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Worthington Industries Custom Plastics Group and TSK of Germany Announce Strategic Global Alliance

25 August 1997

Worthington Industries Custom Plastics Group and TSK of Germany Announce Strategic Global Alliance

    COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 25 -- Worthington Industries
Custom Plastics Group and Troester Systeme und Komponenten
(TSK) today announced the formation of a strategic global alliance.  The
partnership links the two companies vast capabilities and provides them with a
strong worldwide presence.  John R. Halula, Group Vice President of
Worthington Custom Plastics commented, "The combination of Worthington and TSK
brings together two great companies with proven track records.  This mutually
beneficial partnership leverages all aspects of both companies marketing and
manufacturing resources and provides access to new global markets without
investing capital into facilities and equipment."
    Mr. Guenther Troester, President of TSK, concurred and added, "Worthington
and Troester make a strong global team.  Together, our companies can offer
extensive capabilities for design, engineering, prototyping, and production of
plastic parts and assemblies on a worldwide basis.  We can now support our
customers global production requirements in one of the twenty-one alliance
manufacturing facilities."
    The organizations complement each other very well both technically and
operationally.  The companies have overlapping injection molding, decorative
and functional system capabilities, while TSK adds unique in-mold painting and
polyurethane expertise as well as strong tooling and manufacturing technology.
As Mr. Halula remarked, "Within the alliance plants, we can essentially make
all automotive trim applications with the exception of seating and
headliners."
    TSK, based in Breitenguessbach/Bamberg, Germany, is a market leader in
manufacturing technology and high quality injection molded plastic parts for
automotive and non-automotive applications.  The Company operates nine plants
in Germany and one plant in China.
    Worthington Custom Plastics, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A., is
one of North America's leading injection molding companies and operates
11 plants in the United States serving the automotive, appliance, lawn and
garden, and communication markets.  It is a subsidiary of Worthington
Industries Inc., a leading manufacturer of metal and plastic products with
annualized sales of approximately $2 billion.

SOURCE  Worthington Industries