HARMON INDUSTRIES
NEWS RELEASE FOR: CONTACT:
HARMON INDUSTRIES, INC. BJORN E. OLSSON, OR
NASDAQ: HRMN STEPHEN L. SCHMITZ
FOR RELEASE: JULY 17, 2000 (816) 229-3345
[email protected]
SUSAN K. BREON
GE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS
(814) 875-3457
[email protected]
GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY TO ACQUIRE
HARMON INDUSTRIES, INC.
July 17, 2000 - Erie, PA and Kansas City, MO - General Electric Company and
Harmon Industries, Inc. announced today that they have reached a definitive
agreement for GE to acquire 100% of the stock of Harmon for $30 per share,
payable in GE stock. The stock exchange is expected to be tax free to Harmon
shareholders. The total value of the transaction including the assumption of
debt is approximately $425 million. Harmon is a leading supplier of signal,
inspection, train control and communications products, systems and services to
freight and transit railroads, with sales of $304 million in 1999.
Upon completion of the transaction, Harmon will become part of GE Harris Railway
Electronics, a joint venture between GE Transportation Systems (GETS) and Harris
Corporation. John Krenicki, president and chief executive officer of GE
Transportation Systems, said of the potential transaction, "Harmon has a wide
range of railroad and transit signaling, wayside and control products and
systems which greatly complement the GE-Harris product line and expands GE's
railroad signaling and communications offerings in the passenger and freight
railroad industry. The combined company will offer tremendous communications
technology and increased opportunities for productivity, service improvements
and asset utilization for our customers around the world."
-more-
1600 N.E. CORONADO DRIVE, BLUE SPRINGS, MISSOURI 64014
(816) 229-3345 FAX (816) 229-0556)
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GE/Harmon, page 2
Bjorn Olsson, president and chief executive officer of Harmon, said that the
transaction will facilitate the achievement of Harmon's long-term goals and was
unanimously approved by its board of directors. "Our people, technological
innovation, customer service and product quality made us a valuable partner for
GE. I think all employees of Harmon can take great pride in the fact that we are
joining forces with one of the best recognized corporations in the world."
GETS, headquartered in Erie, PA, is one of the major business units of GE (NYSE
symbol GE). It is a global supplier of surface transportation products and
services including freight and passenger locomotives and maintenance service,
global railroad services such as remote monitoring and diagnostics, railway
control and communications systems, propulsion and auxiliary power systems for
transit vehicles and motorized drive systems for mining trucks. It employs
approximately 6,700 employees worldwide and has sales in excess of $2 billion.
Harmon Industries, Inc., headquartered in Blue Springs, Mo., is a technology
leader focusing primarily on providing solutions to the worldwide rail
transportation industry in the areas of electronic signaling and train control.
The company is traded in the over-the-counter market and is quoted on NASDAQ
National Market System under the symbol HRMN. It has approximately 2,000
employees at more than 20 locations in North America, United Kingdom and Italy.
Pending regulatory and shareholder approvals and other customary conditions, the
transaction is expected to be completed during the third quarter of 2000.
We urge the Harmon shareholders to read the registration statement or form S-4
and schedule T.O. and the preliminary prospectus, supplements, final prospectus
and other exchange offer documents, which will be filed by General Electric with
the Securities and Exchange Commission and the related
solicitation/recommendation statement which will be filed by Harmon with the
SEC. These documents will contain important information which should be read
carefully before any decision is made with respect to the offer. These documents
will be made available to all shareholders of Harmon at no expense to them. When
documents are filed with the SEC, they will be available at no charge at the
SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Documents are available from the contact persons
above without cost. Reference is made to the forward-looking statement contained
in the 10K of Harmon Industries, Inc. for the prior period ending Dec. 31, 1999.
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