Manufacturing

Ottomotores S.A. de C.V, a wholly owned subsidiary of Waukesha-based Generac Power Systems Inc. announced today the appointment of Ricardo Navarro as managing director.

Sussex-based Quad/Graphics Inc. is stepping down operations immediately at its Dickson, Tenn., plant. All production is expected to wrap up on or before March 12, 2015.

The landscape of manufacturing in America has undergone more significant changes than many of us in the industry care to remember. The recent past has been particularly painful, with economic downturns driving manufacturing overseas to take advantage of lower labor costs, and a generally depressed level of manufacturing activity becoming the norm.

Readers of BizTimes.com are invited to take a moment to fill out the 2015 BizTimes Economic Dashboard Survey.

Mount Kisco, New York-based private equity firm Kohlberg & Co. LLC has agreed to acquire Pleasant Prairie-based PPC Industries Inc.

Milwaukee-based Joy Global Inc. recently reported fourth quarter net income of $136.9 million, or $1.38 per share, up from $26.8 million, or 25 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of 2013.

The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation is seeking Wisconsin companies to take part in a global trade venture in Mexico in March.

The final shipment of steel for 2014 arrived on Dec. 15 in the Port of Milwaukee, bringing the year's total volume of steel shipments to 179,000 metric tons, the second highest annual steel tonnage since 1970, according to port spokesman Jeff Fleming.

Cambridge Major Laboratories Inc., a supplier of comprehensive pharmaceutical development and manufacturing services, is investing more than $20 million in its Germantown plant.

Wisconsin companies that have achieved success in exporting are encouraged to apply for the 2015 Governor's Export Achievement Award.