TURKU, Finland—Industrial automation giant Kuka is set to build a smart factory for construction company Admares, which specializes in digitalizing the manufacturing of buildings.

SYDNEY—Hypersonix Launch Systems, an Australian engineering, design and build company, is investigating the use of 3D printing to make flight-critical components for its green hydrogen-powered launch vehicles at the University of Sydney.

DEARBORN, MI—Ford Motor Co. says it is planning to nearly double production of the F-150 Lightning pickup at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center here to 150,000 trucks per year, to meet high customer demand.

MCLEAN, VA—Last week the The Association for Manufacturing Technology announced that machine tool orders jumped 14 percent in November 2021, the latest month for which data is available.

ATLANTA and TEMPE, AZ—Market researchers at Deloitte Consulting LLP and the Institute for Supply Management recently disclosed their positive outlooks for manufacturing in 2022.

WESTMINSTER, CO—Ball Aerospace will soon complete work on an expansion to its Aerospace Manufacturing Center here, adding around 122,000 square feet to increase the building size to more than 490,000 square feet.

SCHAFFHAUSEN, Switzerland—TE Connectivity has acquired the force-guided narrow safety relay from the Phoenix Contact Group as part of a long-term partnership agreement.

FLINTSHIRE, Wales—Airbus recently completed the first full-size prototype for the company's 'Wing of Tomorrow' research program, which is being undertaken at its Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre here.

DERWOOD, MD—Xometry, which operates an on-demand industrial parts marketplace, has acquired Thomas, a product sourcing and ecommerce platform, for $300 million.

WASHINGTON—The latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business from the Institute for Supply Management indicates the U.S. manufacturing sector grew slightly in November, while the overall economy expanded for an 18th consecutive month.