Bloomberg The U.S. manufacturing expansion accelerated in March, driven by gains in production and orders, in the latest sign that the economy is shaking off its winter doldrums and building momentum into the second quarter. The Institute for Supply Management’s index increased to 53.7 from 53.2 a month earlier.

Bloomberg German industrial output rose slightly more than forecast in February, driven by higher production of intermediate goods and suggesting Europe's biggest economy could be on track for a strong first quarter. Data from the Economy Ministry on Monday showed industrial production climbed by 0.4 percent, helped by a 0.5 percent increase in manufacturing - the part of the economy which powers Germany's success in exporting goods around the world.

USA Today The South is home to auto giants Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Nissan Motor Co. It is increasingly attracting some of the biggest names in aviation, including Boeing Co. in South Carolina, Airbus in Alabama, Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. in Georgia and GE Aviation in North Carolina.

Arkansas Business For those half-empty-glass people, the increasing use of advanced technology — think robotics, lasers and computers — in manufacturing has led to a "skills gap" that makes finding capable employees challenging. For you half-full-glass folks, the increasing use of advanced technology in manufacturing means that job opportunities exist for those with the right abilities.

The Washington Post The manufacturing sector has shed a lot of jobs in the past few decades, including another 1,000 last month. But for those who remain employed, some metrics are improving. The length of the average workweek in manufacturing for production and non-supervisory workers is at 42 hours, its highest level since the end of World War II.

Crain's Detroit Business Advanced manufacturing is a complicated process. What better way to understand the newest innovations than experiencing them firsthand? The Society of Manufacturing Engineers' The Big M event at Cobo Center on June 9-12 will showcase the latest in manufacturing trends to educate industry leaders and educators.

Bloomberg David Wood, chair at London Futurists, discusses the potential impact of Toyota’s move back to hands-on manufacturing in place of automation on Bloomberg Television’s "The Pulse."

Business Insider Texas factory activity increased for the eleventh month in a row in March, according to business executives responding to the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey. The production index, a key measure of state manufacturing conditions, rose from 10.8 to 17.1, indicating output grew at a stronger pace than in February.

Romania Insider Industrial turnover in Romania went up in nominal terms by 9 percent month-on-month in February this year, and by 11.5 percent year-on-year, according to data from the National Statistics Institute. The growth was fueled by rises in manufacturing – plus 9.4 percent, but also balanced out by the drop of 1.7 percent in the mining and quarrying.

Bloomberg Chinese manufacturing gauges pointed to weakness in the world’s second-biggest economy that could prompt the Communist Party leadership to roll out additional support measures.

Manufacturing.net The AP is reporting that U.S. employers added jobs at a solid pace in March and hired more in January and February than previously thought. Friday's government report sent a reassuring signal that the economy withstood a harsh winter that had slowed growth.

Bloomberg U.K. manufacturing grew less than economists forecast in March as export demand fell to its weakest level in 10 months. A Purchasing Managers’ Index declined to 55.3, the lowest since July, from a revised 56.2 in February, Markit Economics said.

Milwaukee Business Journal SC Johnson & Son Inc. said this week that it achieved zero landfill status at its eighth global manufacturing facility, the latest one being in Manaus, Brazil. The Racine-based company’s goal is to reduce global manufacturing waste by 70 percent by 2016. SC Johnson reduced its global manufacturing waste by 62 percent as a ratio to production from 2000-2012.

Manufacturers' Monthly The future of Singapore’s manufacturing industry lies in high-tech areas such as 3D Printing and robotics, according to one of the city-state’s main planning agencies. Reuters reports that Singapore's Economic Development Board (EDB) wants multinational firms to take advantage of Singapore's low tax rates and other incentives and invest in high-tech manufacturing.

Automation World In effort to quantify all the talk about a manufacturing resurgence in the United States, Automation World conducted a survey of its readers to get a better idea of what this renaissance feels like—or if it even exists—on the front lines of manufacturing.

FOX Carolina An automotive and aerospace specialty manufacturer is investing $14.8 million with the creation of a new Greenville County facility. Precorp's expansion will create at least 29 new jobs at the Greer location on South Batesville Road.

Highlands Today Costruzioni Aeronautiche Tecnam, an Italian manufacturer of light aircraft, announced Tuesday the Naples company will assemble planes at Sebring Regional Airport. "We've been after them since 2005, and we finally got them," IDA-EDC Director Stephen Weeks said. "They announced it at Sun n' Fun."

Natural Gas Intelligence Virginia's governor has signed into law legislation (SB 519) intended to incentivize the development of natural gas infrastructure so that residents and businesses can better take advantage of low-cost shale and coalbed methane gas supplies.

The Wall Street Journal Atlas Copco, a leading provider of sustainable productivity solutions, plans to move the operations of two of its mining equipment production facilities in Sweden to its competence center in Örebro. The aim is to increase efficiency and strengthen the company for the future.