BOSTON-No one thinks twice about picking up a cup of coffee, but this task has vexed robots for three decades. Inspired by cockroach legs, researchers at Harvard and Yale have developed a new type of gripper that promises to solve this problem. MORE

SARATOGA COUNTY, NY-Semiconductor manufacturer Globalfoundries plans to invest $5.4 billion to expand its current facilities and build a new manufacturing facility here. MORE

MEMPHIS, TN-The Memphis-Shelby County Industrial Development Board has granted Electrolux Home Products Inc. a tax break for building its new assembly plant here. The plant will initially employ 1,240. MORE

BERLIN-KUKA Systems has developed a robotic process to dispense acoustic insulating compound for automotive bodies. MORE

CANTON, MS-Nissan will begin production of the new 2012 NV at its expanded assembly plant here on Jan. 19. The NV marks Nissan’s first venture into the commercial vehicle market in the United States. MORE

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL-Nippon Sharyo USA Inc. will expand operations in the United States, including the establishment of its own passenger railcar assembly plant Rochelle, IL. MORE

MENTOR, OH-US Endoscopy has purchased a 70,000-square-foot manufacturing facility near its headquarters here. The company plans to move all of its existing production to the facility by the end of the year. MORE

SUNNYVALE, CA-AQT Solar, a manufacturer of thin-film solar cells, has selected Richland County, SC, as the location for its second manufacturing facility. The company plans to create 1,000 jobs at the facility over the next four years. MORE

DETROIT-Ford Motor Co. will add more than 7,000 jobs in the United States over the next two years. That includes 4,000 blue-collar jobs and 750 salaried positions in 2011, plus another 2,500 factory jobs in 2012. MORE

SMYRNA, TN-Nissan will shift production of its Rogue SUV from Kyushu, Japan, to its factory in Tennessee. MORE