MUNICH—BMW AG sees artificial intelligence (AI) as a way to improve productivity and efficiency at its assembly plants. The automaker is using the technology for a variety of quality-related applications, such as error proofing and inspection tasks.

NEW YORK—A recent study claims  that states in the Midwest have the highest robot density—typically at least twice the intensity of all other regions.

HIGH POINT, NC — China-based upholstery manufacturer KUKA HOME is expanding its global manufacturing footprint with a new plant in Monterrey, Mexico. The new facility will focus on special-order stationary upholstery for the North American market.

FRANKFURT, Germany – The recently released World Robotics report presented by the International Federation of Robotics shows a new record stock of about 300,000 operational industrial robots in the Republic of Korea in 2018.

INDIANAPOLIS—Eli Lilly & Co. recently announced that it will create 100 new jobs here as a result of investing $400 million in manufacturing facilities at the company's Lilly Technology Center campus.

MAPLE PLAIN, MN—Protolabs has announced that nūrio has been selected as the latest Cool Idea Award winner for innovation in consumer technology. Nūrio is the world’s smallest wearable consumer EEG device that slips over the ear and provides consumers with the ability to control any IoT-enabled device.

TOKYO—Toshiba Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Corporation has won a $368 million contract to build 68 electric locomotives for the Taiwan Railways Administration, with delivery beginning in 2022.

WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI—Aluminum-billet manufacturer Matalco Inc. has begun construction here on a new state-of-the-art plant. The $80 million project is expected to create 80 jobs over the next three years.

BENNINGTON, VT—Battery company Energizer says it is closing a manufacturing facility in Vermont at the beginning of 2021 and moving it to a plant in Portage, WI, that was previously owned by Rayovac but purchased by Energizer from Spectrum Brands early last year.

VERONA, WI–ACS, an equipment and controls integrator, recently broke ground on its new headquarters here, which will include a mix of office and manufacturing space.