Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in August for the 13th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 16th consecutive month, according to the latest Manufacturing Report on Business from the Institute for Supply Management.

The federal onscene coordinator for the oil spill response is developing a comprehensive subsurface oil monitoring plan to help scientists from various institutions and agencies measure any oil remaining in the Gulf of Mexico following the deepwater Macondo well blowout.

COSCO has appointed Li Jian Xiong as alternate director and Liu Guo Yuan as chairman, non-independent, and non-executive director.

Otto Energy has appointed Paul Moore as MD and Ian Boserio as a non-executive director.

BP PLC tentatively planned to remove a capping stack from the top of the Transocean Ltd.’s Deepwater Horizon semisubmersible blowout preventer on Sept. 2, pending the anticipated arrival of calmer seas in the Gulf of Mexico, a federal spokesman said.

Verdande Technology has appointed Bill McCall as chairman and Terje Eidsmo and Asle Jostein Hovda as directors.

The 2010 Annual Award Scheme of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), Aberdeen Section has honored Senergy’s principal formation damage consultant Michael Byrne and technical head of geomechanics Phil McCurdy.

Maersk Oil North Sea UK has appointed Martin Rune Pedersen as its new managing director, following the retirement of current MD Tom van Leenen.