Lear Corporation Honors Nine Suppliers In Fifth Annual Hall of Fame Awards Program

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., May 14, 2003 -- Lear Corporation today announced the presentation of the Lear Corporation Supplier Hall of Fame Award to nine companies based on best-in- class service to Lear worldwide.

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The winning companies were recognized at the company's fifth annual awards program for having produced outstanding results in the areas of quality, delivery, service and competitiveness using the Lear Supplier Rating System.

"These nine suppliers exemplify Lear's 'Advance Relentlessly' culture by delivering superior performance in terms of product, service and support," said Bob Rossiter, Lear Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The contributions of our supplier partners are critical to Lear's success and those who follow the example of the Lear Hall of Fame awardees have an opportunity to grow with us as our business backlog expands."

This year's recipients were chosen from more than 2,500 companies that supply Lear globally. Three of the companies are repeat winners, and two have been honored for the last two years. The Lear Corporation Supplier Hall of Fame Award 2002 recipients are:

  The Brown Corporation of America, Inc. / Metals/Mechanisms
  Central Carolina Products, Inc. / Plastics
  Createc Corporation / Foam-Trim
  D&M and Associates / MRO-Non-Production
  Dow Automotive / Resins
  H. R. Technologies, Inc. / Trim Components
  ITW Deltar / Acoustical Components
  Leoni AG / Electrical-Electronics
  Pearl Leather Finishers Inc. / Fabric-Leather

  The Brown Corporation of America, Inc.

Brown Corporation is a leading automotive supplier in metal stampings and welded assemblies. They are a privately owned company delivering high quality metal products at competitive prices.

Brown Corporation's design and engineering group consistently works with Lear to develop low-cost high quality metal products, as well as driving costs out of those products. With their commitment to low cost and high quality, Brown Corporation will continue to grow as a supplier to Lear.

Central Carolina Products, Inc.

Central Carolina Products is a custom plastics injection molder, painter and assembler located in Burlington, North Carolina. Established in 1993, Central Carolina currently produces various plastic components for interior trim and under the hood applications on various models.

Central Carolina has shown excellent flexibility in taking on new business as well as resourcing opportunities. They are recognized as going above and beyond expectations and have shown commitment to Lear's continuous improvement philosophy.

Createc Corporation

Createc Corporation, headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, provides protective packaging foam for consumer electronic and appliance industries. They manufacture energy absorbing foam parts for the automotive industry.

Createc provides excellent customer service and support to plants and program managers and have won several other Supplier of the Year awards from companies such as Whirlpool and Hewlett Packard.

Dow Automotive

Dow Automotive is one of the largest resin producers in North America. Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, Dow is committed to continuously extend its product portfolio and to develop with Lear, a shared agenda for bringing new products to market as quickly as possible.

Dow continues to expand engineering and design capabilities helping Lear implement interior solutions, meet competitive demands and respond favorably to the changing automotive requirements. In 2000, Dow Automotive won Lear's Supplier of the Year award.

H. R. Technologies, Inc.

H. R. Technologies, located in Sterling Heights, Michigan, is a supplier of laminates and moldable headliner composites.

This diverse business enterprise is a dedicated tier-2 automotive supplier. Their continual improvement efforts have succeeded in strengthening them as a key partner with Lear. H. R. Technologies, Inc. was also a Supplier of the Year in 2001.

ITW Deltar

ITW Deltar, headquartered in Troy, Michigan is Lear's largest overall supplier of fasteners. ITW is a leading global producer of injection molded plastic parts and fasteners to numerous Lear manufacturing sites.

ITW Deltar is committed to providing superior quality, design assistance, engineering support and cost reduction efforts. Their expertise and customer service has positioned them to be partners with Lear for the future.

Leoni AG

Leoni AG, based in Nuremberg, Germany, is one of Lear's leading insulated wire suppliers. The company is a global supplier currently supplying product into Lear's Mexican and European operations.

New improvements to the company help to utilize state-of-the-art equipment to produce millions of feet of wire in a variety of gauges while maintaining extraordinary high quality levels and reducing the cost of material handling logistics. Leoni AG won Lear's Supplier of the Year in 2001.

Pearl Leather Finishers Inc.

Pearl Leather Finishers is a high quality supplier of finished leather. Their manufacturing capability and work ethic combined with a deep commitment to customer satisfaction makes them a valued supplier to Lear.

They are 17025, QS 9000, ISO 14001 certified and are under review for TS 16949 accreditation.

D&M and Associates

D&M and Associates is a full-service supplier for products and services in the packaging commodity. Located in Oxford, Michigan, the company provides complete program management support including custom packaging design, engineering, sales, process improvement, and web-based tracking.

D&M currently supports more than 24 Lear facilities in U.S., Canada, and Mexico and has consistently met the demands of each of these dynamic areas. The company is currently positioned to grow within these operations as well as internationally.

Lear Corporation, a Fortune 500 company headquartered in Southfield, Mich., USA, focuses on integrating complete automotive interiors, including seat systems, interior trim and electrical systems. With annual net sales of $14.4 billion in 2002, Lear is the world's largest automotive interior systems supplier. The company's world-class products are designed, engineered and manufactured by 115,000 employees in more than 280 facilities located in 33 countries. Additional information about Lear and its products is available on the Internet at www.lear.com .

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