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RECARO and Sears Manufacturing Co. Join Forces

16 September 1998

RECARO and Sears Manufacturing Co. Join Forces To Produce a Line of Next-Generation Truck and Bus Seating Products

        World-Renowned Premium-seating Companies, RECARO North America
    And Sears Manufacturing Co., Agree to Develop, Manufacture and Market
                  Heavy Truck and Bus Seats in North America

    CLAWSON, Mich., Sept. 16 -- Two of the world's most
prestigious seating companies, RECARO and Sears Manufacturing Co., signed a
letter of intent to combine seating operations to develop, manufacture and
market next-generation seating for the heavy truck, bus and mass transit
industries in North America.  Using the unique strengths of both seating
companies, the new venture -- RECARO SEARS LLC -- will produce a line of
quality, state-of-the-art, heavy-duty seating products to meet the need in the
transportation industry for a better seat.
    RECARO North America, (http://www.recaro-nao.com), located in Clawson, Mich., is
a unit of the German seat manufacturer RECARO GmbH & Company, the world's
largest manufacturer of specialty seats.  RECARO seats meet the highest
standards for design, comfort, ergonomics and quality (ISO-9001 certified).
RECARO designs and manufactures custom and orthopedic seating products for
cars, trucks and racing applications.
    Sears Manufacturing Co. (http://www.searsseating.com) established in 1855 in
Davenport, Iowa, is a leading supplier of seating systems for agricultural,
construction and industrial applications worldwide, as well as the heavy-duty
truck market.  Sears is highly regarded for high standards for quality and
reliability (ISO-9001 certified), technological advancements in suspension
seating, and JIT manufacturing.