Lamb Technicon Forms Strategic Alliances For Asian Automotive Markets; Partnerships with Dongfeng and Hyundai Expand Global Supply Capabilities in Flexible Machining Systems

    CHESTERFIELD TWP., Mich.--March 24, 2003--Lamb Technicon, Inc., a division of UNOVA Industrial Automation Systems, and a leading supplier of automotive manufacturing technology, has established two international alliances that expand the company's global reach for supplying machine tools and systems to manufacturers of automotive powertrain components.
    Lamb Technicon announced that it has formed cooperative manufacturing and strategic alliance agreements with the Machine Tool Plant of Dongfeng Motor Company, Ltd. of China, to manufacture and sell Lamb's machine tool products to the Chinese market. Additionally, Dongfeng will build components and sub-assemblies for use by Lamb in the manufacture of its products.
    Lamb Technicon has also formed a cooperative manufacturing agreement with Hyundai Machine Tools of South Korea, to manufacture and sell Lamb's machine tool products for use by Hyundai Motor Company and its affiliates. As part of the agreement, Hyundai Machine Tools will build components and sub-assemblies for use by Lamb in the manufacture of its products. In addition, Hyundai may provide certain machine tool models to complement the line of standard CNC machines that are currently available from Cincinnati Machine, Lamb's partner in UNOVA Industrial Automation Systems.
    Initially, the cooperative agreements will focus on the manufacture of Lamb's highly productive "Mach 1" CNC twin-spindle horizontal machining center. This will involve a collaboration in which Lamb will supply certain critical components of the unique Mach 1 machine to its partners in China and South Korea.
    "Both Dongfeng and Hyundai have premier reputations for machine tool excellence in their respective countries," said Roger Cope, director of business development, UNOVA Industrial Automation Systems. "These alliances allow us to serve the unique needs of Chinese and Korean automotive manufacturers anywhere in the world. Working together, we have already captured several new orders as a result of these alliances."

    EDITOR NOTES:

    About UNOVA Industrial Automation Systems:

    UNOVA Industrial Automation Systems (IAS), headquartered in Chesterfield Township, Mich., combines the engineering, manufacturing and business systems infrastructure of two of the machine tool industry's most respected manufacturers--Cincinnati Machine and Lamb Technicon. In conjunction with the well-known Landis Grinding Systems operation, the company offers technology-driven solutions that add value and productivity to the global manufacturing market.

    About Lamb Technicon: www.lambtech.com

    About Cincinnati Machine: www.cinmach.com

    About UNOVA: www.unova.com

    About Dongfeng: www.dfmtp.com.cn

    About Hyundai Machine Tools: www.hyundaimt.com