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TAMPA, Fla., July 6, 2023 — Brazilian beverage producer Socorro Bebidas (Socorro) has expanded its partnership with Crown Embalagens Metálicas da Amazônia S.A., a subsidiary of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) (Crown) (www.crowncork.com), to launch Acquíssima Sabor flavored mineral water in 350ml (12oz) CrownSleek cans. The premium zero-calorie drink features natural aromas, offering a health-conscious alternative for consumers to stay hydrated and incorporate key nutrients into their daily diets. The line made its debut with two flavors, Lychee and Green Apple, and is currently available in Acquíssima stores, restaurants and supermarkets in Brazil. Socorro also previously utilized CrownSleek cans to package its Acquíssima mineral water brand, its first entry into the water market.

Total canned water volume in Brazil has increased by nearly 7x between 2021 and 2022, demonstrating a growing trend in the region for water packaged in aluminum and a continued shift away from tap and bulk water. When considering the package format for the brand, Socorro knew it needed to help convey the refreshing and health-conscious nature of the beverage, while also delivering on sustainability. The inherent properties of metal packaging, including providing a powerful barrier against light and oxygen, helps maintain the product’s freshness. Aluminum beverage cans are also infinitely recyclable and are the most recycled beverage package in the world. These characteristics resonate with Brazilian consumers, who have recently helped drive the country’s recycling rate for aluminum beverage cans to an astounding 100%.

“We are proud to continue our work with Crown as we launch the newest addition to the Acquíssima portfolio,” said Maurício Cruz, Commercial Director of Socorro. “We created the Acquíssima Sabor line to give Brazilian consumers a healthy, delicious beverage alternative. It demanded packaging that would help convey the uniqueness of the brand, its refreshing appeal and our commitment to sustainability. Ultimately, the beverage can was the perfect choice.”

“Crown is thrilled to support Socorro’s rapidly expanding portfolio of products in beverage cans,” said Altair Frulane, Commercial Director of Crown. “Beverage cans meet consumer needs in ways that no other packaging format can. For example, metal packaging is lightweight and convenient to carry, serve from and enjoy. It is durable, protecting the product within and maintaining its freshness. In addition, and critical to modern consumers, is the fact that cans are extremely sustainable and represent packaging they can feel good about.”

Learn more about Crown’s beverage can offerings and capabilities, as well as the Company’s sustainability efforts at crowncork.com.

About Crown Holdings, Inc.
Crown Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is a leading global supplier of rigid packaging products to consumer marketing companies, as well as transit and protective packaging products, equipment and services to a broad range of end markets. World headquarters are located in Tampa, Florida. For more information, visit www.crowncork.com.

SOURCE Crown Holdings, Inc.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 20, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Applied Materials, Inc. today announced the publication of its latest Sustainability Report, detailing its ESG (environmental, social and governance) initiatives and results over the past year. The report highlights the impact of the company’s ESG efforts within its own organization, with its suppliers and customers and on the global electronics ecosystem.

“Applied Materials is at the forefront of semiconductor technologies that play an ever-increasing role in our lives,” said Gary Dickerson, President and CEO of Applied Materials. “As we bring transformative new innovations to market, we are working closely with our suppliers and customers to minimize our environmental impact by reducing our products’ resource consumption and carbon emissions. We are also continuing our strong commitment to a culture of inclusion at Applied where everyone has an equal opportunity to contribute and grow in their careers.”

Driven by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and a sharp increase in the number of smart, connected devices, the market for semiconductors is projected to approximately double and reach $1 trillion over the next decade. It is imperative for the chip manufacturing ecosystem to work collaboratively to decouple this expected growth from the industry’s carbon emissions.

In 2022, Applied continued to make progress in reducing its carbon footprint, achieving 100-percent renewable electricity use in the U.S. and 69 percent globally, resulting in a 3-percent reduction from its 2019 baseline in the company’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions – those produced directly by the company and by the energy it purchases. During the same period, Applied’s energy consumption rose by approximately 13 percent, which demonstrates the company’s progress in decoupling emissions growth from business growth. Recognizing the need to redouble its efforts in the future, Applied submitted science-based reduction targets for its Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions – those generated across the entire value chain – to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and the company set a new goal to reduce its Scope 3 – Category 11 (use of sold products) emissions per wafer across new semiconductor products by 55 percent by 2030 (from its 2019 baseline).

To help drive global demand for renewable electricity across the industry and expedite the transition to a low-carbon future, Applied is collaborating with key customers and engaging in industry coalitions. Applied is a founding member and governing council member of the Semiconductor Climate Consortium as well as a member of imec’s Sustainable Semiconductor Technologies and Systems (SSTS) Program, the RE100 and the Clean Energy Buyers Alliance (CEBA).

At the core of Applied’s commitment to build a culture of inclusion is the belief that having a workforce representing different perspectives, backgrounds and experiences is essential to delivering world-class innovations. Over the past year, Applied took steps to instill diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) best practices across the company, made progress towards its DEI goals, and set new 2030 targets to further increase the representation of women globally and underrepresented minorities (URM) in its U.S. workforce.

Applied Materials has been reporting on social responsibility and environmental matters since 2005. The company’s latest Sustainability Report and Annex reflect activities and results through the end of fiscal year 2022. To access the full reports and learn more about Applied’s environmental actions as well as the company’s efforts to advance its culture of inclusion and human rights initiatives, please visit the Reports and Policies page of our website.

About Applied Materials
Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMAT) is the leader in materials engineering solutions used to produce virtually every new chip and advanced display in the world. Our expertise in modifying materials at atomic levels and on an industrial scale enables customers to transform possibilities into reality. At Applied Materials, our innovations make possible a better future. Learn more at www.appliedmaterials.com.

Contact:
Ricky Gradwohl (editorial/media) 408.235.4676
Michael Sullivan (financial community) 408.986.7977

Source: Applied Materials, Inc.

Washington, D.C. – Following the Securities and Exchange Commission’s decision to finalize its costly and unnecessary stock buybacks rule, National Association of Manufacturers Managing Vice President of Tax and Domestic Economic Policy Chris Netram released the following statement:

“The NAM is disappointed that the SEC has chosen to unjustifiably punish manufacturers for returning capital to their shareholders. Manufacturers, investors, retirement plans and the entire economy benefit when companies can efficiently allocate capital via share repurchases. The NAM was successful in convincing the SEC to abandon the most damaging aspect of its initial proposal, but the commission’s attempt to discourage these commonplace, commonsense transactions via an overly complicated, expensive and unworkable disclosure mandate is nevertheless a departure from its mission to enhance capital formation and protect investors.”

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 13 million men and women, contributes $2.81 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 55% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org.

CEDAR KNOLLS, N.J., — Veterans and their families in New Jersey will now have access to new career training and career placement opportunities thanks to the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program, Inc. (NJMEP) -led New Jersey Defense Manufacturing Community Consortium (NJDMCC). Thanks to funds awarded by the Department of Defense – Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, NJMEP and partners from around the state will be able to train veterans and their families to support their transition from military service into the civilian workforce. NJMEP will work to support Picatinny Arsenal’s Joint Center for Excellence for Guns and Ammunition in training and placing veterans and their families in the advanced manufacturing industry which directly contributes to national security and the success of the Defense Industrial Base Sector.

“Advanced manufacturing provides incredible, sustainable career opportunities for our nation’s veterans and their family members. Often, these individuals are a perfect match to support the Department of Defense and its supply chain because of the training and experience they received while enlisted,” Torsten Schimanski, Sr. Director of Workforce Development & Strategic Growth, NJMEP explained. He continues, “This investment into this underserved community will go so far in helping veterans gain the industry-relevant knowledge they will need to make a smooth transition into advanced manufacturing.”

The training opportunities offered by NJMEP and County College of Morris focus on foundational manufacturing skills such as CNC, welding, as well as certifications in safety and production processes. The program is available for 5 years and offers 1,200 participants.

NJMEP is inviting manufacturers and suppliers in the Department of Defense (DoD) supply chain to join the newly formed consortium. Below is an example of just some of the partners currently involved:

New Jersey Council of County Colleges (NJCCC)
The African American Chamber of Commerce of NJ
The National Armaments Consortium (NAC)
The Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of NJ
US Manufacturing Institutes
o American Lightweight Materials (ALMMI)
o Advanced Robotics (ARM)
o National Center of Defense Manufacturing (NJDMM)
John W. Kennedy, Ph.D, CEO, NJMEP added, “Not only is the training a key aspect of this exciting initiative, but we will also be working together with industry and community partners to place these newly trained, highly reliable individuals at manufacturing organizations all around the state. It closes the loop, so this amazing population isn’t left to transition back into the civilian world without the support they deserve.”

“I am thrilled to see this grant funding coming to New Jersey that will create job training positions for over 600 veterans and family members over the next five years. Thank you to NJMEP and the many organizations involved, including NJ Pathways, the NJ Veterans Chamber of Commerce, and the County College of Morris, for your ongoing partnership in advocating for the manufacturing sector here in the Garden State. I am proud to have championed this grant program through my work on the House Armed Services Committee, and even prouder to have supported NJMEP in their efforts to secure this federal funding for New Jersey – one of only 6 grant awards across the country for this program,” said Rep. Sherrill.

Under section 846 of the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, the Secretary of Defense can establish programs such as The Defense Manufacturing Community Support Program to designate and support consortiums in defense manufacturing communities to strengthen the national security industrial base. This project led by NJMEP is a critical component in strengthening the domestic DoD advanced manufacturing supply chain, ensuring a local highly trained workforce pool exists, and at the same time supporting transitioning military families by offering training, and job placement at careers that have an average annual compensation of over $97,000 per year.

About NJMEP: NJMEP is a private, not-for-profit organization that improves the profitability and competitiveness of New Jersey’s manufacturers. Backed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), NJMEP enables organizations to enhance their productivity and efficiencies, reduce costs, and improve employee performance. For more than 20 years, NJMEP has used its extensive network of connections and proven track record of success to help manufacturers adapt to the latest innovative technologies and best practices to realize more than $6.03 billion in value. Our services are categorized into the following three areas: Operational Excellence, Innovation and Growth and Workforce Development.

SOURCE New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program

CONTACT: Mike Womack, Phone: 973-998-9801 x220, Email: mwomack@njmep.org

Goodyear is collaborating with the Department of Defense, the Air Force Research Lab, BioMADE and Farmed Materials to accelerate commercialization of natural rubber from dandelions

AKRON, Ohio, — The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company today announced a multi-year, multi-million-dollar program supported by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) and BioMADE to work with Ohio-based Farmed Materials to develop a domestic source of natural rubber from a specific species of dandelion.

Natural rubber has been classified as a strategic raw material that serves as a critical ingredient in military, aircraft and truck tires. Today, more than 90 percent of the world’s natural rubber is made from latex derived from rubber trees and is primarily sourced from tropical locations outside of the U.S.

The program will build on research that analyzed more than 2,500 species of plants but found only a few with properties suitable for use in tires. Taraxacum kok-saghyz, a species of dandelion known as TK, has proven to be a valuable alternative to natural rubber trees.

Farmed Materials has shown initial positive results in pilot programs for TK, yielding strong harvests that necessitate the need for additional planting and funding.

“Global demand for natural rubber continues to grow, and it remains a key raw material for the tire industry,” said Chris Helsel, senior vice president Global Operations and Chief Technology Officer for Goodyear. “This is a critical time to develop a domestic source of natural rubber, which may help mitigate future supply chain challenges.”

“This partnership highlights how BioMADE brings together companies of different sizes to solve critical problems,” said Melanie Tomczak, Chief Technology Officer at BioMADE. “We’re excited about this project, which holds a lot of promise for domestic rubber production and shows how bioindustrial manufacturing can help secure the domestic supply chain.”

While rubber trees typically take seven years to produce the latex needed for rubber production, dandelions can be harvested every six months. TK dandelions are also resilient and can grow in more temperate climates, such as Ohio.

Backed by the DoD, the collaboration of Goodyear, BioMADE and Farmed Materials will accelerate commercialization of TK, beginning in the spring of 2022 with the planting and harvesting of TK seeds in Ohio. The natural rubber produced will be used in the production of military aircraft tires that will be built and tested under rigorous applications by Goodyear in cooperation with the AFRL at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.

If additional testing provides promising results, Goodyear sees potential for the application of TK rubber to be used in all tire applications.

About The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Goodyear is one of the world’s largest tire companies. It employs about 72,000 people and manufactures its products in 57 facilities in 23 countries around the world. Its two Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio, and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg, strive to develop state-of-the-art products and services that set the technology and performance standard for the industry. For more information about Goodyear and its products, go to www.goodyear.com/corporate.

About BioMADE
BioMADE is one of nine Department of Defense-sponsored Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, which anticipate and close gaps in manufacturing capabilities to realize affordable, timely and low-risk defense systems. Through funding, action, and engagement, BioMADE supports the development of biomanufacturing technologies to strengthen American competitiveness; create a more robust, resilient, and bio-based supply chain; and help the U.S. become more self-sufficient. BioMADE is also building a diverse and globally competitive STEM workforce by partnering with K-12 schools, community colleges, universities, and professional development organizations to ensure the workforce is prepared and ready to fill new jobs. To learn more, visit www.biomade.org.

About Farmed Materials
Farmed Materials develops and commercializes agriculturally derived, sustainable, high-performance polymers. Founded in Cincinnati, Ohio in 2016, Farmed Materials brings together proven leadership in agriculture, polymer science, and research. It supports formation, commercialization, growth, and scaling of award-winning advanced materials companies. Our team has successfully completed all phases of agriculture, seed production, rubber extraction and testing from the largest TK acreage cultivated since WWII. Contact Farmed Materials at: info@farmedmaterials.com.

SOURCE The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company

CONTACT: CONNIE DEIBEL, 330.796.9241, CONNIE_DEIBEL@GOODYEAR.COM

CLEVELAND, Aug. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — US sales of industrial supplies at the wholesale level are forecast to rise 3.9% yearly in nominal terms through 2025, according to Industrial Supplies Wholesale: United States, a report recently released by Freedonia Focus Reports. The largest driver of growth will be 3.8% annual gains in manufacturing shipments. This growth, originating in multiple categories of durable and nondurable goods, will support demand for a wide variety of industrial supplies. To a lesser extent, upticks in construction and retail spending will encourage sales of products such as pipe, fasteners, and hardware to construction firms, and packaging to manufacturers, other wholesalers, and retailers. As more manufacturers adopt automation and connected (i.e., Internet-of-Things enabled) machinery, industrial supply wholesalers will sell higher value robotics and automation tools, as well as benefit from manufacturing process automation services. Mature markets for these products, in addition to strong competition from factory direct sales and Amazon’s Amazon Business unit, will restrain faster gains.

Sales of industrial containers and supplies are anticipated to remain the largest segment. Increases in manufacturing output will boost demand for chemicals and other goods that use rigid bulk packaging such as pails, drums, and bulk boxes. Sales of abrasives are expected to be the fastest growing segment, expanding 5.4% per annum to 2025. Rising shipments of transport equipment, machinery, and metal products will propel growth. Value gains will be supported by growing use of superabrasives (such as diamond and cubic boron nitride grinding wheels), driven by rising specialization and increasingly demanding performance requirements in manufacturing applications.

These and other key insights are featured in Industrial Supplies Wholesale: United States. This report forecasts to 2021 and 2025 US sales of industrial supplies in nominal US dollars at the wholesale level. Total sales are segmented by product in terms of:

industrial containers
industrial valves and fittings
mechanical power transmission
strapping and tape
welding supplies
abrasives
mechanical rubber goods
ink and printing
hardware
other supplies such as automotive parts, pipes and tubing, and pumps and compressors
To illustrate historical trends, total sales are provided in annual series from 2010 to 2020.

This report presents total sales of industrial supply wholesalers, including those of products that are not strictly considered industrial supplies. For example, sales of food items and laboratory equipment are considered in-scope, if sold by an industrial supply wholesaler. Conversely, sales of industrial supplies from manufacturers, retailers, or other wholesalers not classified as industrial supply wholesalers are excluded from the scope of this report.

More information about the report is available at:
https://www.freedoniafocusreports.com/Industrial-Supplies-Wholesale-United-States-FF95084/?progid=91541

About Freedonia Focus Reports
Each month, The Freedonia Group – a division of MarketResearch.com – publishes over 20 new or updated Freedonia Focus Reports, providing fresh, unbiased analysis on a wide variety of markets and industries. Published in 20-30 pages, Focus Report coverage ranges from raw materials to finished manufactured goods and related services such as freight and construction. Additional Services & Industries reports can be purchased at Freedonia Focus Reports or MarketResearch.com.

Analysis is intended to guide the busy reader through pertinent topics in rapid succession, including:

total historical market size and industry output
segmentation by products and markets
identification of market drivers, constraints, and key indicators
segment-by-segment outlook in five-year forecasts
a survey of the supply base
suggested resources for further study
Press Contact:
Corinne Gangloff
+1 440.842.2400
cgangloff@freedoniagroup.com

SOURCE The Freedonia Group

IRVINE, Calif., April 20, 2021 — HAAH Motors Holdings and Shanghai SICAR Automotive Technology Development Co., Ltd. (Sicar) announced today their signing of a Letter of Intent (LOI) which expands their original Engineering Service Agreement to formation of a joint venture to bring VANTAS and T-GO branded vehicles to the U.S. market and later establish a local U.S. manufacturing plant that would bring jobs to America. Timing for U.S. manufacturing has been adjusted due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

VANTAS VX SUV. Photo of early model of VANTAS VX. Some elements of vehicle may change before vehicle goes on sale in the United States through VANTAS dealers
Sicar is an autonomous and independently operated vehicle technology development company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Chery Automobile, a top tier indigenous global automaker in China.

The LOI covers VANTAS and T-GO branded vehicles that HAAH and the Sicar joint venture will be developing and selling in North America. The first two vehicles to go on sale will be the large-size SUV VANTAS VX and the mid-size SUV VANTAS TXL. Next to enter the market will be two T-GO vehicles including one pickup truck model. They will be followed by additional SUV and passenger car models with intelligence and electrification capabilities.

Sicar and HAAH share the vision for world class intelligent and electric vehicles. While the first two vehicles the brands sell in North America have internal combustion engines, those vehicles are seen as a bridge to a future where electric vehicles will become the product mainstays.

“This agreement expansion is a major step forward as we prepare for the launch of these two brands in the United States and Canada, including future electric vehicles. It expands upon our earlier pact regarding the sales, distribution, and service of vehicles for the VANTAS and T-GO brands. There is no question that electric vehicles are the future in North America, and we’re excited to let everyone know of our plans,” said HAAH Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Duke Hale.

“While we aren’t ready to discuss details of our electric vehicle program just yet, EVs will become the core of our future offerings for VANTAS and T-GO,” said Executive Vice President of Sales Bob Pradzinski. “We are eager to join the movement toward a sustainable future filled with electric vehicles and are firmly committed to being a big part of that movement. We’re already working on an initial program with one electric vehicle, and there will be more to come.”

While all plans for the U.S. manufacturing plant remain in place, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced a delay in the selection of a site. The pandemic created travel restrictions, both in China and the United States, which made it impossible for the company to complete all of the necessary manufacturing engineering reviews for plant location selection as quickly as planned. The company now plans to bring in fully assembled SUVS to North America by the end of 2022. However, even the very first vehicles brought in will have U.S.-made content and that content will grow significantly over time.

This will accommodate the high level of eagerness among VANTAS and T-GO dealers to begin selling vehicles as quickly as possible.

The initial VANTAS VX and TXL SUV models will be supplied by Sicar which will be contract assembled in China.

About HAAH Motors Holdings

HAAH Motors Holdings is a privately held company located in Lake Forest, California. HAAH was formed to fill a void in the market by re-defining the 21st century auto retail experience and by providing a unique turn-key market entry solution for global OEMs seeking to manufacture and sell high-quality, affordable vehicles in the North American market. More information can be found at http://www.haahauto.com

About SICAR

Shanghai Automotive Technology Development Co., Ltd. (SICAR) is an engineering company located in Shanghai, China, a wholly owned subsidiary of Chery Automobile Stock Co., Ltd. (Chery). Sicar has full capability to develop and engineer a world class vehicle from concept to start of production (SOP) through rigorous program management processes and with contracted services from domestic and global engineering service suppliers. Sicar has developed a series of premium vehicle models marketed under EXEED by Chery.

SOURCE HAAH Automotive Holdings

CONTACT: Chris Hosford, chris.hosford@haahauto.com, Mobile: +1-714-743-8764

Related Links
https://haahauto.com

TOKYO, March 31, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501, “Hitachi”) today announced that it will acquire GlobalLogic Inc. (President and CEO: Shashank Samant, “GlobalLogic”), a leading U.S.-headquartered digital engineering services company. The acquisition is based on the definitive agreement among Hitachi Global Digital Holdings Corporation (“HGDH”), a U.S. subsidiary, an SPC established by HGDH for the acquisition and GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings, Inc., the parent company of GlobalLogic. The transaction is subject to customary conditions and regulatory approvals and expected to be completed by the end of July 2021.

Through the acquisition, Hitachi expects the addition of GlobalLogic’s advanced digital engineering capabilities, and its solid client base including major technology companies, to strengthen the digital portfolio of “Lumada.”*1 Hitachi Vantara LLC, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Hitachi and its digital infrastructure, data management, and digital solutions business, plays a key role in driving Lumada business growth in the global market.

The acquisition will create synergies across Hitachi’s five sectors – IT, Energy, Industry, Mobility and Smart Life – and automotive systems business (Hitachi Astemo) by accelerating the advanced digital transformation of social infrastructure such as rail, energy, and healthcare at a global scale. Through its Social Innovation Business delivered by collaborative creation with customers, Hitachi aims to increase social, environmental, and economic value for its customers and realize a sustainable society.

*1

Lumada is the name of Hitachi’s advanced digital solutions and services for turning data into insights that drive digital transformation of social infrastructure.

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, GlobalLogic is a leading company in the fast-growing digital engineering services market. With over 20,000 professionals in 14 countries, GlobalLogic operates design studios and software product engineering centers around the world.

GlobalLogic has deep “chip-to-cloud” advanced software product engineering technology as well as experience design skills and vertical industry expertise. By combining these capabilities, GlobalLogic helps clients drive new revenue streams and incremental value for their customers by designing and developing innovative software that powers products, platforms, and digital experiences. The company has a solid client base with over 400 clients comprised of market leaders and marquee brands spanning key industries such as communications, financial services, automotive, healthcare & life sciences, technology, media and entertainment, and manufacturing.

Digital transformation (DX) investment is growing at an accelerated pace globally. IDC predicts that 65% of global GDP will be digitalized by 2022 driven by products and services from digitally transformed enterprises. *2

In addition, according to Zinnov (a research & advisory company specializing in Product Engineering and Digital Transformation) the total addressable market for digital engineering will grow to 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars by 2025, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19%.*3

*2

Source: IDC Press Release, October 29, 2020: IDC Reveals 2021 Worldwide Digital Transformation Predictions; 65% of Global GDP Digitalized by 2022, Driving Over $6.8 Trillion of Direct DX Investments from 2020 to 2023

https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS46967420

*3

Source: Zinnov Zones for Engineering & R&D Services Research (slide 3)https://zinnov.com/zinnov-zones-engineering-rd-services-2019/

These figures do not include the COVID-19 effect.

Digital transformation continues to be a priority for organizations everywhere, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only expanded demand for new data-driven business models, customer experiences, and connected ecosystems. However, many organizations lack the knowledge and experience to design and deploy new digital platforms. They are also challenged by the shortage of the skills required to build digital-native products, and to design new interaction models and digital experiences, such as new digital ways of shopping or new models for delivering and receiving healthcare. Against this backdrop, the demand for GlobalLogic’s services is growing rapidly, and the combined company has greater access to this massive market opportunity.

Hitachi has been promoting initiatives to transform and provide more advanced and intelligent social infrastructure, such as rail and energy, using its digital technology, in order to achieve a transformation into a global leader in the Social Innovation Business. As part of its 2021 Mid-term Management Plan, Hitachi previously committed to the strategy to make growth investments of 1 trillion yen in the IT sector*4, primarily through Hitachi Vantara, to strengthen digital capabilities including digital products, solutions, partnerships, front and delivery capabilities. GlobalLogic will be an integral part and a growth engine of Hitachi’s portfolio of Lumada digital solutions and services.

*4

Hitachi, Ltd., IT Sector’s presentation material at Hitachi IR Day 2019.

https://www.hitachi.com/New/cnews/month/2019/06/190604/20190604_01_it_presentation_en.pdf

Toshiaki Higashihara, President & CEO of Hitachi, said “The acquisition of GlobalLogic creates an exciting new opportunity for Hitachi to expand our offerings of Lumada solutions and services, provide value to customers in their digital transformation journey, and grow our Lumada business globally. The synergy of GlobalLogic’s leading experience design and innovation with Hitachi’s expertise in IT, operational technology, and products, will help us realize our goal to be the leading digital transformation innovator in social infrastructure worldwide. Together, we will create new social, environmental and economic value for our globally expanding client companies and elevate QoL (quality of life) for people through contributions to realize sustainable society.”

“Companies in every industry are transforming with digital technology – to better engage customers, create new revenue streams and drive a higher quality of life.” said Shashank Samant, President and CEO, GlobalLogic. “We have a tremendous opportunity ahead and we are excited to embark on this journey with Hitachi, combining our collective skills, technologies, and market presence to deliver greater value to our clients as they transform their businesses.”

GlobalLogic’s revenues are expected to reach approx. 1.2 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 129.6 billion yen*5) with adjusted EBITDA*6 margins to be over 20% in fiscal 2021. With a high profitability profile and strong revenue CAGR, GlobalLogic will aim to achieve adjusted EBITDA of over 1 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 108.0 billion yen) by fiscal 2028.

HGDH and GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings have agreed on an equity value of 8.5 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 918.0 billion yen) with an enterprise value of 9.5 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 1,026.0 billion yen). This represents about 37.4x in CY2021 and 29.4x in CY2022 of expected adjusted EBITDA respectively and are within the calculation range of Hitachi’s comparable company analysis and the discounted cash flow method. The total acquisition cost, including repayment of GlobalLogic’s interest-bearing debt, is expected to be 9.6 billion U.S. dollars (approx. 1,036.8 billion yen).

*5

Converted at the rate of 108 yen to the U.S. dollar.

*6

EBITDA on a standalone basis, adjusted for stock-based compensation and non-recurring one-time costs.

Hitachi will acquire GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings through a merger involving MergeCo H Global Inc. (“SPC”), a subsidiary established by HGDH for the purpose of the transaction. In this acquisition, the “reverse triangular merger method” will be adopted. Specifically, SPC will be merged with and into GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings, which will be the surviving company. When the companies are merged, HGDH or SPC will provide cash to the shareholders of GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings after which all the outstanding shares of GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings will be cancelled. All the shares of SPC held by HGDH will be converted to common shares of GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings, the surviving company. In this way, HGDH will acquire 100% of the outstanding shares of GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings, the surviving company, and GlobalLogic Worldwide Holdings and GlobalLogic will become wholly owned subsidiaries of HGDH.

About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is focused on its Social Innovation Business that combines information technology (IT), operational technology (OT) and products. The company’s consolidated revenues for fiscal year 2019 (ended March 31, 2020) totaled 8,767.2 billion yen ($80.4 billion), and it employed approximately 301,000 people worldwide. Hitachi drives digital innovation across five sectors – Mobility, Smart Life, Industry, Energy and IT – through Lumada, Hitachi’s advanced digital solutions, services, and technologies for turning data into insights to drive digital innovation. Its purpose is to deliver solutions that increase social, environmental and economic value for its customers. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company’s website at https://www.hitachi.com.

SHANGHAI, March 30, 2021 /CNW/ — AWE2021 was held in Shanghai from March 23 to 25, 2021. With the pandemic still gripping a good part of the planet, CES in the U.S. and IFA in Germany, two of the world’s three most important annual exhibitions for houseware and electronics, were held online this year. AWE2021 was the only one to be held offline, serving as this year’s key event where home appliance makers and technology leaders showcased their latest technologies, products and brands.

World-leading brands exhibited their latest product lineups and solutions, running the gamut from home appliances, advanced home appliance technologies and a brand-new category referred to simply as “home”.

Haier Smart Home highlights its differentiation with other makers by contrasting scenario-based displays and exhibits of single appliances

On one side of the long aisle where the home appliance makers had set up their booths, century-old household brand names maintained their legacy with exhibits of top-of-the-line refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and dishwashers.

Facing them on the other side of same aisle, Haier Smart Home (“Haier”, Shanghai: 600690), on the heels of its transformation into a scenario- and ecology-based brand, took the lead in being the sole maker to answer the call for solutions that fit the new “home” category. Haier showcased smart solutions for the whole home, encompassing not only the living room, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom but also extending out to include the porch and balcony. By combining resources, the solutions cover all manner of in-home experiences: the food, clothing, housing and entertainment scenarios, providing a “new living” experience to home dwellers in line with their expectations.

To take an example, in the smart kitchen scenario, the refrigerator is no longer just a refrigerator, but rather an ecological gourmet Internet of Things (IoT) platform, which connecting oven to prepare Peking Roasted Duck, and automatically replenish supplies when low.

Previously, this group of exhibitors had been collectively referred to as ‘home appliance companies’, but now the classification is no longer so apt.

Haier Smart Home has evolved from a home appliance maker to a provider of scenario solutions and life services.

In the Haier-equipped smart home, high-tech home appliances still exist, yet they have been seamlessly incorporated into the various home scenarios to become an integral part of the home.

The air conditioner is no longer just a device for adjusting the temperature, but rather a refined mechanism that works in tandem with a series of hardware and software components to deliver air solutions. Traditional home appliances cannot fulfill the expectations of today’s home dwellers – only scenario solutions can answer the challenge.

Haier Smart Home has been transformed into a scenario- and ecology-based brand.

Haier Smart Home has brought together and empowered tens of thousands of partners across a wide range of industries spanning houseware and home furnishings, building and construction materials, real estate, food and IoT by providing software, technologies and services, to establish a complete smart home scenario ecology.

Through ecological empowerment, Haier Smart Home provides the occupants of a home with the opportunity to enter the ‘new living’ era. The company offers solutions covering all needs in various living scenarios, whether the shopper is looking to simply spiff up a kitchen, bedroom and bathroom or for a complete renovation.

AWE2021 is not only the first major exhibition since the beginning of the year, but also a watershed event heralding the next stage of growth for the industry, as reflected by the contrasting exhibits on both sides of the aisle. Traditional home appliance companies on one side are presenting new home appliances, while on the other side has reimagined solutions for smart home scenarios based on those home appliances. Haier Smart Home is at the vanguard of a revolution in the concept of what it means to furnish and maintain a home.

Drives continuous improvement with operations optimization, visibility, and closed-loop analytics to rapidly identify problems, discover root causes, predict future performance
Proficy CSense unique in the market with 5-in-1 analytics capabilities: Analysis, Monitoring, Prediction, Simulation, Optimization
Proficy Sensor Health ensures clean sensor data to reduce risk and support digital transformation

SAN RAMON, Calif. – GE Digital today announced the release of two new Proficy Analytics solutions, Proficy CSense 8.0 and Proficy Sensor Health. These unique software applications offer industrial companies a path to drive efficient operations, increase product quality, minimize downtime, and reduce risk related to compliance and safety.

Proficy CSense is proven industrial analytics software that improves asset and process performance with a Process Digital Twin that helps industrial organizations meet the challenges of fast-changing demand, regulatory requirements and operator reaction times. Process Digital Twins create models of ‘the best way’ to run a process in a given environment. By identifying the most optimal process, plant operators can ensure they are consistently delivering against quality, cost and volume objectives.

In many plants, engineers would need several analytics software packages or a team of data scientists to help them take their domain expertise and do analysis of the data, simulate the data to create certain situations, set up monitoring routines, and then be able to build predictive analytics on that data. They can then take the results of those analytics and feed them back into the control process in order to create that continuous loop of optimization.

A unique product, Proficy CSense allows these critical users to do all of that with one easy-to-use, graphical tool with a powerful analytics engine. It allows engineers to easily analyze, monitor, predict, simulate, and optimize – with process changes driven automatically to an organization’s automation systems. The new Version 8.0 makes it even easier to install, analyze data, develop analytics, and visualize results. Benefits of Proficy CSense include:

Reduce process variability — Combine data and use analytics and machine learning to improve process variability.
Speed troubleshooting – Use data to troubleshoot causes of asset and process performance issues rapidly.
Increase engineering productivity – Proficy CSense’ visual analytics accelerate problem detection and improve efficiency.
Decrease downtime – Monitor and ensure health and performance of base-layer PID control loops.
Optimize with a Process Digital Twin – Mine new insight from industrial data to maximize return on assets.
Improve data integrity – Validate and clean raw sensor data at the source to ensure integrity of downstream systems
Used around the world, Proficy CSense is proven in diverse industries including Food & Beverage, Mining, Automotive, Metals, Water/Wastewater, Chemicals, and more. As examples, Proficy CSense and its Process Digital Twin technology have helped a water utility predict pump failure up to 16 days in advance, reduced process variation by 40% at a base metals refinery, and decreased customer complaints 33% at a major food manufacturer.

New Sensor Health App

“We have worked closely with many customers to create specific solutions to meet their analytics needs and drive digital transformation,” said Richard Kenedi, General Manager, Manufacturing and Digital Plant, GE Digital. “One of the things that we learned was that a lot of customers have challenges with sensors. Sensors can be the weakest link in the data chain. A bad sensor means bad data, and bad data results, no alarm, and possibly a bad decision or missing a critical deviation.”

GE Digital turned this voice of customer information into a new smart app called Proficy Sensor Health which monitors and detects sensor data abnormalities with AI/ML. Proficy Sensor Health continually monitors and analyzes sensor data, learning patterns, applying intelligence, and automatically generating alerts to speed response. Users can also target anomalies and quickly minimize their potential impact and ensure clean sensor data for downstream analytics and optimization.

Proficy Sensor Health is an easy-to-use app that does not require programming, IT, or data scientists. It embeds with GE Digital’s Proficy Operations Hub, allowing mapping to model elements representing historical data tags for sensors. With information and alerts at a glance, users can respond faster to faulty sensors and deliver on outcomes like increased product quality, minimized downtime, reduce compliance and safety risks, reduced scrap, recalls, and costs, and ultimately speed time-to-value.

“Digital transformation is a mandatory journey for manufacturers and processors to optimize operations and efficiency, improve quality, reduce unscheduled downtime, and fulfil safety and compliance requirements,” according to Craig Resnick, Vice President at ARC Advisory Group. “Solutions such as Proficy CSense, with its Digital Twin capabilities, help industrial companies to better monitor, analyze, simulate, predict, and optimize processes. When combined with Proficy Sensor Health to protect the integrity of the sensor data, this solution will help to ensure continuous improvement based on fact-based intelligence and bring operational resilience.”

SANTA CLARA, Calif — Applied Materials, Inc. today announced a new addition to its highly successful Centris® Sym3® etch product family that now enables chipmakers to precisely pattern and shape ever-smaller features in leading-edge memory and logic chips.

Applied Materials Centris® Sym3® Y Etch System.
The new Centris Sym3® Y is Applied’s most advanced conductor etch system. It uses innovative RF pulsing technology to provide the extremely high materials selectivity, depth control and profile control needed by customers to create densely packed, high-aspect-ratio structures in 3D NAND, DRAM and logic, including FinFETs and emerging gate-all-around architectures.

A unique technical feature of the Sym3 family is a high-conductance chamber architecture that provides exceptional etch profile control by quickly and efficiently exhausting the etch byproducts that can accumulate with each wafer pass. The Sym3 Y system extends the benefits of this successful architecture with a proprietary new coating material that protects critical chamber components, thereby further reducing defects and enhancing yields.

First introduced in 2015, the Sym3 etch system has become Applied’s fastest ramping product in company history, and the company has just shipped the 5,000th chamber.

The Sym3 family is key to Applied’s strategy of giving customers new ways to shape and pattern materials, enabling novel 3D structures and new ways to continue 2D shrinking. Applied is co-optimizing the Sym3 system with unique CVD patterning films, enabling customers to increase the layers in 3D NAND memory devices and reduce the number of steps needed in the quadruple patterning of DRAM layers. These are being deployed along with Applied’s e-beam inspection and review technologies to accelerate R&D and high-volume ramps of the industry’s most advanced nodes, helping customers improve chip power, performance, area-cost and time to market (PPACt).

“Applied took a clean-sheet approach to conductor etch with the Sym3 system launch in 2015 and solved some of the most difficult etch challenges in 3D NAND and DRAM,” said Dr. Mukund Srinivasan, vice president and general manager, Semiconductor Products Group at Applied Materials. “Today, we are seeing strong momentum and growth in critical etch and EUV patterning applications in the most advanced memory and foundry-logic nodes, and we will continue raising the bar and enabling next-generation chip designs.”

Each Sym3 Y system consists of multiple etch and plasma clean wafer processing chambers governed by system intelligence that ensures every process chamber is precisely matched, enabling repeatable results and high productivity. The new system is already being used by multiple leading NAND, DRAM and foundry-logic customers worldwide.

About Applied Materials
Applied Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMAT) is the leader in materials engineering solutions used to produce virtually every new chip and advanced display in the world. Our expertise in modifying materials at atomic levels and on an industrial scale enables customers to transform possibilities into reality. At Applied Materials, our innovations make possible the technology shaping the future. Learn more at www.appliedmaterials.com.

DUSSELDORF, Germany – Uniper and General Electric (NYSE: GE) have signed an agreement aiming at a long-term collaboration on the decarbonization of Uniper’s gas-fired power plants and natural gas storage facilities. GE’s Gas Power business and Uniper will explore, assess, and develop technology options for decarbonization — GE’s first fleet-wide decarbonization program signed with a major power producer.

This agreement — signed in June 2020 — aims at producing a detailed decarbonization roadmap by a joint working group composed of both GE and Uniper representatives by early 2021. This roadmap is to develop an assessment of potential upgrades and R&D programs needed to drive decarbonization, including increasing the use of emissions-friendly hydrogen in GE gas turbines and compressors in Uniper’s power plants and gas storage facilities across Europe.

GE and Uniper’s relationship spans decades and Uniper — a well-known leader in leveraging the latest technological innovations — has been first to adopt many of GE’s industry-leading technologies, including the Uniper power stations of Grain, Connah’s Quay or Enfield in the UK, or the Uniper gas storage facilities in Germany like Etzel or Epe. Uniper’s broad gas turbine installed base representing more than 4 gigawatts (GW) of power across Europe provides the opportunity for a holistic decarbonization assessment across many GE technologies.

GE Gas Power brings decades of experience and leadership in decarbonization including the use of hydrogen as a gas turbine fuel, and in the development of advanced combustion technologies and carbon capture systems. For more than 30 years, GE is a world-leading industry player in the use of hydrogen and similar low heating value fuels, achieving more than 6 million operational hours across 75+ units globally.

Through this agreement, Uniper has taken another important step towards the decarbonization of its natural gas assets. At the beginning of the year, Uniper set itself the strategic goal of climate-neutrality in its European generation business by 2035. Uniper already produces around 24 terawatt hours of CO2-free electricity with its hydroelectric and nuclear power plants in Germany and Sweden.

Andreas Schierenbeck, CEO of Uniper said: “This agreement with the US manufacturer GE is another proof of our commitment to move ahead with the decarbonization of our power generation and storage facilities. In a few years, Uniper’s European fleet will consist mainly of climate-friendly gas-fired power plants and CO2-free hydropower. From now on, our investments will focus primarily on the further decarbonization of the gas assets which could include post combustion carbon capture, utilization and sequestration (CCUS) as well as blue or green hydrogen. And here, clean hydrogen will – as far as it is possible and sensible – replace the fossil components of the gas plants. If we also succeed in using our gas storage facilities to a large extent for hydrogen, we will be closer to a solution to the core problem of the European energy transformation: the lack of storage capacity for fluctuating renewable energies on an industrial scale.”

Scott Strazik, CEO of GE Gas Power said: “GE is committed to working with with all our customers to ensure their gas assets continue to play a role in a cleaner energy future. We are honored to work with Uniper to deliver reliable, affordable, and sustainable decarbonization technologies for their entire GE gas asset base, and provide lower-carbon electricity for Uniper’s customers across Europe. GE has a long history of innovation, and we look forward to utilizing our 80+ years of gas turbine development experience—including six million operating hours with low-BTU fuels—to make Uniper’s decarbonization vision a reality.”

About Uniper
Uniper is a leading international energy company with around 11,500 employees and activities in more than 40 countries. With about 34 GW of installed generation capacity, Uniper is among the largest global power generators. Its main activities include power generation in Europe and Russia as well as global energy trading, including a diversified gas portfolio that makes Uniper one of Europe’s leading gas companies. In 2019, Uniper sold a gas volume of 220 bcm. The company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, being the third-largest listed German utility. Under its new strategy, Uniper aims to become carbon-neutral in Europe by 2035.

About GE Gas Power
GE Gas Power is a world leader in natural gas power technology, services, and solutions. Through relentless innovation and continuous partnership with our customers, we are providing more advanced, cleaner and efficient power that people depend on today and building the energy technologies of the future. With the world’s largest installed base of gas turbines and more than 200 million operating hours across GE’s installed fleet, we offer advanced technology and a level of experience that’s unmatched in the industry to build, operate, and maintain leading gas power plants. For more information, please visit www.ge.com/power/gas and follow GE’s gas power businesses on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Paris, FRANCE  — GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions business (NYSE:GE) has secured its first “Green Gas for Grid” – or “g³” (pronounced “g-cubed”) – industrial orders. Together, German’s specialty chemicals leader Evonik and UK’s Omexom, an Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) company, recently ordered a total of 18 g³ gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) bays.

g³ is GE’s game-changing alternative to sulphur hexafluoride (SF₆), the world’s most potent greenhouse gas widely used in high-voltage equipment, including switchgear bays. Switchgear bays are found at substations and help dispatch or cut electrical power in case of a problem on the grid.

g³ products feature the same high performance and reliability as SF₆ equipment but have a gas mass with more than a 99% reduced CO₂ equivalent value. More importantly, life-cycle assessments (LCAs) have shown that g³ products have a greatly reduced CO₂ impact on the environment compared with SF₆ products. Additionally, g³ products do not cause pollution transfers to other environmental indicators because they have the same compact dimensions as traditional SF₆ products.

Evonik signed a contract for 10 F35-145kV g³ GIS bays for its Marl Chemical Park in western Germany. Commissioning is estimated for June 2021. Omexom selected GE as its 132 kV GIS supplier for an industrial customer’s waste plant in the UK. The contract for eight 145 kV GIS bays using g³ was signed in March, with commissioning estimated for September 2021.

Commenting on its g³ order, Jürgen Bücker, Head of Regulation Management Energy Networks at Evonik said: “g³ was a natural choice for Evonik. Not only do the g³ products offer us the same reliability and ease of handling as our previous SF₆ equipment, they will go a long way in helping us reach our goal of halving our absolute Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.”

“Our industrial customer chose g³ due to its drastically reduced impact on the environment,” said Christopher Niven, Operations Manager at Omexom. “Our customer was particularly impressed by the fact that g³ offers the best overall environmental life-cycle assessment of SF₆-free gas-insulated switchgear equipment,” he added.

“We are delighted to have received our first industrial orders for our g³ high-voltage equipment. This demonstrates customers’ confidence in g³ products as a game-changing alternative to SF₆ products beyond the transmission and distribution industry,” said Emanuel Bertolini, Chief Commercial Officer at GE’s Grid Solutions.

With these two industrial orders, GE has now sold more than 100 g³ GIS bays since launching g³ on the market in 2016. Eighteen transmission and distribution utilities have installed g³ equipment at a total of 26 sites across Europe. Together, these utilities have avoided the use of more than 565,000, tons of CO₂ equivalent on the grid, With the largest 145 kV GIS SF₆-free installed base, g³ is the leading SF₆-free solution for high-voltage equipment.

SF₆ is estimated to contribute 23,500 times more emissions than CO₂, if leaked, and can remain in the atmosphere for up to 3,200 years.

The development of g³ has taken more than ten years of dedicated work by GE’s research and development teams in France and Switzerland in collaboration with 3M.

For more information on GE’s high-voltage g³ substation equipment and roadmap to 2025, visit our website.

Click here for GE’s g³ interactive application.

About GE Renewable Energy
GE Renewable Energy is a $15 billion business that combines one of the broadest portfolios in the renewable energy industry to provide end-to-end solutions for our customers demanding reliable and affordable green power. Combining onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydro, storage, utility-scale solar, and grid solutions as well as hybrid renewables and digital services offerings, GE Renewable Energy has installed more than 400 gigawatts of clean renewable energy and equipped more than 90% of utilities worldwide with its grid solutions. With nearly 40,000 employees present in more than 80 countries, GE Renewable Energy creates value for customers seeking to power the world with affordable, reliable and sustainable green electrons. Follow us at www.ge.com/renewableenergy, on www.linkedin.com/company/gerenewableenergy, or on www.twitter.com/GErenewables

About GE’s Grid Solutions
Grid Solutions, a GE Renewable Energy business, serves customers globally with more than 15,000 employees in approximately 80 countries. Grid Solutions helps enable utilities and industry to effectively manage electricity from the point of generation to the point of consumption, helping to maximize the reliability, efficiency and resilience of the grid. For more about GE Renewable Energy’s Grid Solutions business, visit https://www.gegridsolutions.com

BOSTON, Mass. —GE (NYSE:GE) announced today it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Lighting business to Savant Systems, Inc., an industry leader in the professional smart home space. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

GE Chairman and CEO H. Lawrence Culp, Jr., said, “Today’s transaction is another important step in the transformation of GE into a more focused industrial company. Our GE Lighting colleagues will join a fast-growing leader in home automation that shares their passion for bringing the future to light. Together with Savant, GE Lighting will continue its legacy of innovation, while we at GE will continue to advance the infrastructure technologies that are core to our company and draw on the roots of our founder, Thomas Edison.”

Savant Founder and CEO Robert Madonna said, “Savant’s mission from the start has been to create the number one smart home brand in the world, and I am confident that the acquisition of GE Lighting has moved us significantly toward that ultimate goal. We are committed to ensuring that GE Lighting’s long history of industry leadership continues, while bringing exceptional value and reliability to retail partners and consumers as the number one intelligent lighting company worldwide. Never before has connectivity, security, intelligent lighting and entertainment, all enjoyed within the comforts of home, been more top of mind with consumers.”

For nearly 130 years, GE Lighting has been at the forefront of every major lighting innovation, from the dawn of incandescent bulbs to industry-first LED and smart solutions along with the world’s first voice-embedded lighting product. Today, GE Lighting’s portfolio includes leading home lighting and innovative smart home solutions. GE Lighting will remain headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, and its more than 700 employees will transfer to Savant upon completion of the transaction.

The proposed transaction will bring together this legacy and expertise with Savant’s best-in-class smart home solutions and renowned culture of innovation, creating a union of trusted and recognizable premium brands in the lighting and connected home technology markets.

Savant, with award-winning products and solutions that span lighting, security, climate, whole-house entertainment including smart speakers, energy management and beyond, is one of the fastest-growing smart home companies and is committed to supporting innovation in the lamp space, helping retailers grow point of sale year over year. While the acquisition of GE Lighting will broaden the market reach of both companies, the Savant brand remains steadfastly committed to the professional installation channel for the home, and it will continue to invest heavily in the development of the most advanced products, solutions and services for this market.

The proposed transaction includes a long-term licensing agreement for use of the GE brand. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in mid-2020. UBS Investment Bank acted as lead financial advisor to GE.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This document contains forward-looking statements – that is, statements related to future events that by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For details on the uncertainties that may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements, see https://www.ge.com/investor-relations/important-forward-looking-statement-information, as well as our annual report on Form 10-K. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

About GE

GE (NYSE:GE) rises to the challenge of building a world that works. For more than 125 years, GE has invented the future of industry, and today the company’s dedicated team, leading technology, and global reach and capabilities help the world work more efficiently, reliably, and safely.  GE’s people are diverse and dedicated, operating with the highest level of integrity and focus to fulfill GE’s mission and deliver for its customers. www.ge.com.

GE’s Investor Relations website at www.ge.com/investor and our corporate blog at www.ge.com/reports and @GE_Reports on Twitter, as well as GE’s Facebook page and Twitter accounts, contain a significant amount of information about GE, including financial and other information for investors. GE encourages investors to visit these websites from time to time, as information is updated and new information is posted.

About Savant 

Savant Systems, Inc., a Massachusetts-based company, is a recognized leader in home control and automation, and one of the fastest-growing smart home companies in the luxury and mid-markets. Savant’s powerful Pro technology brings together all of the vital pillars of the connected home – climate, lighting, entertainment, security and energy – together in a single application interface for the homeowner. This comprehensive whole-home control system, available through iOS and Android, delivers the premiere experience in all of home automation and is available through Magnolia Design Centers and Savant’s global network of Authorized Integrators. Learn more at www.savant.com.

SAN RAMON, Calif. – GE Digital today unveiled a new version of its DER Orchestration software to enable electric utilities to manage and orchestrate Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) in an end-to-end manner via flexible deployment options ranging from Edge to Cloud. DERs are either electric energy producing or storing resources or controllable loads that are connected to an electric distribution system. As part of GE Digital’s Grid software portfolio, DER Orchestration 2.0 provides operators with the requisite tools and situational intelligence to recognize developing situations and act quickly and decisively, orchestrating flexibility across the grid for both utility and non-utility DERs, while unlocking new revenue streams.

Customers such as PPL Electric Utilities in the United States are using our DER Orchestration solutions, and EDP Distribuição is testing it in a real demo in Portugal under the ‘InteGrid’ European Commission funded project.

DERs can include solar panels, wind turbines, combined heat and power plants, electricity energy storage, small natural gas-fueled generators, electric vehicles and any type of controllable loads, such as HVAC systems and electric water heaters. Increasing levels of DERs are impacting electric utilities’ safe and efficient delivery of electricity. Operations are challenged to effectively utilize both utility-owned and third-party owned DERs due to limited visibility. Effective management of DERs requires modeling and awareness of physical and contractual characteristics, and locations throughout a broad range of applications, spanning planning and operational domains.

DER Orchestration 2.0 helps electrical grid operators address two key challenges: intermittency and dispersion. Intermittency presents a problem for utilities as the energy injected or withdrawn by DERs is intermittent, with flow tied to how the wind blows and the sun shines, as well as how prosumers want to consume/generate/store energy for their DER-related housing, transportation or energy efficiency services. The fact that DERs are geographically dispersed across the Distribution grid further complicates matters. GE Digital’s solution enables operators to anticipate potential violations DERs could cause by processing historical data and explanatory variables to generate forecasts of load and intermittent generation from DERs, as well as identify location, severity and timing of potential reliability issues.

“Now more than ever, software is mission critical,” said Jim Walsh, GE Digital General Manager, Grid Software. “In today’s fast-changing and uncertain environment, our customers are on the front line of the world’s toughest industrial challenges and DERS may well prove to be the most disruptive influence in the history of the electric grid. Our DER Orchestration solutions can significantly increase the volume of renewable imports onto the electric grid, effectively manage DERs as non-wire alternatives to costly grid and generation upgrades and orchestrate DERs from planning through to control.”

The DER Orchestration Forecasting module provides additional algorithms to further expand a utility’s ability to anticipate potential grid violations despite the intermittency of renewables and DERs. New algorithms for the forecasting of wind turbine generation sites mix the best of physical forecasting and machine learning. Machine learning enables utilities to factor in any real-life bias that may exist between wind and weather patterns and a wind generator’s actual generation output, while physical forecasting enables utilities to represent wind turbines’ rare limit “behaviors,” such as high wind cut-offs.

In addition, the Forecast Adaptation functionality enables users to tune the forecasts (load, photovoltaics or wind) to real-time measurements in case a systematic bias is detected during the latest minutes of operation. Finally, an enhanced modeling capability enables utilities to address more use cases of Forecasting across Transmission and Distribution (T&D) which is essential to address the coordination required for DERs.

DER Orchestration 2.0 also provides a gateway enabling the ADMS to communicate with DERs via the most comprehensive industry open standard for DER communications: the IEEE 2030.5 protocol.

This protocol allows utilities to monitor, control, and send schedules over a wide range of media, including the Internet, to single or grouped DERs, or directly to DER aggregators.
IEEE 2030.5 allows utilities to communicate with numerous large and small, utility and non-utility, DERs to monitor and fully unlock their real power, reactive power and autonomous control potentials.
An enhanced user interface (UI) for the ADMS user provides a system drill-down view of DERs based on their as-operated grid connections. The user can view DERs at any selected grid hierarchy level, along with their status, dynamic capabilities, and availability for grid services. The availability for grid services is the result of both the technical abilities of the DER, as well as potential limitation of the interconnection or aggregation contracts. The ADMS operator can dispatch individual or groups of DERs in various control modes, while being aware of the dispatch’s real-time grid impact.
DER Orchestration 2.0, part of GE Digital’s ADMS solution, is now generally available. To learn more, please go to “Orchestrating DERs at Scale Across the Electric Grid and Its Prosumers.” Webinars on End-to-End DER Orchestration Visibility and the IEEE 2030.5 Gateway are also available for viewing.

BOSTON, Mass. 2020—GE (NYSE:GE) announced that, together with Danaher Corporation (NYSE:DHR) (“Danaher”), it has entered into a consent decree agreement with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) in connection with GE’s definitive agreement to sell its BioPharma business to Danaher for approximately $20 billion of net proceeds. GE currently expects to close the transaction on March 31, 2020.

GE Chairman and CEO H. Lawrence Culp, Jr., said, “Today’s update represents a critical milestone on our journey to transform GE. The value from this transaction will fortify our considerable sources to de-risk our balance sheet and continue to solidify our financial position. As we navigate this challenging external environment, we are focused on protecting the safety of our people, serving our customers in this critical time of need, and continuing to strengthen our businesses.”

The acceptance by the FTC satisfies all required antitrust clearances needed to be obtained for the transaction. In addition to the FTC, the transaction has also been cleared by the European Commission and the Brazilian, Chinese, Israeli, Japanese, Korean, and Russian antitrust authorities. The closing of the acquisition remains subject to other customary closing conditions set forth in the purchase agreement. The transaction is not subject to a financing condition or a shareholder vote.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This document contains forward-looking statements – that is, statements related to future events that by their nature address matters that are, to different degrees, uncertain. For details on the uncertainties that may cause our actual future results to be materially different than those expressed in our forward-looking statements, see https://www.ge.com/investor-relations/important-forward-looking-statement-information, as well as our annual report on Form 10-K. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

About GE
GE (NYSE:GE) rises to the challenge of building a world that works. For more than 125 years, GE has invented the future of industry, and today the company’s dedicated team, leading technology, and global reach and capabilities help the world work more efficiently, reliably, and safely. GE’s people are diverse and dedicated, operating with the highest level of integrity and focus to fulfill GE’s mission and deliver for its customers. www.ge.com

GE’s Investor Relations website at www.ge.com/investor and our corporate blog at www.ge.com/reports and @GE_Reports on Twitter, as well as GE’s Facebook page and Twitter accounts, contain a significant amount of information about GE, including financial and other information for investors. GE encourages investors to visit these websites from time to time, as information is updated and new information is posted.

Paris – GE Renewable Energy announced today that it has been selected by OX2 as the supplier for the 132 MW Metsälamminkangas wind farm, in Finland. The project, which will use 24 of GE’s Cypress onshore wind platform, represents GE’s first Cypress-equipped wind farm in Finland. OX2 will operate the Cypress turbines at 5.5 MW, with a rotor diameter of 158m. The end-user and owner of the wind farm will be Lundin Petroleum.
The deal, which includes a multi-year service contract, takes full advantage of the Cypress Platform’s two-piece blade design provided by LM Wind Power, a GE Renewable Energy business. The turbines will be equipped with GE’s Ice Mitigation System in order to endure icing conditions for substantial parts of the year. The installation of the wind turbines at the project site will commence in Q2 2021 and the turbines will be fully commissioned and operational by the end of 2021.
The wind farm nominal capacity is 132 MW, which will generate 400 GWh of electricity per year – equivalent to the electricity consumption of more than 80,000 households (5,000 kWh per household).
Peter Wells, GE’s CEO of Onshore Wind in Europe, commented: “OX2 is one of the biggest developers of wind farms in the Nordic region, and we are thrilled they’ve selected our brand-new Cypress platform. Our goal is to help our customers drive energy costs down every day, and Cypress is ideally suited to make the best use of the country’s wind speed and landscape.”
The Cypress onshore wind platform enables significant Annual Energy Production (AEP) improvements, increased efficiency in service ability, improved logistics and siting potential, and ultimately more value for customers. The two-piece blade design enables blades to be manufactured at even longer lengths, improving logistics to drive costs down and offer more siting options, in locations that were previously inaccessible.
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About GE Renewable Energy
GE Renewable Energy is a $15 billion business which combines one of the broadest portfolios in the renewable energy industry to provide end-to-end solutions for our customers demanding reliable and affordable green power. Combining onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydro, storage, utility-scale solar, and grid solutions as well as hybrid renewables and digital services offerings, GE Renewable Energy has installed more than 400+ gigawatts of clean renewable energy and equipped more than 90 percent of utilities worldwide with its grid solutions. With more than 40,000 employees present in more than 80 countries, GE Renewable Energy creates value for customers seeking to power the world with affordable, reliable and sustainable green electrons.
Follow us at www.ge.com/renewableenergy, on www.linkedin.com/company/gerenewableenergy, or on www.twitter.com/GErenewables
About OX2
OX2 develops, builds and manages renewable power generation. OX2 has taken a leading position in large-scale onshore wind power over the past 15 years, having generated more than 2 GW of wind power in the Nordic region. By constantly increasing access to renewable energy, OX2 is promoting the transition towards a more sustainable future. OX2 has operations in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Lithuania and France. Its head office is located in Stockholm, Sweden. OX2 has sales revenues of approx. EUR 470 million. For more information, please visit: www.ox2.com

RALEIGH, N.C. & HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., – Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE: AAP) has acquired the DieHard brand from Transform Holdco LLC (“Transformco”), for $200 million utilizing cash on hand.

This asset acquisition will give Advance the right to sell DieHard batteries, the most trusted brand in the automotive battery category, and enables Advance to extend the DieHard brand into other automotive and vehicular categories. In addition, the deal allows Transformco to sell DieHard brand batteries through its existing channels pursuant to a supply agreement with
Advance. Advance is also granting Transformco an exclusive royalty-free, perpetual license to develop, market, and sell DieHard branded products in non-automotive categories.

“We are excited to acquire global ownership of an iconic American brand. DieHard will help differentiate Advance, drive increased DIY customer traffic and build a unique value proposition for our Professional customers and Independent Carquest partners. DieHard has the highest brand awareness and regard of any automotive battery brand in North America and will enable Advance to build a leadership position within the critical battery category,” said Tom Greco, president and CEO, Advance Auto Parts. “DieHard stands for durability and reliability and we will strengthen and leverage the brand in other battery categories, such as marine and recreational vehicles. We also see opportunities to extend DieHard in other automotive categories. We remain committed to providing our customers with high-quality products and excellent service. The addition of DieHard to our industry leading assortment of national brands, OE parts and owned brands will enable us to differentiate Advance and drive significant long-term shareholder value.”

“DieHard is among the most successful and one of the most widely trusted brands in the auto industry, and we have long believed that the brand has even more potential,” said Peter Boutros, President of Transformco’s Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard business unit.

“DieHard revolutionized the automotive battery category when it launched in 1967, and has continued to be a leader in the category. Advance Auto Parts’ acquisition of this iconic American brand will complement our plans to introduce new DieHard products in nonautomotive categories such as sporting goods, lawn and garden, authentic work wear and other exciting new categories.”

About Advance Auto Parts
Advance Auto Parts, Inc. is a leading automotive aftermarket parts provider that serves both professional installer and do-it-yourself customers. As of October 5, 2019, Advance operated
4,891 stores and 152 Worldpac branches in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Company also serves 1,260 independently owned Carquest branded stores across these locations in addition to Mexico, the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos and British Virgin Islands. Additional information about Advance, including employment opportunities, customer services, and online shopping for parts, accessories and other offerings can be found at www.AdvanceAutoParts.com.

About Transformco
Transform Holdco LLC is a leading integrated retailer focused on seamlessly connecting the digital and physical shopping experiences to serve its members – wherever, whenever and however they want to shop. Transformco is home to Shop Your Way®, a social shopping platform offering members rewards for shopping at Sears, Kmart and other retail partners. Transformco operates through its subsidiaries with full-line and specialty retail stores across the United States.

Hanover. Today, at Hannover Messe, Microsoft and the BMW Group announced a new community initiative to enable faster, more cost-effective innovation in the manufacturing sector. In manufacturing today, production and profitability can be hindered by complex, proprietary systems that create data silos and slow productivity. The Open Manufacturing Platform (OMP) is designed to break down these barriers through the creation of an open technology framework and cross-industry community. It is expected to support the development of smart factory solutions that will be shared by OMP participants across the automotive and broader manufacturing sectors. The goal is to significantly accelerate future Industrial IoT developments, shorten time to value and drive production efficiencies while addressing common industrial challenges.

Built on the Microsoft Azure Industrial IoT cloud platform, the OMP is intended to provide community members with a reference architecture with open-sourced components based on open industrial standards as well as an open data model. In addition to facilitating collaboration, this platform approach unlocks and standardizes data models that enable analytics and machine learning scenarios – data that has traditionally been managed in proprietary systems. Utilizing industrial use cases and sample code, community members and other partners will be able to develop their own services and solutions while maintaining control over their data.

“Microsoft is joining forces with the BMW Group to transform digital production efficiency across the industry,” said Scott Guthrie, Executive Vice-President, Microsoft Cloud and AI Group. “Our commitment to building an open community will create new opportunities for collaboration across the entire manufacturing value chain.”

With currently over 3,000 machines, robots and autonomous transport systems connected with the BMW Group IoT Platform, which is built on Microsoft Azure’s cloud, IoT and AI capabilities, the BMW Group plans to contribute relevant initial use cases to the OMP community. One example is the company’s use of their IoT platform for the second generation of its autonomous transport systems in the BMW Group plant in Regensburg, one of 30 production and assembly sites worldwide. This has enabled the BMW Group to greatly simplify its logistics processes via a central coordination of the transport system, creating greater logistics efficiency. In the future, this and other use cases, such as digital feedback loops, digital supply chain management and predictive maintenance, will be made available, and in fact, developed further within the OMP community, with the BMW Group retaining ownership of its pre-existing business Intellectual Property (IP) and data.

“Mastering the complex task of producing individualized premium products requires innovative IT and software solutions,” said Oliver Zipse, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for production. “The interconnection of production sites and systems as well as the secure integration of partners and suppliers are particularly important. We have been relying on cloud services since 2016 and are consistently developing new approaches. With the Open Manufacturing Platform as the next step, we want to make our solutions available to other companies and jointly leverage potential in order to secure our strong position in the market in the long term.”

The OMP is the next evolution in the BMW Group and Microsoft’s long-standing technology partnership and mutual commitment to innovation and creating industry-wide opportunities for collective success. Through the OMP, community members will have greater opportunities to unlock the potential of their data, allowing them to build and integrate industrial solutions more quickly and securely and in turn, benefit from contributing to and learning from other organizations.

The OMP will be designed to address common industrial challenges such as machine connectivity and on-premises systems integration. This will facilitate the reuse of software solutions among OEMs, suppliers and other partners, significantly reducing implementation costs. For example, a ROS-based robotics standard for autonomous transport systems for production and logistics will be contributed to the OMP for everyone to use. The OMP is compatible with the existing Industry 4.0 reference architecture, leveraging the industrial interoperability standard OPC UA.

“This is very good news for the manufacturing industry,” says Stefan Hoppe, President and CEO of the OPC Foundation. “The use of open international industry standards such as OPC UA in the OMP community enables manufacturers, machine builders and suppliers to integrate their existing equipment and systems efficiently and securely. For a long time, companies have promoted proprietary, closed ecosystems – the OMP commitment to open development will shape tomorrow’s manufacturing”.

The underlying platform will continue to evolve over time, along with manufacturing requirements, to incorporate new innovations including areas of analytics, artificial intelligence and digital feedback loops.

The broader OMP community is being formed now, with recruitment of additional partners underway. The OMP Advisory Board is expected to be in operation with an initial set of 4-6 partners in place and a minimum of 15 use cases rolled out into select production environments by the end of 2019. The two initial partners, Microsoft and the BMW Group, encourage other manufacturers and suppliers including companies from outside the automotive industry to join the community.

Fuller’s announces that it has entered into an agreement for the sale of its entire beer business to Asahi Europe Ltd (“AEL”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd (“Asahi”), for an enterprise value of £250 million on a debt free, cash free basis (the “Proposed Disposal”).

The business being sold comprises the entirety of Fuller’s beer, cider and soft drinks brewing and production, wine wholesaling, as well as the distribution thereof, and also includes the Griffin Brewery, Cornish Orchards, Dark Star Brewing and Nectar Imports (the “Fuller’s Beer Business” or the “Beer Business”).

Under the terms of the Proposed Disposal, AEL will acquire the brands of the Beer Business (including “London Pride”) and will receive the benefit of a licence, on a perpetual, global, exclusive and royalty-free basis, to use certain trade marks (including the “Fuller’s” name, logo and cartouche) for the provision of beverages. Ownership of the licensed trade marks will be retained by Fuller’s.

Having carefully considered its options for the Beer Business and Fuller’s existing relationship with Asahi, the Board believes that Asahi is the ideal owner of the Beer Business and will create the right environment for the Beer Business to flourish in the future and protect the Fuller’s brewing heritage. The Board welcomes the fact that Asahi also upholds Fuller’s key values of a genuine commitment to brewing excellence and has a proven track record as a long-term steward of iconic brands making them an ideal strategic partner to the Fuller’s pubs and hotels business in the future.

Following Completion of the Proposed Disposal, Fuller’s will be a focused, premium pub and hotel operator pursuing its previously stated strategy of running a stylish, high quality estate, with well-located, well-invested, predominantly freehold sites that are maintained to the high standards that customers have come to expect. Fuller’s will form a strategic alliance with Asahi that will ensure continued access to the high quality premium beer brands Fuller’s has always brewed.

TRANSACTION HIGHLIGHTS

Sale of the Fuller’s Beer Business for an enterprise value of £250 million, representing a multiple of 23.6x EBITDA (of £10.6 million for the 52 weeks ending 31 March 2018);
The price reflects the strategic value of the brands of the Beer Business being acquired, the long-term growth potential of the Beer Business under AEL’s ownership, the value of the Griffin Brewery as well as the expertise and respected industry knowledge of the people employed within the Beer Business;

Substantial premium to the value attributable to the Company’s Shareholders if the Beer Business had remained under Fuller’s ownership;

A strategic alliance between Fuller’s and Asahi, supported by a Long-Term Supply Agreement, will allow Fuller’s to continue providing a high quality beer and cider offering to its customers;

Net cash proceeds of the Proposed Disposal are expected to be approximately £205 million at Completion, taking into account adjustments and after estimated transaction, Reorganisation and separation costs (the “Net Cash Proceeds”);

A return of proceeds between £55 million to £69 million of the Net Cash Proceeds is expected to be distributed to Ordinary Shareholders, representing £1.00 to £1.25 per A and C Ordinary Share and £0.10 to £0.125 per B Ordinary Share;

The Proposed Disposal is not anticipated to impact the level of dividend payments made by the Company as the Board is intending to declare a final dividend for each class of Ordinary Shares for the financial year ending 31 March 2019 of an amount at least equal to the final dividend from the prior financial year and the Board is expecting to maintain a progressive dividend policy going forward;
(1)
The Proposed Disposal is conditional upon the passing of two inter-conditional ordinary resolutions approving the Proposed Disposal, completion of the Reorganisation and obtaining a relevant confirmation from the UK Competition and Markets Authority;
The Proposed Disposal is expected to complete in the first half of 2019.

(1) This statement does not constitute a profit forecast or estimate and should not be interpreted to mean that future earnings per share, profits, margins, and/or cash flow will support such a policy.

The Proposed Disposal will enable Fuller’s management to focus on its pubs and hotels, which is the core of the business and where today 87 per cent of the Fuller’s operating profits are generated (excluding unallocated costs). It will also provide significant capital to accelerate investment in the premium pubs and hotels business both organically and through future acquisitions. The focus of management will remain unchanged, to be a leading operator of stylish pubs and hotels, while driving organic growth through improved marketing and digital communications to grow sales and ensure relevance to today’s consumer, and through developing the people within the business.

As a result of the Proposed Disposal, a strategic alliance will be formed to further strengthen the existing relationship between Fuller’s and Asahi, where AEL acts as a key supplier to Fuller’s pubs and hotels business. A Long-Term Supply Agreement with AEL will ensure Fuller’s will continue to provide the comprehensive high quality beer and cider offering its customers have come to expect. The Board welcomes this strategic alliance with Asahi, a leading global brewer, and envisage that the Proposed Disposal will enhance the ability of management to successfully grow the Fuller’s pubs and hotels business going forward.

In addition to the expected return of proceeds to Ordinary Shareholders, the Board also intends to use some of the Net Cash Proceeds to make a contribution to the Pension Scheme. The remaining funds will be used to grow and further develop Fuller’s pubs and hotels business.

Under the terms of the Proposed Disposal, all responsibilities relating to the Pension Scheme would be retained by Fuller’s.

The Proposed Disposal constitutes a Class 1 transaction under the Listing Rules. Completion is conditional upon, amongst other things, the passing of two inter-conditional ordinary resolutions approving the Proposed Disposal by (i) the A, B and C Ordinary Shareholders (the “Ordinary Shareholder Resolution”) and (ii) the A Ordinary Shareholders (the “A Ordinary Shareholder Resolution”) (together, the “Resolutions”). Accordingly, a circular containing full details of the Proposed Disposal, the Resolutions and eligibility to vote on the Resolutions, the Board’s recommendation and irrevocable undertakings to vote in favour of the Resolutions, and the notice convening an Extraordinary General Meeting at which such approval for the Resolutions will be sought, will be published in due course.

The Company has received irrevocable undertakings from the Directors and certain other Ordinary Shareholders to vote at the Extraordinary General Meeting in favour of the Resolutions in amounts representing (in aggregate): (i) in respect of the A, B and C Ordinary Shareholder Resolution, approximately 28.19 per cent. of the total issued Ordinary Shares of Fuller’s as at 24 January 2019 (being the latest practicable date prior to publication of this announcement); and (ii) in respect of the A Ordinary Shareholder Resolution, approximately 5.62 per cent. of the total issued A Ordinary Shares of Fuller’s as at 24 January 2019 (being the latest practicable date prior to the publication of this announcement).

Simon Emeny, Chief Executive of Fuller’s, commented:

“This deal secures the future of both parts of our business including protecting the heritage of the Griffin Brewery in Chiswick, which was particularly important to the Fuller’s Board. We remain incredibly proud of the Fuller’s Beer Business, its history and the high quality premium beer and cider portfolio that we have developed. Brewing has formed an integral part of our history and brand identity, however the core of Fuller’s and the driver of our future growth is now our premium pubs and hotels business.”

“I am delighted that this transaction maintains Fuller’s long association with the Beer Business and that we will continue to enjoy a strong relationship with Asahi as a key supplier. We look forward to continuing our alliance and developing a mutually beneficial partnership that will see both businesses flourish in the future. Asahi, as a company recognised for brewing excellence, is an appropriate custodian of our rich brewing history and the Griffin Brewery, and will ensure the Fuller’s Beer Business brands will reach an even wider global audience.”

Akiyoshi Koji, CEO of Asahi Group Holdings, Ltd, commented:

“We have long admired the brewing business and exceptional beer brands that Fuller’s has built over the years and the high degree of respect it commands throughout the global beer industry. Fuller’s is one of the few brewers that show the same genuine commitment to brewing excellence and quality that we do. We strongly believe that the brands of the Beer Business, including London Pride, Frontier and Cornish Orchards among others, complement our premium portfolio in the UK market. In particular, London Pride is a fantastic brand with an illustrious heritage dating back to the 1950s and we are excited about its untapped international potential which Asahi has the scale and global network to unlock.”

Rothschild & Co is acting as sponsor and sole financial advisor to Fuller’s on the Proposed Disposal.

There will be a conference call for sellside analysts and investors at 0800 hours (GMT) today. Please contact Tom Berger at Instinctif Partners on 020 7457 2834 or tom.berger@instinctif.com for dial-in details.

An accompanying slide presentation to the conference call will be available from 0750hours (GMT) at:

www.fullers.co.uk/corporate/investors/financial-reports

TRADING UPDATE

The Company also announces today its trading update for the 42 weeks to 19 January 2019.

The Company has delivered a very strong performance since it last reported, especially in its Managed Pubs and Hotels where like for like sales have risen 5.6 per cent in the last 10 weeks. For the 42 week period, like for like sales in Managed Pubs and Hotels have risen 4.7 per cent, like for like profits in Tenanted Inns have risen 2 per cent and total beer and cider volumes in The Fuller’s Beer Company have remained level.

Simon Emeny, Chief Executive, said: “This is a very good set of figures and I’m particularly pleased with the way our Managed Pubs and Hotels performed over the important five week Christmas and New Year trading period. Like for like sales for December rose 8.7 per cent and our pre-booked covers rose by 16 per cent.

“Since we last reported, we have opened our latest transport hub site, The Signal Box at Euston, which is proving very popular and have refurbished The Blackbird at Earl’s Court, including developing nine new boutique bedrooms. We are on site at The Hercules in Lambeth, which will open before the year end, and in the next few weeks we will open 15 stylish new bedrooms at The Counting House in Cornhill, a large freehold site in the heart of the City of London. We have also transferred another six tenancies to our turnover agreement.

“As has been widely commented, we are in an uncertain and challenging consumer environment. However, Fuller’s has well-invested premium pubs and an excellent team of people, underpinned by a long-term vision and a clear, well-executed strategy that is proven to grow sales, attract new customers and deliver returns for our Shareholders.

“We will next update the market on 7 June 2019, when we announce the Company’s full year results for the 52 weeks to 30 March 2019.”