Palmer Johnson broke ground on a 20,000 sq. ft. equipment reconditioning facility in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, set to open in June 2019. The center will increase production capacity 15-20 times current levels.

XCMG delivered the first batch of its GTBZ58S aerial work platforms, the world's tallest at 58.6 meters, to Sinopec Heavy Lifting & Transportation Co., Ltd. at bauma China 2018.

Valmet Sundsvall has invested in a large Hyundai-Wia CNC lathe model L700MA, delivered by Lichron. The lathe weighs 18 tons and is used for heavy machining of pulp and paper equipment.

SMEC (S-MAC) signed a contract with SMEC America to supply machine tools. The contract is worth 46.84652 billion won, representing 29.07% of SMEC's recent revenue.

Komatsu is planning a $7.1 million addition at its South Longview plant, including a new parts warehouse and offices covering about 81,000 square feet. The project follows a recent $6 million power lab expansion.

R&B Plastics Machinery announced a strategic partnership with SIKA Machinery Co. of Taiwan and Seecor Blow Moulding Solutions of South Africa to produce new fully electric, hybrid, and hydraulic blow molding machines for the North American market.

Bodycote announced plans for significant expansion of its new Rotherham facility, securing extra units on the Advanced Manufacturing Park nearly three times the size of the existing unit, due to customer demand.

Bodycote held an official opening ceremony for its new advanced heat treatment facility on the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham, UK. The facility supports aerospace and power generation markets and is now fully operational.

Sodimas signed a contract worth EUR 3.5 million to supply 23 Mégalift freight elevators to an unnamed customer in Algeria, with deliveries scheduled between March and September 2019.

Sodimas invested EUR 1.5 million in a new 3,000 m² factory in Pont-de-l'Isère, France, to manufacture Mégalift freight elevators. The facility currently employs 10 people and targets annual production of 100 units within three years.

E.K. Machine broke ground on a new manufacturing facility for its Power Products division at its Fall River, Wisconsin site, with construction due for completion by June 2019 and 20 new jobs planned.

Imprepack, a Belgian chocolate packaging printer, installed a new Roland 705 LV Evolution press to meet business development targets and market needs. The press was supplied by Manroland Sheetfed.

Brown & Holmes Ltd has invested in a new Doosan Mynx 9500 3-axis vertical machining centre from Mills CNC, installed in May 2018. The investment was driven by a growing order book and a new contract to machine titanium components for a defence sector customer.

Gulf Controls Company acquired the assets of the Fluid Power division of Valin Corporation on November 30, 2018, and rebranded as GCC. The division, a distributor of hydraulic, pneumatic and electric products with locations in Kent and Spokane, Washington and Portland, Oregon, joins Employee Owned Holdings.

An affiliate of Sun Capital Partners signed a definitive agreement to acquire the drive technologies businesses of Regal Beloit Corporation, which design and assemble motor control solutions for industrial applications.

John Deere announced a strategic supplier agreement with Wacker Neuson to initially provide compact excavators ranging from 1.7 to 7.5 tons in China, Southeast Asia and Oceania.

Alfa Laval won an order worth approximately SEK 110 million to supply air cooler systems to a gas processing plant in the U.S. The order is booked in the Welded Heat Exchangers unit of the Energy Division, with deliveries scheduled for 2019.

Mazak Corporation has acquired MegaStir, a supplier of friction stir welding tools and technology. The acquisition expands Mazak's HYBRID Multi-Tasking Machine Technology and will establish a new FSW technology center.

Yaskawa Electric Corporation began full-fledged operations at Yaskawa Solution Factory, a next-generation production plant at its Iruma Plant in Saitama Prefecture. The plant will manufacture the Σ-7 AC servo drive series and serve as an IoT validation plant.

Davis-Standard, LLC acquired Thermoforming Systems LLC (TSL) of Yakima, Washington. TSL designs and manufactures thermoforming equipment for the North American food packaging industry.

Pipeline Plastics invested in KraussMaffei Berstorff pipe extrusion lines for multi-facility expansion, adding 1000 mm lines at Levelland, Texas and Belle Fourche, South Dakota facilities, with a new South East Coast facility planned.

Axel Johnson International's Lifting Solutions business group has acquired AMC s.r.l., a spin-off of Politecnico di Torino that provides advanced non-destructive testing technologies for steel wire ropes. The acquisition adds digital solutions to Lifting Solutions' service offering.

Metso closed the acquisition of UK-based combustion solutions provider Kiln Flame Systems (KFS) to strengthen its pyro processing capabilities. Financial details were not disclosed.

JS Corrugating Machinery will set up a EUR10 million (USD11.4 million) unit in Arcore, Italy, to build corrugated board production lines and a research and development center, as part of its overseas expansion strategy.

Element Materials Technology won a three-year outsourcing contract with TechnipFMC to provide on-site non-destructive testing services at its umbilicals manufacturing site in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. Eight experts will provide 24/7 testing services.

Lincoln Electric acquired Inovatech Engineering Corporation, a Canadian manufacturer of advanced robotic plasma cutting solutions for structural steel applications. The transaction details were not disclosed.

Robert Bosch Power Tool Ltd. is investing 14 billion forints (EUR 43.3 million) to establish a European competence centre and expand tool assembly capacity in Miskolc, Hungary.

Ziehl-Abegg broke ground on a new factory in the Hohenlohe Business Park in Kupferzell, Germany, for the production of energy-efficient electric drives and fans. The €28 million investment will relocate EC production from Künzelsau and expand capacity.

Shape Technologies Group announced the creation of Shape Process Automation, combining Dynamic Robotic Solutions and Tech-Con Automation, to be a leading supplier of waterjet and laser robotic solutions.

Olsson Industrial Electric, part of NAES Corporation, acquired Garrett Electric, an electrical contractor headquartered in Richland, Washington, in December 2018. The acquisition price was not disclosed.

Endeco Omega Sinto moved into a new 2,000 m² fabrication facility in Wadeville, Gauteng, doubling its previous floor space, in December 2018.

Siemens entered into a cooperative agreement with Italian robot manufacturer Comau to offer Sinumerik Run MyRobot / DirectControl, integrating robot kinematics into a CNC system.

Aluminum Castings Company (ACC), a subsidiary of Alcast, purchased the operating assets of Alcast Company Midwest Works LLC.

Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., Ltd. is taking over WILBERT TowerCranes GmbH, a German manufacturer of top-slewing tower cranes, to gain access to the European market.

Energomashspetsstal (EMSS) won a tender to supply 377 tons of rolls to Zaporizhstal. The agreement was signed in November 2018, and EMSS will produce 16 vertical and back up rolls for cold- and hot-rolling mills, to be shipped in installments in 2019.

HALEX Holding GmbH acquired 100% of the shares of Forte Wärmebehandlung GmbH, a specialist in heat and surface treatment of metallic materials, from Forte Heat Treatments Limited.

Wacker Neuson Group officially opened a new production plant and R&D center in Pinghu, near Shanghai, China, at the end of November 2018. The facility will produce mini excavators and construction equipment for the Chinese market.

LMT Group, a technology trading group, acquired PLM Group, a Dassault Systèmes SOLIDWORKS partner and reseller of 3D printers, to expand its platform in the Nordic and Baltic countries.

The Toronto Transit Commission awarded a three-year framework contract to Rhomberg Sersa North America and Linmag Partnership to mill rails on its subway network using Linsinger milling technology.

Preziss announced a new 1,000 square meter plant to increase production and R&D capacity by over 40%, expected to be at full capacity in February 2019.

Gulf Controls Company acquired the assets of the Fluid Power division of Valin Corporation on 30 November 2018. Valin Fluid Power, a hydraulic, pneumatic and electric products distributor with sites in Washington and Oregon, became a division of GCC.

Xenon Private Equity-backed Tecnopool acquired Logiudice Forni and Mimac Italia, creating a group with 500 employees and 8 plants in 4 countries, with combined sales of around EUR 100 million.

Arvind Ltd received NCLT approval to demerge its textile, branded apparel and heavy engineering businesses into Arvind Fashions Ltd and Anup Engineering Ltd, which will be listed separately.

Lucart has started up an AHEAD-2.0S tissue machine and a TT WIND-H slitter rewinder supplied by Toscotec at its Porcari mill in Lucca, Italy. The machine has a paper width of 2,850 mm, operating speed of 2,000 m/min, and production capacity of 125 t/d.

OMRON announced a partnership with AI venture AISing to jointly develop an AI engine for control equipment, aiming to realize defect-free production lines.

ADNOC inaugurated its Taweelah Gas Compression Plant, 50 km north of Abu Dhabi, with three compression trains that can process up to 450 mmscfd of sales gas. Siemens was the main contractor for the project, and the inauguration was reported on 29 November 2018.

Takeuchi-U.S. named Skyworks LLC as a new dealer in Fort Myers, Florida, following Skyworks' acquisition of Southern Gulf Equipment. Skyworks will sell and rent Takeuchi compact equipment.

United Wagon Company won a tender to supply Deutsche Bahn with 130 Sggrs80 articulated container flat cars by 2020, with an option for additional cars.

Schaeffler signed a purchase agreement to acquire Elmotec Statomat Holding, based in Karben near Frankfurt.

Dong Gang Precision Machinery (东刚精密机械) is building a second-phase project at its site in Toyota Town, Nanjing County, Fujian, with an investment of USD 8.5 million. The project includes a steel-structured factory and equipment for five-axis CNC machine tools and rubber/plastic CNC machinery. Construction started in November 2018, with completion of the steel structure expected by February 2019 and production starting in May 2019.