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Peregrine Agrees to Acquire Door Hinge and Spare-Tire Carrier Operations

10 December 1997

Peregrine Agrees to Acquire Door Hinge and Spare-Tire Carrier Operations

    SOUTHFIELD, Mich., Dec. 10 -- Peregrine Incorporated today
announced its agreement to acquire the door hinge and spare-tire carrier
manufacturing operations from American Commercial Industries, Inc. (ACI), a
Troy, Mich., automotive supplier.  The door hinge operation is located in
Jackson, Mich., and the spare-tire carrier operation is located in Matamoros,
Mexico.  The purchase price was not disclosed.
    The announcement was made by Ed Gulda, chairman and chief executive
officer of Peregrine Incorporated, a supplier of automotive interior and
exterior parts and components.  "This will be our second acquisition this
year," Gulda said, "and is consistent with our growth strategy in the area of
mechanisms and controls."
    While Peregrine is already a full-service supplier of door hinges and
check assemblies, the acquisition will provide new capabilities with the
addition of spare-tire carriers.
    "It will also significantly broaden our customer base and increase the
amount of business we have in the light truck market," he continued.
    The two plants produce in excess of $60 million annually, and are rated Q1
with Ford Motor Company and recently achieved QS9000.
    Headquartered in Southfield, Mich., Peregrine Incorporated supplies
interior and exterior products to the automotive industry through
manufacturing operations in Battle Creek, Flint, Livonia and Warren, Mich.;
and Oshawa and Windsor, Ontario.  The company has annual sales of more than
$1.1 billion.
    Peregrine's Web site address is http://www.pgrine.com.

               Profile of American Commercial Industries, Inc.

    American Commercial Industries, Inc. (ACI) is a leading supplier of
process-driven highly engineered, value-added metal-formed and stamped
automotive niche components.
    Headquartered in Troy, Mich., the company's world-class products are
designed and manufactured by more than 1,200 people at five sites located in
Michigan, Georgia and Mexico.
    The acquisition provides the following enhancements to Peregrine:

Facilities:

    SSI Division, Jackson, Mich., is an automated facility with extensive
computerized machining centers and flexible manufacturing practices to provide
a broad range of automotive door hinges and door checks and other mechanical
assemblies.
    SSI Division, Matamoros, Mexico, is one of the world's largest
manufacturers of spare-tire carriers, and also manufactures door check and
mechanical assemblies.

Products:
    -- Door hinges
    -- Door checks
    -- Spare-tire carriers
    -- Other mechanical assemblies

Sales:
    $60 million + annually

Personnel:
    376 employees
    --  77 salary
    --  299 hourly

Customers:
    Vehicle Manufacturers
    --  Chrysler
    --  Ford
    --  General Motors

SOURCE  Peregrine Incorporated