OSAKA, JAPAN – Balver Zinn has been granted the right to sub-license Nihon Superior’s SN100C patent.

CALNE, UK – eXception EMS has seen an increase of nearly 25% growth in sales over a two-year period, says the contract electronics manufacturer.

ORADEA, ROMANIA – Plexus has invested $1 million to expand its test development capabilities here. The EMS company's new site includes a test technology design and development laboratory.

DUBLIN, IRELAND -- The worldwide electronics manufacturing services market expanded 1.6% in 2012, well below the previous two years, according to a new research report. The industry continues to be characterized by inventory build-ups and supply chain anomalies, says Research and Markets, noting that 2010 growth was 37%, followed by an 11.3% jump in 2011.

SAN JOSE -- Bay area EMS firm Bestronics has promoted Nat Mani to chief executive, superseding cofounder James Choe, who is retiring. Mani has been president of the company since 2012.

AESCH, SWITZERLAND – Essemtec has been purchased by private investors with an industrial background.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- Jabil Circuit reported fiscal fourth-quarter 2013 revenues increased 11% from last year to $4.81 billion, on strong performance across all end-markets. The firm's Diversified Manufacturing unit saw revenue rise 11% to $2.1 billion.

SAN JOSE — North America-based semiconductor equipment manufacturers reported 90-day bookings fell 11.9% from last year in August. Orders were down 2.7% sequentially, the SEMI trade group said.

SANTA CLARA, CA -- PCB West, the Silicon Valley's largest trade show for the printed circuit board industry, opens today at the Santa Clara Convention Center. Pre-show conference registration is up 40% over last year while preregistration for the exhibition is up 30%.

YANTAI, CHINA -- Foxconn today acknowledged nearly a dozen people were injured in a fight last week at one of its China sites. The melee involved two groups and injured 11 people, the Wall Street Journal reported.

EL SEGUNDO, CA -- The market for large-sized liquid-crystal displays contracted in July, an ominous indicator not only because it shank for the second straight month in a row but also because the dip occurred at the start of the normally hot third quarter, according to a new report from IHS. Global shipments of large-sized LCD panels amounted to 65.46 million units in July, down 4.5% from 68.56 million units in June.

SKYLAND, NC – CTS is asking the US Supreme Court to dismiss a lawsuit that would force it to clean significant soil and groundwater contamination at its former site here.