NAKLO, SLOVENIA -- LPFK has bought out the remaining outstanding shares at its subsidiary in Slovenia. The subsidiary, LPKF Laser & Elektronika d.o.o., has made a major contribution to the group’s profitable growth for many years, the company said in a statement.

What news stories were CIRCUITS ASSEMBLY readers most interested in in 2013? Judging by hit counts, the SMTA-IPC colocation of their fall events was the leading story of the year.

MINNEAPOLIS -- CyberOptics announced that Kathleen Iverson will retire as president and CEO effective Jan. 31, as part of a planned transition. Executive chairman Subodh Kulkarni will assume Iverson’s duties after that time until a permanent CEO is appointed.

SON, THE NETHERLANDS – Neways Electronics has reached agreement with a German labor board to lay off 120 workers at its defunct subsidiary in Kassel, Germany.

TORONTO -- SMTC has named Sushil Dhiman president and chief executive, effective Jan. 6. He supersedes interim president and CEO Larry Silber, who was named to the post in May following the departure of co-CEOs Alex Walker and Claude Germain.

MILWAUKEE — Sixty-five percent of manufacturers experienced revenue growth in 2013 but nearly half still consider the economy the biggest challenge, according to results of the ASQ 2014 Manufacturing Outlook Survey. And while 64% of of the more than 700 respondents worldwide expect increased revenue in 2014, that percentage is down from years past, albeit slightly.

NEWARK, NY -- IEC Electronics swung to a net loss due to problems at its Southern California Braiding operation. The EMS company reported a net loss of $8.67 million for the period ended Sept. 30, down from profits of $1.59 million a year ago, including a $14.2 million impairment charge related to the SBC unit.

TAIPEI -- Foxconn chairman Terry Gou anticipates the company's revenue will grow 15% next year, reversing a slower 2013, an Asia-based media outlet is reporting. Sales at the world's largest EMS are down 0.8% year-over-year through November.

WATERLOO, ONTARIO, CANADA -- BlackBerry has entered into a five-year strategic partnership with Foxconn, whereby the ODM will build smartphones for Indonesia and other emerging markets starting early in 2014.

BANNOCKBURN, IL – IPC is partnering with Tetra Tech to offer one-day conflict minerals workshops to help companies prepare for conflict minerals reporting and customer inquiries.                               

TIMISOARA, ROMANIA – TT electronics-IMS has opened operations here in response to demand for a manufacturing center in Europe, the firm says. The new 50,000 sq. ft. facility plans for a production ramp in April.

HSINCHU, TAIWAN – Foxconn says it is planning to open an R&D center here to aid its panel and touchscreen technology R&D center in Japan, according to reports.