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Timken Launches Impact Steel

7 March 2000

Timken Launches Impact Steel

    CANTON, Ohio, March 7 The Timken Company
announced today the launch of Impact(TM) steel, a modified 4130 alloy
developed for high performance in the corrosive environment of energy
exploration applications.
    "As the need for energy exploration continues to increase, oil wells are
becoming deeper and are drilled in increasingly hostile environments," said
Allen Haberman, market manager - industrial and oilfield. "The strength and
toughness characteristics of Impact steel result in longer life and increased
dependability under such conditions, providing a tailored solution to
customers with a higher return on investment for energy exploration."
    This steel meets or exceeds the National Association of Corrosion
Engineers (NACE) and American Petroleum Institute (API) standards for
resistance to sulfide stress corrosion cracking.
    Impact steel is one of a series of steel solutions developed by The Timken
Company. Others include Microtec(TM) steel, a microalloy steel designed to
dramatically reduce customer manufacturing costs by eliminating the need for
heat-treatment operations, and Parapremium(TM) steel, a high-performance steel
designed for the most demanding applications where maximum fatigue life is
critical.
    The Timken Company ( http://www.timken.com ) is a leading
international manufacturer of highly engineered bearings and alloy steels with
operations in 25 countries. The company employs nearly 21,000 people worldwide
and reported 1999 sales of $2.5 billion.