CHICAGO—Eight out of 10 U.S. manufacturers expect to grow sales this year, buoyed by their optimism about the strength of regional, national and global economies, according to the 2019 National Manufacturing Survey Report prepared by Leading Edge Alliance, a global association of 220 accounting and consulting firms.

SANTA CLARA, CA—Sunpreme, a solar cell and bifacial panel maker, has announced plans to build a Texas manufacturing facility in 2019. Envisioned in two phases, the plant’s capacity will eventually ramp to 400 megawatts of production.

TOYOTA CITY, Japan--Toyota Motor Corp.'s 50-year-old Tsutsumi assembly plant here has been the home of many innovations over the years.

CHICAGO--Contrary to widespread public concern about robots taking away jobs, humans still play a key role on assembly lines.

SEOUL--Engineers at Hyundai Motor Group have developed exoskeleton technology to address ergonomic issues and concerns on its assembly lines.

SEATTLE--Boeing and ELG Carbon Fibre are partnering on a project to recycle excess aerospace-grade composite material.

MUNICH--The BMW Group is increasingly relying on advanced technology to streamline logistics and material handling in its assembly plants.

COLUMBUS, OH--Engineers at the Honda Research Institute here have developed a new type of battery that could replace traditional lithium-ion devices.

LONDON--Manufacturers in a wide variety of industries are investing in smart manufacturing technologies, such as additive manufacturing, augmented reality and collaborative robots.

WASHINGTON—The manufacturing industry posted a net gain of 284,000 jobs in 2018, capping its best calendar year since 1997, the Labor Department announced earlier this week. Manufacturing gained 32,000 jobs in December.