Manufacturing & Industrial Technology

Dallas – – October 02, 2026 -- Sekisui Specialty Chemicals will raise prices on its Selvol Polyvinyl Alcohol, Selvol Ultiloc, Selvol Ultalux, and Selvol Premiol product lines effective October 02, 2026, or as existing contracts and agreements permit.

Price hike targets four Selvol product families used across packaging and construction

The increase applies globally to Selvol Polyvinyl Alcohol, Selvol Ultiloc copolymers, Selvol Ultalux, and Selvol Premiol grades. These polymers and copolymers serve customers in paper, adhesive, packaging, construction, and personal care formulations.

Customers directed to local sales representatives for contract-specific terms

Sekisui Specialty Chemicals advised buyers to contact their regional sales representative to confirm how the increase applies to individual supply agreements. The company did not disclose a specific percentage or dollar figure for the increase in its announcement.

Pune, India – October 02, 2026 -- The global electroplating market reached USD 16.45 billion in 2025 and is forecast to climb to USD 21.26 billion by 2034, growing at a 2.89% CAGR from 2026, according to new research from Maximize Market Research. Demand for corrosion-resistant, conductive and durable metal coatings across automotive, electric vehicles, electronics, aerospace, defense and medical devices is driving the expansion.

Asia Pacific dominates plating demand on automotive and electronics output

Asia Pacific led the market in 2025, underpinned by large-scale vehicle, PCB, connector and industrial equipment production across China, Japan, India and South Korea. North America and Europe remain significant, fueled by aerospace, defense and industrial applications alongside adoption of trivalent chromium and advanced wastewater-treatment systems to meet tightening environmental rules.

Pune, India – October 02, 2026 -- The global elastomers market is projected to grow from $104.73 billion in 2025 to $149.19 billion by 2034, a compound annual growth rate of 4.01% through the forecast period, according to Maximize Market Research.

BASF starts commercial TPU production in Shanghai to serve China's EV and robotics demand

In April 2026, BASF began commercial production of its Elastollan flame-retardant thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) grade in Shanghai, expanding local supply for robotics, industrial automation and EV charging cable applications. The move strengthens China's position as a major hub for specialty elastomer production and consumption.

Conshohocken, Pa. – October 02, 2026 -- Quaker Houghton (NYSE: KWR) has closed a new 7-year, $550 million Term Loan B facility, refinancing its existing U.S. Term Loans and pushing debt maturity out to October 2033.

New facility carries SOFR plus 175 basis points pricing

The Term Loan B amends the company's existing Credit Agreement, with proceeds used to repay in full the U.S. Term Loans previously outstanding. Quarterly amortization payments will equal 0.25% of the initial $550 million principal, with the remaining balance due at the October 2033 maturity date.

New York – October 02, 2026 -- The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and America Makes have launched a searchable online database of additive manufacturing (AM) standards alongside a September 2026 Gaps Progress Report, giving manufacturers and regulators a clearer map of which safety and performance standards exist, which are in development, and where coverage is still missing.

Both tools originate from the Additive Manufacturing Standardization Collaborative (AMSC), a cross-sector body jointly led by ANSI and America Makes, as AM adoption expands into aerospace, medical devices, automotive, and defense applications where parts from different machines and manufacturers must perform consistently.

Concord, N.C. – October 02, 2026 -- Heintz Performance Inc. has acquired Woodward Machine Corporation, the exclusive steering supplier to the NASCAR Cup Series since 1995, in a deal brokered by Viking Mergers & Acquisitions.

Deal caps a 30-year supplier relationship between the two motorsports companies

Heintz Performance, a motorsports and performance retailer based in Concord, North Carolina, had worked with Woodward Machine for three decades before the acquisition. Jeff Edge, a senior advisor in Viking M&A's Charlotte office, represented the seller, Tony Woodward, in the transaction.

North Sutton, N.H. – October 02, 2026 -- Labsphere, Inc. has acquired Photon Gear, Inc., an Ontario, New York-based designer of ultra-high-precision custom optical systems and lens assemblies, combining light generation and measurement with precision lens engineering under one supplier.

Labsphere consolidates lens design and light measurement into a single vendor offering

The deal merges Labsphere's platform for light generation, control, and measurement with Photon Gear's custom lens design, assembly, and interferometric test capabilities. Customers in medical devices, analytical instrumentation, semiconductor, and aerospace and defense can now source a designed-to-specification lens assembly alongside the light sources, integrating spheres, and calibration needed to qualify it from one company, cutting design cycles and reducing the vendor count on a program.

Indianapolis – October 02, 2026 -- EnPower, Inc., a U.S. manufacturer of lithium-ion battery cells, has changed its name to CAMINUS, effective immediately, as the company shifts from a technology-development identity to volume manufacturing for defense, uncrewed systems, and industrial customers.

CAMINUS keeps leadership, facility, and contracts unchanged through the rebrand

Leadership, team, facility, IP portfolio, and existing customer, partner, and supplier agreements remain unchanged under the new name, the company said. Only the corporate identity has shifted, not the operational or contractual footprint built over more than a decade.

Olathe – October 01, 2026 -- Garmin International Inc. (NYSE: GRMN) has been named Manufacturer of the Year by the National Marine Electronics Association (NMEA) for the 12th consecutive year, while also collecting six Product of Excellence awards across marine electronics categories voted on by NMEA dealers and certified installers.

Garmin extends category-leading streaks across navigation, autopilot and safety systems

The GPSMAP 9227, a 27-inch integrated 4K touchscreen chartplotter described as the industry's largest, secured the MFD category win for the 12th straight year. The Reactor 40 Hydraulic Autopilot with SmartPump v2 extended Garmin's autopilot category streak to 14 years. The Garmin OnBoard System, a wireless man-overboard detection and engine cutoff system, won the marine safety device category for the second consecutive year.

Waconia, Minnesota – October 01, 2026 -- Cabinetworks Group, the largest privately owned cabinet manufacturer in the U.S., has opened its third free on-site health clinic in two years at its Waconia, Minnesota manufacturing plant and office.

Clinic offers zero-cost care to team members, spouses and dependents

The 1,500-square-foot facility includes three exam rooms and a laboratory, mirroring sister clinics already operating in Middlefield, Ohio and Independence, Oregon. The clinic is staffed by board-certified medical professionals from Medcor, providing primary care, wellness exams, treatment of minor injuries, chronic condition monitoring for blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol, vaccinations including flu, Tdap and Hepatitis A, rapid testing for strep, flu and COVID, and blood draws.