivered to BAE over the next two and a half years for cannon assembly, supporting India's FMS deal for 145 howitzers.

Boeing awarded Norsk Titanium a contract to print the first structural titanium parts for the 787 Dreamliner. The deal is expected to save $2-3 million per plane starting in 2018, pending FAA approval of the material properties and production process.

Otsego Ready Mix will construct a new ready-mix concrete plant in the Town of Davenport, Delaware County, New York, creating six new jobs and retaining five positions. The project cost is nearly $2 million.

China's Wanhua Chemical plans to build a $1.1 billion methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) plant in Louisiana, expanding its North American presence.

Eaton and Cummins announced an agreement to form a 50:50 joint venture named Eaton Cummins Automated Transmission Technologies for automated transmissions for heavy-duty and medium-duty commercial vehicles. The transaction is expected to close in Q3 2017.

Rotary Corporation acquired Desert Extrusion, a leading manufacturer of trimmer line products for outdoor power equipment based in Phoenix, Arizona. The acquisition enhances Rotary's manufacturing and distribution capabilities.

Elio Motors announced that AISIN Group was selected to supply transmissions for its three-wheeled vehicle. The contract supports Elio's goals for cost, fuel efficiency, and performance.

Toyota is investing $1.33 billion in its Georgetown, Kentucky plant to introduce Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) and produce the 2018 Camry. This is the largest investment by any automaker in Kentucky.

Williams Sausage announced plans to break ground on a new 180,000-square-foot facility in Union City, Tennessee, with a $37 million investment creating 226 new jobs. The plant will double the company's sandwich-making capacity.

UK-based Wavegrip and US-based Palmer Canning formed a strategic alliance to produce and launch Wavegrip's G1 and G2 can multi-packing applicators in the US. The G2 unit will be launched at the Brewers' Association Craft Beer Conference in Washington, D.C. in April 2017.

The Timken Company has acquired the assets of PT Tech, Inc., a manufacturer of engineered clutches, brakes and torque management devices for mining, aggregate and other industries, based in Sharon Center, Ohio.

ProAmpac has acquired Trinity Packaging, which operates manufacturing sites in Rocky Mount, Virginia and Buffalo, New York, with headquarters in Armonk, New York.