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Freudenberg-NOK Completes Purchase of Farnam*Meillor

28 July 1999

Freudenberg-NOK Completes Purchase of Farnam*Meillor, Rounds out Total Transmission Sealing Capabilities

    PLYMOUTH, Mich., July 27 -- Freudenberg-NOK announced today
that it has completed the purchase of Farnam*Meillor -- manufacturer of a wide
range of gaskets and gasket assemblies -- rounding out the company's in-house
capability of providing total transmission sealing to automakers.  Terms were
not disclosed.
    Farnam*Meillor and its 177,000-square-foot gasket production facility in
Necedah, Wis., will become part of Freudenberg-NOK's newly created Automotive
Sector and will be renamed Farnam Sealing Products.  Farnam*Meillor's sales
office and technology center in Troy, Mich., will be integrated into
Freudenberg-NOK's Concept Center in Plymouth.
    "Combining Farnam*Meillor's static gasket technology with Freudenberg-
NOK's unmatched expertise and broad portfolio of sealing products, further
enhances the company's total powertrain sealing offerings," said Richard E.
Allen, recently named CEO of Freudenberg-NOK's Automotive Sector.  "The total
sealing approach -- which Freudenberg-NOK first pioneered with engines --
helps automakers extend durability and reduce warranty-failure rates, while
enhancing customer satisfaction and loyalty."
    The global Freudenberg and NOK Group -- the world's sealing technology
leader with more patents in its product areas than any other supplier --
supplied the automotive industry's first total engine sealing program in 1994;
the first North American total engine sealing program in 1996; and the first
global total sealing program for an engine that will be introduced in model
year 2001 and produced in four countries around the world.
    Extending this cost-savings approach to transmissions, Allen said
Freudenberg-NOK recently signed a development agreement with Ford Motor Co.
for the supplier's first total transmission sealing program.
    Freudenberg-NOK's purchase of Farnam*Meillor follows the purchase of an
interest in specialized gasket-maker Meillor S.A. of Nantiat, France, by
Freudenberg & Co. of Weinheim, Germany, in December 1998.  This strategic
joint venture enabled Freudenberg-NOK -- Freudenberg's global partner in the
Americas -- to acquire Farnam*Meillor, a North American subsidiary of Meillor.
    Recently, Freudenberg-NOK announced the realignment of its automotive
businesses.  The company incorporated its vibration control products into
Vibracoustic North America -- an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of
Freudenberg-NOK -- and merged its automotive sealing businesses (chassis
components and powertrain products) into one unit called the Automotive
Sector.
    Plymouth, Mich.-based Freudenberg-NOK is part of the Freudenberg and NOK
Group Companies, which have total annual sales of more than $6 billion.  With
global automotive sales of approximately $3.5 billion, the Freudenberg and NOK
Group ranks among the world's top 20 automotive suppliers and is one of only
eight in the top 100 that has global balance in each of the three major
automotive markets -- Asia, Europe and North America.
    Through a global network of facilities spanning 24 countries with some
23,000 automotive employees worldwide, the supplier group offers its
automotive customers globally integrated products, including sealing packages
for transmissions, engines, brakes, axles and steering, NVH (noise, vibration
and harshness) components and packages, and all rubber, plastic and PTFE
components for suspension, electrical and fuel systems.
    The Freudenberg and NOK Group also offers an extensive portfolio of
precision-molded products for the aerospace, appliance, business machine,
fluid power, marine, medical, off-highway equipment and recreational vehicle
markets.  For more information, visit the Freudenberg-NOK web site at
http://www.freudenberg-nok.com .