Press Kit GE Plastics Mondial de l'Automobile
28 September - 15 October 2006

GE Plastics Launches New Family of ecomagination* Products That Dramatically Cut CO₂, Post-Consumer Waste & Petrochemical Use

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — July 27, 2006 — Complementing Japan’s environmental leadership in responsible automotive manufacturing, GE Plastics today celebrates two significant additions to its ecomagination* portfolio: Valox iQ* and Xenoy iQ* resins. The new products were developed as a result of a successful two-year initiative at GE Plastics that examined the company’s manufacturing processes to redefine how its products can be made to be cleaner and more environmentally responsible than traditional materials. Valox iQ and Xenoy iQ resins are the essential elements of an environmentally progressive resin portfolio developed as part of GE’s ecomagination initiative.

Azdel, Inc. Further Hones Competitive Edge with Exclusive RocTool License for High-Speed Molding of Exterior Transportation Panels

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — September 28, 2006 — Azdel, Inc. has acquired an exclusive license from RocTool to use the latter’s high-tech Cage System® to produce exterior body panels for planes, trains, RVs, and other transportation vehicles with a Class A surface using AZDEL* thermoplastic composites. The announcement comes as the result of a two-year effort by Azdel, GE Plastics, and RocTool to reduce cycle times by a factor of 30 (under three minutes for a hood). The three companies’ ultimate goal is to enable customers to capitalize on the estimated 50-percent weight savings using Azdel’s material solutions while minimizing financial impact.

GE Helps BMW’s 3 Series Set a New Benchmark for Driving Performance

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS— November 9, 2006 — GE today announced that its extensive portfolio of materials helped BMW meet stringent requirements for more than a dozen components in its 2006 BMW 3 Series mid-size cars. Specifically, the automaker wanted to find new ways to drive design innovation and improve fuel economy while meeting new standards of performance and durability. By using GE Plastics’ Noryl*, Lexan*, and Cycolac* resins and the company’s Visualfx* special effects resins, as well as materials from other GE businesses, BMW was able to redesign parts from the instrument panel (IP) to the headlamps to achieve such benefits as lighter weight, extreme weatherability, lower emissions, and special color effects.

GE Helps Honda Add Style, Aerodynamics, and Rear Visibility to the 2006 European Civic Hatchback with a Unique, Integrated “Extra Window”

The Honda Civic is one of the world’s most popular cars, due to its combination of style and practicality. In designing the 2006 hatchback model, which is sold in Europe, Honda wanted to incorporate an aggressive new styling element termed an “extra window.” This curved piece of glazing is placed below the rear window and incorporates both a spoiler and brake-light indicator. A large, complex part, the extra window presented design and manufacturing challenges that ruled out traditional glass and even some plastics. To achieve the required part integration as well as superior performance and weatherability while ensuring good rear visibility for the driver, Honda’s Tier 1 supplier, Freeglass, chose to work with GE Plastics.

GE Helps OPEL Set the Trend for Ingenuity with the New 2007 Corsa

When OPEL designed the new Corsa, the company wanted to create a trend-setting small car with fresh design and innovative technology for a lot of driving fun and a high level of quality. Specifically, OPEL sought to create a stylish yet warm interior to make it inviting. The new high-quality interior offers plenty of space, comfort, and opportunities for individualization. In addition, based on the popularity of the panorama sunroof that is an option for the 2005 Zafira compact van, OPEL wanted to offer a similar roof choice for the Corsa.

GE and Royal College of Art name winning “auto design of the future” students

BERGEN OP ZOOM THE NETHERLANDS — April 11, 2006 — Vehicle designs for the emerging Chinese market and new ideas for the unique properties of plastics scooped the top awards on April 6 at the GE sponsored Royal College of Art PLASTicon competition.

GE Plastics ecomagination* Initiative Backgrounder

Overview

* In May 2005, GE (www.ge.com) announced its ecomagination* initiative, a major worldwide effort to drive new business opportunities by helping customers solve their toughest environmental challenges.

* The focus of GE’s ecomagination initiative is on accelerating the company’s materials, energy, technology, manufacturing, and infrastructure capabilities to develop global environmental solutions. These include lighter and stronger materials, fuel cells, solar energy, hybrid locomotives, lower-emission aircraft engines, and water purification technologies.

GE Plastics Drives “Bumper-to-Bumper” Solutions for Global Automotive Industry for Nearly 50 Years

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — September 28, 2006 — For nearly half a century, GE Plastics has earned the reputation as a leading global automotive supplier of bumper-to-bumper solutions in engineering thermoplastics. With over 78 locations across the globe, GE Plastics’ dedicated Automotive organization is an experienced, world-wide competitor, fully committed to serving an industry that manufacturers products for the world’s most demanding customers.

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