AUBURN HILLS, MI—Patti Engineering Inc., a specialist in control systems integration, will expand its collaboration with McClellan Automation Systems, a company that designs and builds automated assembly systems.

SAN ANTONIO—Mission Solar Energy has begun shipping solar panels from a new $130 million factory here.

HAMMOND, IN—UAW-represented employees at Lear Corp.’s seat assembly plant here have ratified a new contract ending a wage structure that pays new-hires less than their veteran colleagues.

VANCE, AL—The UAW has formed a new chapter—UAW Local 112—to represent workers at the Mercedes-Benz assembly plant here.

WASHINGTON—Spending on construction or renovation of factories is up 12 percent in 2014, compared to being virtually flat in 2013, according to Census Bureau figures.

BUFFALO, NY—SolarCity has begun construction of what promises to be the largest solar panel manufacturing plant in the Western Hemisphere. The state is investing $750 million in the project, while SolarCity is investing $5 billion to create a production facility at a former brownfield site where Republic Steel used to operate. The investment will create 5,000 jobs in New York State, 3,000 of which will permanently remain in Buffalo.

OAKVILLE, ON—Ford Motor Co. of Canada is adding more than 1,000 hourly jobs at its assembly plant here in preparation for the launch of the 2015 Ford Edge crossover utility vehicle.

CLEVELAND, NC—Daimler Trucks is trying to fill more than 300 positions at its Freightliner assembly plant here, but the company is having trouble finding enough qualified workers in the area. The company has been hiring since April and wants to have more than 1,000 new employees by the end of the year.

DEARBORN, MI—Ford Motor Co. plans to install 25,000 energy-efficient LED light fixtures at its plants.

JACKSON CENTER, OH—Thor Industries Inc. is adding 94,000 square feet to its Airstream RV plant here to boost production capacity by 50 percent.