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Ernst & Young and Automotive News Announce PACE Awards Winners

23 February 1998

Ernst & Young and Automotive News Announce PACE Awards Winners

        Gentex, Durr, Cooper/Wagner, Benteler, Prince and Eaton/Spicer
       Are Named Best of the Best in Innovative Products and Practices

    DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 22 -- Winners of the 1998 Automotive
News/Ernst & Young PACE(TM) Awards were honored tonight at a gala celebration
at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Mich.
    The PACE (Premier Automotive suppliers' Contributions to Excellence)
Awards recognize automotive suppliers for innovation, technological
enhancement and business performance.  The annual industry event was attended
by more than 300 representatives of Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs),
automotive supply companies and the media.
    Six winners were selected from 14 finalists and were honored for both
innovative product and manufacturing achievements:

    --  Gentex Corporation -- Zeeland, Mich.:  First auto-dimming
        exterior-mirror.
    --  Durr Industries, Inc. -- Plymouth, Mich.:  Radiant floor construction
        (RFC) paint oven.
    --  Wagner Lighting Division/Cooper Automotive -- Hampton, Virginia:
        Dodge Dakota and Durango front lamp assembly and related manufacturing
        and assembly processes.
    --  Benteler Automotive Corporation -- Grand Rapids, Mich.:  Thermally
        efficient, air-gap manifold and exhaust tube applications, parts and
        systems.
    --  Prince, A Johnson Controls Company -- Holland, Mich.:  CorteX(R), a
        unique, formable, energy-absorbing material for use in a car's
        overhead zone.
    --  Eaton Corp., Spicer Clutch Division -- Auburn, Indiana:  The Eaton
        Spicer Solo, the industry's first adjustment-free clutch for
        heavy-duty truck applications.

    Each of the six winners received a citation (please see attachments or
visit our Web site at http://www.ey.com/US/PACE ) representing a consensus of
the PACE judges' view of what makes each nomination outstanding.
    "Automotive suppliers have been ardent innovators.  They continue to
strengthen the industry through manufacturing and product innovations," says
Lee Sage, global automotive leader, Ernst & Young LLP.  "We are proud to be a
sponsor of this award and to extend recognition and credit to those companies
that distinguish themselves by delivering unprecedented levels of value to
their manufacturing customers and to consumers."
    Recognizing the contributions of auto suppliers, keynote speaker Guy D.
Briggs, vice president and general manager of operations for General Motors'
Truck Group, addressed the important role of innovation in the partnership
between GM and its suppliers.
    Governor John Engler acknowledged the 4th Annual PACE Awards ceremony by
declaring Feb. 22, 1998, "PACE Automotive Suppliers Day" in Michigan.  The
Governor noted, "the automobile industry and automotive suppliers are vitally
important to the economic strength and vitality of our Great Lakes State."
    The PACE Award program recognizes product, manufacturing and service
achievements by automotive suppliers of all sizes.  Winners are selected by a
panel of distinguished judges who review applications and conduct
comprehensive site visits of each finalist's company to evaluate both their
innovation and management team.
    Ernst & Young LLP provides assurance and advisory business services, tax
services and consulting for domestic and global clients.  The firm has
27,000 people in 89 U.S. cities.  Ernst & Young excels in the areas of
worldwide performance improvement, technology enhancement and assurance and
tax services for the automotive industry.  The firm has published innovative
marketplace reports, including the annual PACE Findings Reports, the Ernst &
Young-University of Michigan Office for the Study of Automotive Transportation
(OSAT) Study, and ISO/QS9000 and Beyond:  A Step-by-Step Guide and CD-ROM.
    Automotive News is the world's leading automotive business publication.
It is read by executives and engineers of the world's automakers and
suppliers, as well as top dealership management.  Published weekly, Automotive
News focuses on the breaking news of the industry and provides in-depth
coverage of major trends.  Automotive News is one of 30 publications of Crain
Communications Inc., which also publishes Advertising Age; Auto Week; business
news weeklies in Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and New York; and Automotive News
Europe.

SOURCE  Ernst & Young