Improvements in the production, employment and new orders subindexes saw the manufacturing sector contract at a slower rate in August. The Ai Group Australian Performance of Manufacturing Index was 4.4 points higher at 46.4 for the month. [ + ]

Uncertainty is brewing in Australia's manufacturing sector, Business Review Australia has reported. While Australia appears to have escaped the global economic crisis relatively unscathed, the manufacturing sector has been hardest hit by China's decelerating economy. [ + ]

Endress+Hauser has signed an agreement with Rockwell Collins to acquire Kaiser Optical Systems, Inc. The companies anticipate the transaction will be completed in the next few months. [ + ]

The new Australian Anti-dumping Commission has launched an investigation into wind towers imported from China and Korea in response to an application from the Australian Wind Tower Manufacturing Alliance. [ + ]

Measurement company Agilent Technologies has announced the opening of its new Spectroscopy Technology Innovation Centre in Mulgrave, Victoria. The $25 million centre houses cutting-edge research and testing laboratories, as well as user demo and training facilities. [ + ]

Oil and gas producer Drillsearch has doubled its production target for the year ahead, leading to a surge in its share price. [ + ]

Honeywell this week announced several new technologies and services at the 2013 Honeywell Users Group (HUG) Asia-Pacific Symposium. The offerings will help plant workers redefine how they maintain system uptime and reliability, while providing safer operations, Honeywell says. [ + ]

Emerson Director of the Mining and Power Industries Alan Novak has provided an update on China's mining investments outside its borders. [ + ]

Honeywell has announced that Mohd Shariq Khan, a student from Yeungnam University in South Korea, has won its annual Asia-Pacific student competition. Mohd will showcase his winning design at the 2013 Honeywell Users Group (HUG) Asia-Pacific Symposium this week in Perth. [ + ]

The future looks bleak for auto manufacturing operations in Australia, claims BMW Group Australia Managing Director Phil Horton. If the Liberal party wins the upcoming election, it will be the death of Holden in Australia, he says. [ + ]

Honeywell today launched several new technologies at the HUG 2013. The technologies include the Cyber Security Dashboard - an advanced dashboard that helps industrial plants better manage control-system cybersecurity. [ + ]

Honeywell is showcasing its newest technology solutions at the 2013 Honeywell Users Group Asia-Pacific Symposium. The symposium features solutions including Experion Collaboration Station and Premium Platorm for Experion Virtualization Solutions. [ + ]

BHP Billiton’s top executives will lose out on more than $26 million in share grants, due to a 35% reduction in the number of shares paid out as part of its five-year long-term incentive plan (LTIP). [ + ]

A team at the National Centre for Groundwater Research and Training has developed a cheaper and more efficient way to test the design of store-release covers, which can prevent toxic chemicals leaching from landfill and mining waste. [ + ]

Kevin Rudd’s proposal to create a National Floating Systems Research Centre has been welcomed by the University of Western Australia. The centre would be developed with industry, government, UWA and three other Australian universities as research partners. [ + ]