General Motors, long known as a designer of relatively heavy car and trucks, turned a lot of heads last year when its all-new Cadillac ATS compact sports sedan arrived as the lightest vehicle in its segment.
Now the automaker duplicates that feat with the redesigned Cadillac CTS midsize sedan, arriving at U.S. dealers in the coming weeks, proving its new lightweighting strategy is not a one-and-done phenomenon.
To view the rest of this article, click here.
NADCA Endorsed Regulation Oversight Bill Passes House Committee
On Wednesday, September 18, the U.S. House Committee on Small Business passed the Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2013 endorsed by the North American Die Casting Association (NADCA). Among the top priorities for the Association is stopping burdensome and ineffective regulations before they take effect and this bill is an important part of that effort.
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) of 1980 requires federal agencies to assess the economic impact of their regulations on small businesses. If an agency determines the impact is significant, it must consider alternatives which are less burdensome on those being regulated. However, for the past several years, many federal regulators have ignored this requirement and not conducted a full review of the impact a regulation would have on small businesses.
The Regulatory Flexibility Improvements Act of 2013, sponsored by Reps. Sam Graves (R-MO) and Spencer Bachus (R-AL), removes many of the provisions that agencies use to avoid complying with the small business requirements in the Regulatory Flexibility Act. An estimate from the Congressional Budget Office said the bill may cost the federal government $45 million over five years to comply with the law – an estimate far below the costs to small businesses of the burdensome regulations issued by agencies.
New EPA Regs Could Hurt Die Casting
US EPA proposals to reduce carbon dioxide pollution from power plants could have negative, long-term effects on the die casting industry, according to the North American Die Casting Association (NADCA).
To view the rest of this article, click here.