Rohm and Haas Announces Sale of European Automotive Coatings Business to Mader

FRANKFURT, Germany, May 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Rohm and Haas Company has signed a definitive agreement to sell its European Automotive Coatings business, including its manufacturing site in Strullendorf, Germany, to the Mader Group, a leading independent manufacturer of hi-tech industrial paints and coatings based in Lille, France, with operations throughout Europe. The transaction is expected to close later this year.

This transaction completes Rohm and Haas Company's divestiture of its Automotive Coatings business, which started with the sale of the its Automotive Coatings operations in North America (United States, Canada and Mexico) and the Asia Pacific region to Nippon Paint Co., Ltd., in October 2006.

The business manufactures a comprehensive range of automotive coatings, with a focus on interior water-based products, which are supplied to high-end OEMs. In addition, the business also produces specialty coatings with applications in the general industrial and optical media markets. The business had sales of $25 million in 2006 and sales of $7 million in first quarter 2007. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

An important consideration in the sale was for a buyer who would acquire and continue to invest in the site and its employees.

The coatings business acquired from Rohm and Haas Germany will be integrated into a new company named Mader Plastilack GmbH with the intention of building a strong synergy between Mader's French Division, Soritec, located in Saint-Georges-sur-Loire in western France, that is currently dedicated to plastic coatings. The new Mader Plastilack GmbH located in Strullendorf will also be focused on plastic coatings manufacture and contribute to making the company the European leader in interior automotive coatings.

Mader's Soritec division has developed a strong position in automotive coatings business in France, Spain and Italy with Renault and PSA. Mader Plastilack will commercialize products developed for German OEMs and capitalize on its market position in Germany and Eastern Europe. Together, these two sites will be able to serve all the European car manufacturers.

In the optical market, Mader Group, as a producer of UV curing resins, will look to build Mader Plastilack business in Europe and Asia. Mader will also look to build Mader Plastilack's general industrial coatings market in cosmetics in France.

"We expect to maintain the present organization of the Strullendorf site and look forward to a smooth transition from Rohm and Haas to Mader and see strong synergies with our automotive, industrial and optical markets and strategic growth plans. We will have, with the Strullendorf site, two companies involved in the coatings business in Germany: Walter Mader Aqualack GmbH, in Dusseldorf for metal coatings and Mader Plastilack GmbH in Strullendorf dedicated to plastic coatings," said Jean Le Guern, Chief Executive Officer of the Mader Group.

Approximately 125 Rohm and Haas employees will be part of the acquisition.

Dirk Hardow, Managing Director, Rohm and Haas Germany, said: "the selection of Mader brings many good things to our customers, to the village of Strullendorf, and to Rohm and Haas employees who are well-trained, highly-motivated and dedicated. We thank our employees for their service, their devotion, and their commitment to environmental, health and safety. Our customers, suppliers and employees will be well-served by this transaction."

About Rohm and Haas Company

Leading the way since 1909, Rohm and Haas is a global pioneer in the creation and development of innovative technologies and solutions for the specialty materials industry. The company's technologies are found in a wide range of industries including: Building and Construction, Electronics and Electronic Devices, Household Goods and Personal Care, Packaging and Paper, Transportation, Pharmaceutical and Medical, Water, Food and Food Related, and Industrial Process. Our innovative technologies and solutions help to improve life everyday, around the world. Based in Philadelphia, PA, the company generated annual sales of approximately $8.2 billion in 2006. Visit http://www.rohmhaas.com/ for more information. imagine the possibilities(TM)

About the Mader Group

The Mader Group is a major independent manufacturer of industrial paints and coatings serving the railway, automotive and aerospace industries with an R&D emphasis on advance technology resins. It has annual sales of euro 120 million, a seven-times sales growth since 1997, with facilities in France, Switzerland and Germany and joint ventures in Italy and China. Mader also has partnership agreements with UPC in the U.S. and Ohashi in Japan to insure worldwide market penetration. These include a wide range of automotive coatings for automakers in France, including Peugeot and Renault. For more information, visit http://www.mader-group.com/