ADVISORY/ Rodel to Host Educational Tours of New State-of-the-Art Research and Development Lab for High School Students; On-site Event to Be Held Thursday, May 3, 2001.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

ADVISORY...for Thursday (May 3)

NEWARK, Del.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 1, 2001

Rodel, Inc., an innovator of integrated materials for the microelectronics industry, is hosting a day of facility tours for high school students and teachers to celebrate the opening of its new Materials Development Center in Newark, Delaware. The event will be held at the facility -- 451 Bellevue Road -- on Thursday, May 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Local students will get to see how their math and science curriculum relates to careers in the microelectronics industry. The tours will feature live demonstrations of wafer polishing, new product testing and experimental technology. By reaching out to young people, Rodel will provide students with an opportunity to experience "technology in action" and the intellectually stimulating environment that is a part of every job at Rodel.

The Materials Development Center, one of the most sophisticated R&D facilities in the microelectronics industry, includes a 3,000 square foot Class 10 cleanroom, a slurry model shop and an analytical lab. The facility is used to perform R&D on core slurry technology, emerging slurry technologies and pad development for the CMP, wafer substrate, storage and optoelectronics industries. To support its R&D efforts, the laboratory is equipped with a full array of industry-leading systems -- including state-of-the-art polishing tools and high performance metrology instruments.

The event is also open to all press.

Rodel, Inc. is an innovator of integrated materials for the microelectronics industry and global leader in polishing technology for semiconductors, silicon wafers and storage media substrates. The company has been a key supplier to the semiconductor industry since 1969. Rodel has operations throughout the United States, Asia and Europe with its global headquarters and Materials Integration Center in Phoenix, AZ; manufacturing operations and Materials Development Center in Newark, DE; and additional manufacturing facilities in Japan. Rodel is part of the Rohm and Haas Electronics Materials Group, which also includes the Shipley Company. Headquartered in Philadelphia, PA, Rohm and Haas is a $7 billion specialty chemical technology company. Rodel can be found on the Internet at www.rodel.com.