MacGREGOR will, through its parent company Cargotec Corporation, acquire 90% of the company with the remaining shares being owned by employees. The deal is expected to be closed by the end of April.

Plimsoll focuses on the development of hydraulic deck machinery equipment for ship owners, yards and operators. Its key products are a comprehensive range of winches and cranes for offshore and marine applications. Its products are installed on various kinds of offshore support vessels, oil rig vessels, marine tugs and commercial marine vessels. The company also offers a wide range of services and its service business share of net sales is comparable to MacGREGOR. Plimsoll has assembly plants in Singapore and Indonesia but has outsourced the manufacturing of components. A new assembly plant is under construction in China.

With the acquisition of Plimsoll, MacGREGOR has further expanded into the offshore industry. We now are well positioned in the strongly growing offshore sector. Combining Plimsoll expertise in winches and that in cranes of the earlier acquired Hydramarine in Norway provides us with a complete package of winching and handling solutions for our offshore customers. The two businesses also complement each other geographically. Plimsoll provides us a strong base in the important Asia-Pacific region. We now have within MacGREGOR a strong setup in offshore, which we intend to build on organically, states MacGREGOR President Olli Isotalo.

With the global recognition of MacGREGOR as the market leader in marine cargo handling solutions Plimsoll will be able to tap on the technological expertise, market presence and extensive global service network to expand further and provide better solutions to our customers, states Managing Director Henry Yap who is the founder and majority shareholder of Plimsoll.

Plimsoll was established in 1974 to provide engineering and equipment installation services to the marine industry. The company has developed a reputation in Asia-Pacific as a hydraulic specialist and a leading winch manufacturer. The company had net sales of MEUR 43 in 2006 and employs approximately 500 people. In addition to Henry Yap, shareholders of Plimsoll are Sonus Pte Ltd and Sky Alliance Global Holdings Limited.

[ends]


For further information, please contact:
Olli Isotalo, President MacGREGOR Group
Tel : + 358 204 554 253
E-mail: olli.isotalo@macgregor-group.com

or

Henrik Vildenfeldt, SVP Corporate Development, MacGREGOR Group
Tel: + 45-44-544 747
E-mail:henrik.vildenfeldt@macgregor-group.com

or

MacGREGOR Group press office:
Mr Steve Labdon, MacGREGOR Group Media Representative
Tel: +44 (0)20 8370 1740 Fax: +44 (0)20 8364 1331
E-mail: steve.labdon@j-l-a.com