HAWTHORNE, CA -- OSI Systems reported second-quarter net income rose 34% from last year to $12.3 million.

SAN JOSE – North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $1.16 billion in orders in December (three-month average basis), down 26.7% year-over-year and up 18.5% sequentially, says SEMI.

The book-to-bill ratio was 0.88, meaning $88 worth of orders was received for every $100 of product billed for the month. A ratio above 1.0 is considered an indicator of future growth.

The three-month average of worldwide billings in December was $1.32 billion, down 25.2% year-over-year and up 11.8% sequentially.

“The December data reflect a further increase in bookings for semiconductor equipment,” said Dan Tracy, senior director of Industry Research and Statistics at SEMI. “Recent capital spending announcements by leading device manufacturers indicate the potential for continued improvement in 2012.”

TIJUANA – Ellsworth Adhesives has expanded to larger facilities in Tijuana and Guadalajara, Mexico.

SAN JOSE – SEMA and SMTA have finalized the program for the Solar Manufacturing & Reliability Conference. The event will take place Mar. 22 and 23 in the Silicon Valley.

The conference will focus on the reliability testing of PV modules and highlight various reliability programs, with an assessment of current and evolving standards, including the work of the PV Module QA Forum Task Force groups that will submit their recommendations to IEC and other international standards groups.

Sessions will cover inverter and microinverter reliability/balance of systems and future trends. Module and general manufacturing issues will be discussed together with a review of the global solar outlook. Areas of concerns will be discussed for modules, which include general module hazardous issues and module warranties.

Two half-day workshops are scheduled for Mar. 21: A Review of PV Standards Including UL1703 and IEC61215 and Manufacturing Technology and Troubleshooting PV Manufacturing.

For more information, visit http://www.smta.org/solar/.

TOKYO -- Hitachi will cease design and production of televisions, ending more than 40 years of internal manufacturing.

TALLIN, ESTONIA -- Eolane is one of three potential suitors for Elcoteq's Tallin subsidiary, according to published reports.

ATLANTA – UP Media Group Inc. today announced Dr. Eric Bogatin will moderate the industry’s first “chat,” an open question/answer session using pioneering new software developed by UPMG.

SAN JOSE – Flextronics reported net sales of $7.5 billion, down 4% year-over-year and 7% sequentially for its fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31.

NEENAH, WI – Contract electronics manufacturer Plexus said fiscal first-quarter profits fell 28.4% year-over-year to $17.9 million.

SAN JOSE – Sanmina-SCI Corp. reported fiscal first-quarter 2012 revenue of $1.5 billion, down 9.6% year-over-year and down 11.8% sequentially on slower demand for communications gear.

GAINESVILLE, GA – Count On Tools will begin offering contract machining services in all quantities.

The new Contract Machining Division provides single parts, small lots, large quantities, or a long-term supply of precision manufacturing. The division specializes in all aspects of machining, including CNC Swiss automatic machining.

For more information, visit www.cotinc.com/mfg.

WASHINGTON -- The US remains the global leader in supporting science and technology research and development, but only by a slim margin that could soon be overtaken by rapidly increasing Asian investments in knowledge-intensive economies.