Press release Nov 20, 1998:

Ormecon Chemie in Japan

Joint Venture "Nippon Ormecon" becoming operative / First Reference Object completed, another five under way

At high pace, the foundation of a Joint Venture between Ormecon Chemie and a Japanese steel construction company, Tech Taiyo Kogyo, is becoming real, as agreed in early September 1998, and the company is starting to become operative. On their recent meeting on 19. 11. 98 in Ammersbek, the two General Managers, Mr. Torigata from TTK and Dr. Wessling from Ormecon Chemie, concluded the new company "Nippon Ormecon" to have reached an operative stage, and that it will shortly have finished the foundation phase. "Nippon Ormecon" (with 51% shares for TTK) will now concentrate on its goal after most of the formal and conceptual questions have been clarified in the last months.

Nippon Ormecon will sell all CORRPASSIV products of Ormecon Chemie in Japan, mainly on the sector of steel construction. It will also start, based on the Know How and on raw materials supplied by Ormecon, to produce the coatings. Besides the shareholder TTK, who will be the first and a big customer for Nippon Ormecon, more customers and distributors are intended to be found in Japan and East Asia.

CORRPASSIV( is a revolutionary corrosion protection coating system based on the no less revolutionary Organic Metal developed by Ormecon Chemie. The working principle of the coating system is caused by the ennobling and the passivation provided by the Organic Metal. CORRPASSIV( consists always from a primer, containing the Organic Metal in a finely dispersed form, optionally an intercoat, and always a top coat of suitable organic coatings, adapted to the practical needs. They are all optimised in order to be compatible with each other and to work together in an optimal way.

TTK is a leading producer of steel constructions mainly for the public sector in Japan. They are using, besides others, also major amounts of KOR-TEN steel, a steel type said to have a high corrosion resistance by its own. Nevertheless, the corrosion properties of it are constantly considered being insufficient, which motivates to continuous activities to overcome the disadvantages in several Japanese companies, including TTK.

TTK and Ormecon had started a joint test beginning this year evaluating a coating system consisting of CORRPASSIV( primer and intercoats/top coats selected by TTK. The results showed an enormous increase in anti-corrosion performance compared to the conventional coating system. The underrusting was partially even zero, and maximum 2 mm after more than 1.000 hours of VDA cycling test. The comparison system had a strong rust development and underrusting of 4 - 5 mm.

Based on this the two companies started preparing commercial reference objects, of which the first was realised and completed now in outer Tokyo. It is a several 100 m long sight-seeing platform in a small park. Further five objects are under construction.

A broader official test object under neutral public control is under preparation. Nippon Ormecon is optimistic to have significant turnover beginning with 1999.

Ammersbek, 20. 11. 98

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