Timken to be Honored at 2003 NASA Space Shuttle Supplier Symposium

CANTON, Ohio, May 19 -- Timken Aerospace and Super Precision, a subsidiary of The Timken Company, will be recognized at the 2003 NASA Space Shuttle Supplier Symposium for its innovative, team-oriented response to a critical situation related to the October 2002 launch of the space shuttle Atlantis. The symposium, which will be held May 20, 2003-22 at The Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, celebrates the previous year's successes and informs suppliers about NASA's long-range strategies. Timken is one of seven suppliers that will share its success story with the nearly 500 attendees.

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"Our dramatic case began on August 9, 2002, when NASA requested replacements for damaged spherical plain bearings in one of the two crawlers that transport the shuttle to the launch pad," said Edgar San Jose, Timken regional sales engineer, and a presenter at the symposium. "The October Atlantis launch was at stake: no bearings, no launch. Within 17 days, we produced and delivered 20 new bearings to our customer, and the shuttle was transported to the launch pad on September 10 as planned."

The originals were made in 1963 by The Torrington Company, recently acquired by The Timken Company, and performed successfully for 2,527 miles of operation. Bearing engineers located the 40-year-old bearing design in the company archives and collaborated with NASA and internal manufacturing experts to develop a strategy. A project of this magnitude typically would require 12 to 15 weeks.

"The space shuttle program received outstanding service and support," said Don Herring, deputy of procurement -- United Space Alliance. "This supplier team jumped into action like true professionals. We worked in unison with the team and produced amazing results."

Each crawler relies on 16 jacking, equalization and leveling cylinders, and each cylinder contains two spherical bearings. When one crawler carries a mobile launch platform and a space shuttle, nearly 15 million pounds are distributed over the 16 vertically oriented cylinders. Well-designed, specially heat-treated spherical bearings are critical for a successful four- mile journey to the launch pad.

"It is a privilege to be part of the NASA community and rewarding to know that our knowledge and expertise are valued by this leader," says Dave Fittro, manager of the Shiloh, North Carolina, plant that produced the bearings. "We were also honored when Atlantis astronauts visited the Shiloh plant to personally thank our team for its efforts."

"The theme of this year's Space Shuttle Supplier Symposium is 'Pioneering the Future' and that is what The Timken Company has done for more than 100 years," said Ron Menning, president -- aerospace and super precision. "With the integration of The Torrington Company, Timken is better positioned than ever to meet the needs of its customers around the world."

The Timken Company ( www.timken.com ) is a leading international manufacturer of highly engineered bearings, alloy and specialty steels and components, and a provider of related products and services. Following its February 2003 acquisition of The Torrington Company, Timken employs 28,000 people worldwide in operations in 29 countries. In 2002, the combined companies had sales of approximately $3.8 billion.

   For Additional Information:
   Christina Tharp
   Communications Manager
   (330) 471-3294

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