NASA has presented its highest honor for quality and technical performance, the George M. Low Award, to two companies committed to innovative management, process quality and customer service. The awards, containing a medallion alloyed with material flown to the moon on Apollo 11, were presented in February at NASA’s fourth annual Project Management Challenge Conference in Galveston, TX.

Quality Magazine launches a Web site for its NDT special section, www.ndtmag.com. NDT serves the nondestructive testing and materials testing needs of more than 26,000 quality and manufacturing professionals. This special section reports on the practical use and application of nondestructive testing and materials testing needs to improve product quality on the shop floor and in manufacturing planning.

Four years ago China moved from fourth to first place in global consumption of machine tools. Since then it has retained that position and even strengthened it, ahead of other principal users such as Japan, the United States and Germany.

Carl Zeiss Industrial Measuring Technology (IMT) announces that Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. (Ft. Worth, TX) has selected a Zeiss gantry coordinate measuring machine (CMM) to measure subassemblies of the F-35 wings.

The MMZ B Plus system has a measuring range of 5 by 16 by 2.5 meters. Valued at more than $5 million, the order from Lockheed Martin’s aerospace division encompasses the measuring machine, plans for the vibration-stabilized foundation, the climate-controlled lab and the integration of a pallet feed system. At a length of 16 meters, the MMZ B Plus can measure aerodynamic tools, wind canal models, 1:1 modules, aircraft wings and elements of the airframe.

Control (May 8 to 11), the international trade fair for quality assurance, now in its 21st year, remains true to the principles of total practice orientation and marketability.

The Control exhibition program includes measuring technology, material testing, analysis apparatus, optoelectronics, quality assurance systems and organization.

Leica Geosystems, a Hexagon Metrology company, announces Advanced Integration Technology Inc. (AIT, Plano, TX) has purchased five Leica LTD800MC laser trackers for the second and third Electronic Mate and Alignment Systems (EMAS) for the Joint Strike Fighter program from Lockheed Martin (Fort Worth, TX). The laser tracking systems were specially designed for AIT’s use in laser-guided alignment to automate and execute F-35 aircraft mating. AIT is an engineering and manufacturing company specializing in the design, fabrication, installation and maintenance of fully integrated plant floor systems.

Alcatel Vacuum Technology France has acquired Sensistor Technologies of Sweden, a company that develops, manufactures and supplies innovative solutions for leak detection. Sensistor’s portfolio encompasses leak detection and measuring instruments that use a safe hydrogen mixture as a tracer gas.

An informal survey of approximately 2,600 ISO-certified companies commissioned by the Independent Association of Accredited Registrars (IAAR), found that ISO 9001 certification produces positive returns on investment. Results revealed that respondents believe certification enhanced internal and external performance, and 84% of the companies realized a positive return on certification investment. The survey was commissioned by IAAR in cooperation with the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB).

The Commerce Department’s trade data for November 2006 showed continued improvement in U.S. manufactured goods trade, according to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM).

Driven by a 0.7% jump in manufacturing output, the Federal Reserve reported that overall industrial production rose 0.4% in December 2006. “After three consecutive monthly declines, this upturn is a hopeful indication that the recent slowdown in industrial activity may be coming to an end,” says David Huether, chief economist for the National Association of Manufacturers.