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OSHA releases 2015 reporting numbers WASHINGTON, D.C.—Since Janu- ary 1, 2015, employers have been re- quired to report any severe work-related injury, defined as a hospitalization, am- putation, or loss of an eye, within 24 hours to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The requirement to report a fatality within 8 hours was unchanged. During the first full year of this new reporting require- ment, employers reported 10,388 se- vere injuries, including 7,636 hospital- izations and 2,644 amputations. OSHA says this new requirement has helped the agency engage with employ- ers and focus resources where needed. In the majority of cases, OSHA asked employers to conduct their own inci- dent investigations and propose reme- dies to prevent future injuries. The agency provided employers with guid- ance materials to assist them in this process. Known as a Rapid Response Investigation, this collaborative, prob- lem solving approach invites the em- ployer and an area OSHA expert to work together toward the shared goal of fixing hazards and improving overall workplace safety. At other times, the agency determined that the hazards de- scribed warranted a worksite inspec- tion. An evaluation of 2015 results found that the requirement met its intended goals of helping OSHA focus resources where they are most needed and engag- ing employers in high-hazard industries to identify and eliminate hazards. OSHA will continue to evaluate the program and make changes to improve its effectiveness. The agency is also seek- ing new ways to make sure that small employers know about their reporting obligations and the resources available to them. BTD expands to add powder paint line LAKEVILLE, Minn.—BTD Manu- facturing Inc. is expanding its Lakeville, Minn., production facility to accom- modate the addition of paint and as- sembly services. The company is also expanding its Detroit Lakes, Minn., fa- cility to provide for growth in its stamp- ing and tooling business. The expan- sions will result in two self-sufficient production and warehouse operations that will permit the company to offer more options to its customers. The state-of-the-art powder paint line installed at the Lakeville facility is a modern powder-on-powder coating process designed to deliver results quickly and consistently. Parts can pass through an automated blasting process, and each part passes through an auto- mated 7-stage wash system. "We have been studying the acquisition of paint capabilities and equipment in- tensely for some time," said Paul Gint- ner, BTD's president. "To meet cus- tomer requirements, we have out- sourced paint on an increasing basis. By investing in our facilities, we should be able to bring paint in house and signifi- cantly reduce logistics." ITPS Americas opens registration TAYLOR MILL, Ky.—The program is set and registration is now open for the first International Thermprocess Summit Americas (ITPS Americas), which will be held August 10-12, 2016, at the Loews Chicago Hotel in down- town Chicago, Ill. Sponsored by the In- dustrial Heating Equipment Associa- tion (IHEA), this event focuses on criti- cal information designed to help ther- mal process executives improve manu- f a c t u r i n g o p e r a t i o n s r e l a t e d t o thermprocess technologies. For more info on the event, visit www.itps-amer icas.com. Reshoring plus FDI remained strong in 2015 CHICAGO, Ill.—The Reshoring Ini- tiative, an organization committed to helping manufacturers recognize the profit potential of local sourcing and production, has announced that reshoring plus FDI remained strong in 2015, and surveys consistently show that the trend is increasing. About 240,000 manufacturing jobs have been brought to the US from off- shore in the last 6 years, according to the Reshoring Initiative's calculations. That job gain is the result of both new reshoring, which is the return of manu- facturing work by US companies, and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) by foreign companies into our manufac- turing sector. It also represents about 28 percent of the total increase in US man- ufacturing jobs since the low of 11.45 million in February 2010. About 12.32 million Americans are now employed in the manufacturing sector. In fact, the research shows that more manufacturing work is now com- ing to the US than leaving the country. The Initiative's preliminary statistics for 2015 show that reshoring and FDI re- sulted in around 66,000 US manufac- turing jobs. Final results will be released soon. The Reshoring Initiative offers many tools and resources to help companies make supply chain sourcing decisions. Its Total Cost of Ownership Estimator is the best-known tool for this purpose. It uses advanced metrics that allow users to easily determine the total cost of off- shoring by accounting for and under- standing the relevant offshoring costs, which include inventory carrying costs, shipping expenses, intellectual property risks, and more. Sherwin-Williams, Valspar make $11.3 billion deal CLEVELAND, Ohio—In a deal val- ued at $11.3 billion, The Sherwin- Williams Co. and The Valspar Corp. jointly announced that they have en- tered into a definitive agreement under which Sherwin-Williams will acquire Valspar. The proposed all-cash deal, w h i c h i s t h e l a r g e s t i n S h e r w i n - Williams' 150-year history, was an- nounced in March. It is subject to regu- latory approvals as well as Valspar share- holder confirmation. The boards of di- rectors of both companies have unani- mously approved the deal. The compa- nies anticipate a close by the end of the first quarter next year. Minneapolis-based Valspar is the world's fourth largest paint and coatings company, operating 57 manufacturing facilities across 20 countries and six con- tinents. The company reported 2015 sales of $4.4 billion. Sherwin-Williams 4 POWDER COATING, June 2016 UPDATE:Industry