manufacturing

In the pursuit of squeezing more current from a solar cell, Harvard spin-off SiOnyx is using lasers.

The company today announced third-party tests found its Black Silicon laser texturing process increases the efficiency of traditional silicon cells by 0.3 percent. That may sound minor, but it takes solar manufacturers about a year to achieve that sort of gain through process changes, said Chris Vineis, director of solar technology at SiOnyx.

The company plans to license its technology, which essentially scans a pattern on the surface of solar-grade silicon, to solar manufacturers. In traditional solar production, pure silicon is sliced … Read more

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Don't write off American manufacturing just yet.

A panel of experts at the EmTech conference at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology today sought to upend a few notions about the viability of manufacturing in the U.S., saying labor costs are less and less relevant in the global economy.

More provocatively, they argued that innovation in emerging technologies, such as energy and nanotech, depends on having nearby production. That's a change from the traditional model of the IT industry where hardware giants, such as Cisco Systems, Apple, and Hewlett-Packard, designed products and then contracted with Asian … Read more

Apple and Samsung may be battling each other in the courts over patent claims but the two companies are reportedly still working with each other on the technology for the next iPhone.

Samsung will supply the A6 processor slated to appear in the iPhone 5, or whatever Apple dubs its next phone, says The Korea Times. Citing industry sources, the publication reports that Samsung has boosted the production of Apple-designed A6 chips at its plant in Austin, Texas.

"Apple has been in talks with Samsung over shipment of its A6 quad-core mobile processor (AP) chips to be used in … Read more

General Electric announced yesterday it will spend $600 million to build a solar factory in Colorado, giving it the means to re-enter the solar business in force.

The company said the factory in Aurora will have the capacity to produce at an annual rate of 400 megawatts, or enough to power 80,000 U.S. homes. It will create 355 jobs in Colorado after completion and another 100 solar-related jobs at GE's research facility in upstate New York.

Production will start early next year of solar panels with cadmium telluride thin-film solar cells, the same thin-film material used by … Read more

While I regularly write about ultra-high-end gear that's made in the U.S., I also cover as much affordable stuff as I can find. Grado Labs in Brooklyn manufactures some of my favorite headphones priced from $79 and phono cartridges from $60. My friends at Schiit Audio in Newhall, Calif., make headphone amplifiers and digital-to-analog converters with prices starting at $249. As for speakers, Zu Audio makes gorgeous-sounding models priced from $1,200 per pair. These companies aren't just based in the U.S., they also manufacture their products here.

If $1,200 doesn't qualify as affordable, … Read more

Foxconn is again in the news, this time in Brazil, as its $12 billion factory deal reportedly may not go through due to demands of tax breaks and special treatment.

According to Reuters, Apple's plan to produce iPads in Brazil is in trouble. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff announced Foxconn's plans to build the plant in April, and, "Senior officials hailed the deal as a sign of growing economic ties with Asia, and proof that Brazil was moving up the value-added manufacturing chain as its economy grows," said Reuters' Brian Winter.

Problems have now arisen as Brazil … Read more

A group of semiconductor heavyweights led by Intel, IBM, and Globalfoundries will invest $4.4 billion in a New York-based chip R&D hub, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said today.

The five-year investment will target upstate New York, which is already a major center of chip research and development activity tied to IBM and Globalfoundries. The latter--Advanced Micro Devices' erstwhile chipmaking arm now owned by Abu Dhabi-based ATIC--is in the process of completing a massive manufacturing complex to make 28-nanometer chips in the town of Malta, NY. IBM has had manufacturing and R&D facilities … Read more

Apple and other gadget manufacturers are once again said to be investing in new manufacturing techniques that will yield electronics with rounded glass surfaces, a new report claims.

Following up on its own report from May, DigiTimes today says Apple and other unnamed technology companies are working to produce "products with curved cover glass." That's the glass on the front of the device, the one users touch when using apps and press up to their face when making phone calls.

Citing unnamed sources, DigiTimes says the effort is purely competitive, with manufacturers looking to set their devices apart from the pack.

A report in late May--also by DigiTimes--claimed Apple had bought 200 to 300 glass-cutting machines to help glass makers make curved glass for its gadgets. That report was of special note given curiosity around Apple's next iPhone, which is now rumored to be making its debut next week. While numerous reports have now suggested Apple plans to release two new design variations, mentions of curved glass on the front have been all but non-existent. … Read more

From 1989 to 2001, a company called Used Rubber USA operated a retail store, offering cool gear to city-dwelling hipsters, on the corner of Fillmore and Haight streets in San Francisco. The company still turns old tires into book bags, wallets or belts and other merchandise--now online only.

Recycling used tires isn't a new idea, and now a study shows that most auto repair shops recycle tires rather than send them off to a landfill.

The organization Car Care Council has been urging auto repair shops to recycle more vehicle parts and engine fluids, in a consumer education campaign … Read more