Lord Corporation, MR Fluid Garner Technology Leadership Award From Industry Analyst Frost & Sullivan

MR Fluid Taken From Lab Curiosity to Automotive Suspension in Less than a Decade

CARY, N.C., Oct. 16 -- Lord Corporation has received Frost & Sullivan's 2003 Technical Insights' Excellence in Technology of the Year Award for magnetorheological (MR) products, an award that also recognizes Lord's leadership in helping to develop new markets for MR fluids and systems.

The award, presented in Boston during Frost & Sullivan's 2003 Excellence in Emerging Technologies Awards Banquet, recognizes Lord's success in developing its patented Rheonetic(TM) magnetorheological (MR) fluid and systems as a commercially viable smart materials technology that has transformed design engineering in such key industries as automotive, civil structural and architectural design, factory machinery and medical prosthetic devices.

The award takes particular note of Lord's MR fluid formulation, which forms the functional core around which Delphi Automotive designed its award- winning MagneRide(TM) automotive shock absorber.

Delphi's MagneRide controllable automotive shock absorber, introduced last year on Cadillac and Corvette models, is a high performance, semi-active suspension control system that responds in real time to road and driving conditions based on input from sensors that monitor body and wheel motions.

For Lord the award highlights a singular achievement in the commercialization of new materials technology: in less than a decade, the company took MR fluids from a research curiosity in 1991 to commercial use in a structural, safety-critical automotive suspension application. In comparison, plastics, magnesium and aluminum took decades for acceptance.

The MagneRide suspension system consists of MR fluid-based monotube shock absorbers, a sensor set and on-board controller. MR fluid technology from Lord Corporation enables real time control systems without electro-mechanical valves and no small moving parts. The onboard controller continually adjusts the damping forces up to once every millisecond based on input from four suspension displacement sensors, a lateral accelerometer and a steering wheel angle sensor. By controlling the current to an electromagnetic coil inside the piston of the damper, the MR fluid's resistance to flow can be changed. This characteristic and other features of the MagneRide system provide smooth, continuously variable damping in a cost effective and reliable package that reduces body motion and increases tire road contact on all types of surfaces.

Drivers of vehicles equipped with MagneRide experience a greater sense of safety and security due to improved wheel control; minimized vehicle body motion for a flatter ride and more precise, responsive handling. Driver benefits also include reduction of small road disturbances; improved load transfer characteristics, providing better roll control and steering precision during sudden, high-speed maneuvers; and a quieter, more refined ride due to improved road isolation.

Frost & Sullivan, which provides market and industry analysis and consulting, also noted other automotive and vehicular applications for MR fluid that Lord has developed over the past several years, including vehicular steer-by-wire.

Frost & Sullivan honors companies and individuals for technical developments that have the opportunity for the fastest growth in their industries. Award recipients, according to Frost & Sullivan, have identified emerging trends and have created advanced technologies likely to spark industry growth in the near future.

For more information about Lord MR applications visit: http://www.mrfluid.com/

Lord Corporation, with headquarters in Cary, NC, and sales in excess of $400-MM is a privately held company that designs, manufactures and markets devices and systems to manage mechanical motion and control noise and vibration; formulates, produces and sells general purpose and specialty adhesives and polyurethane coatings; and develops products and systems utilizing magnetically responsive technologies. With plants in seven states and facilities/operations in 10 countries, Lord Corporation employs more than 2,200 worldwide.

  For Additional Information:
  Lynn Yanyo
  Lord Corporation
  919-469-2500 x 2129
  Lynn_Yanyo@lord.com

  Dan Headrick
  Lord Corporation
  919-469-2500 x 2138
  Dan_Headrick@lord.com