Airbus' North American operations are handling expense reports quicker, cheaper and with less human involvement by using an artificial intelligence-support technology platform. Airbus recouped its initial $50,000 investment in the first year and is expected to save $200,000 or more next year.

Manufacturers are caught up in asking "what" and "why" about blockchain instead of taking action, argues Lisa Caldwell of EY. "Whichever use case you decide upon, the key is to move quickly through the planning phase and get directly into actually piloting something," she writes.

Wyoming has $7.1 billion of wind projects under various stages of development, which will result in 4,700 new jobs, says the Center for Energy Economics and Public Policy. "It's really reviving life -- especially in the northeast part of the county, like in Medicine Bow and Elk Mountain," says Carbon County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Cindy Wallace.

Reusable transport packaging has the potential to decrease costs while increasing efficiency and being a sustainable solution at the same time, says Mike Hachtman, president and CEO of Relogistics Services. He states, "Thankfully, transport packaging, including reusable containers, pallets and totes, functioning in a mindfully constructed closed loop, can produce efficiencies that transition away from the traditional cost center model."

Spending on industrial technology needs to include a focus on how pilot projects will scale, says Joachim Breidenthal, a partner with Bain's Advanced Manufacturing & Services practice. Make sure vendor offerings make sense for the business and addresses root causes of the problems being solved, he says.

Corporate solar adoption has "surged" over the last few years, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, with companies such as Prologis, Apple, Amazon, Google and Walmart installing solar capacity in the US. Prologis, has just under 127 MW of installed solar, and Matt Singleton, the company's senior vice president of global energy, notes that the REIT is "on pace to surpass our goal of 200 MW of solar capacity by 2020."

An aerospace apprentice program created by Sikorsky Aircraft and the Teamsters union is helping high school and vocational students get experience. The students must maintain their grades, provide letters of recommendation and have good attendance, says Sikorsky executive George Mitchell.

STEM labs are sprouting up in shipping containers that Maryland education nonprofit Learning Undefeated has repurposed as Drop Anywhere Labs. The 22- by 8-foot containers can accommodate up to 12 students and host lessons on STEM topics including career paths.

Last week, the spread between 10-year and 2-year Treasury bond yields inverted briefly for the first time since June 2007. This spread is an important barometer, as it has historically signaled that a recession could begin in 12 to 18 months. It is important to recognize, however, that the inversion of the yield curve does not necessarily mean that a recession is imminent. The US economy continues to show strength, particularly for consumer spending and in labor markets, and it should grow 2.3% in 2019, with 1.8% growth forecast for 2020. Read more.