Hawtal Whiting Acquired by Wagon plc

Effective October 25, 2000, Hawtal Whiting, Inc. is pleased to announce the acquisition of Hawtal Whiting Inc. (North and South America) and the core assets of Hawtal Whiting European Engineering by Wagon plc. The Hawtal Whiting European business organization has recently been faced with overwhelming challenges. The purchase by Wagon will enable us to aggressively move forward and preserve a presence in all the major car design countries throughout the world.

Wagon plc is an international engineering group specializing in the manufacture of automotive closures and body structures and the design, manufacture, and installation of storage systems. Wagon maintains more than 30 operating units in Europe and the USA and has established an international reputation for quality and innovation.

We believes this new relationship to be a good fit and will provide strong opportunities for Hawtal Whiting and Wagon in the automotive design, interiors, and build arenas. Our synergism will enable us to better meet our customer's needs with a broader spectrum of capabilities. Hawtal Whiting's independence as an engineering and design group will be protected and will benefit from the support and technology and other services that Wagon offers.

The primary advantage of Wagon acquiring Hawtal Whiting is the ability to offer a design through build capability, specifically in light weight structures and space frames. Hawtal Whiting will continue to offer a full range of expertise in program management and total design and engineering of all vehicle body and interior systems.

Andy Tempest will continue to lead the management team as the chief executive of Hawtal Whiting, and looks forward to maintaining and expanding the high level of services that has given Hawtal Whiting its quality reputation in the automotive industry.

For more information about the Wagon organization, visit their web site at wagon-plc.com.