In January, Intel announced that it will invest $20 billion in a new microchip manufacturing facility near Columbus, OH. The fab is expected to create 3,000 company jobs, 7,000 construction jobs, and tens of thousands of additional jobs for suppliers and partners.

The Covid pandemic has increased demand for wearable medical devices that can be used for remote monitoring and diagnostics applications. That's good news for adhesive suppliers that provide biocompatible materials for joining or sealing plastic and fabric parts.

Mullen Technologies Inc. is a start-up company that's developing several types of electric vehicles, including a crossover, a sports car and a delivery van. The Brea, CA-based firm is led by an entrepreneur who formerly worked in the entertainment industry as a record producer.

The COVID-19 pandemic has propelled a national movement to strengthen domestic supply chains and reshore. Recruitment of the next generation of skilled manufacturing talent is paramount to this effort, but there is a widening gap between the skills needed by industry and the skills of job candidates.

While batteries and motors are the "lead actors" in electric vehicles, power electronics play an equally important behind-the-scenes role. Vehicle power electronics primarily process and control the flow of electrical energy in EVs.

The internal combustion engine may not be dead, but it has lost its spot in the limelight. The global demand for energy without emissions is driving markets and policy. In response, the world has turned its attention to electrification as the future of transportation.

Above all else, electronic products for aerospace and defense equipment must be durable and reliable. Based in Gloucestershire, England, Ultra Electronics Precision Control Systems (UPCS) has been making such products for both industries since 1925.

Gentherm Inc. has been assembling a wide range of thermal management products for the automotive industry since 1991, when it was known as Amerigon. In 1996, the company created the industry's first thermoelectrically heated and cooled seat system (called Climate Control Seat).

It is safe to say that the debate about the environmental impact of plastic will continue. But, it is also a fact that many manufacturers of plastic products are quietly becoming greener.

Fire and ice don't mix. The same applies to water and batteries. In an electric vehicle, a tiny bit of water vapor can damage lithium-ion battery cells.