Actuant Announces Sale of Mox-Med.

Business Editors

MILWAUKEE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 27, 2001

Actuant Corporation (NYSE:ATU) announced today that it has completed the sale of its Mox-Med, Inc. subsidiary to Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation, a subsidiary of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain of Paris, France. Gross proceeds from the transaction were approximately $40 million, which, after transaction expenses and income taxes, will be used to reduce Actuant's outstanding indebtedness.

Mox-Med, Inc. is a custom manufacturer of precision silicone rubber extrusions and molded products for the medical and housewares markets. Based in Portage, Wisconsin, Mox-Med has approximately 175 employees.

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corporation, a leader in the high performance plastics business, serves a broad range of industries including transportation, electronics, food processing, electrical, health markets and pharmaceutical. It processes high-performance polymers and elastomers into flexible foams, bearings, flexible tubing and fluid handling systems, films, fabrics and pressure sensitive tapes.

Andrew G. Lampereur, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Actuant, commented, "We are pleased to have completed the divestiture of Mox-Med. It is a very good business, and is well-positioned to grow under new ownership. Given Actuant's focus on branded tools and highly engineered position and motion control systems, Mox-Med did not fit with our overall business strategies. As such, we decided to divest the business and use the proceeds to reduce debt.

"Our debt reduction targets following the spin-off of APW Ltd. last July were $35 million in year one, and $40 million in year two. The first year goal was met prior to selling Mox-Med. Strong cash flow generation has allowed Actuant to significantly reduce its debt over the past year and prepayments will result in no scheduled debt payments at all in fiscal 2002. Since the spin-off approximately one year ago, Actuant's debt has been reduced by over $100 million, reflecting operating cash flow, and proceeds from both the Mox-Med divestiture and Accounts Receivable Securitization. We expect financing costs to decline by nearly $10 million, or $0.73 per share, in fiscal 2002, compared to the current fiscal year, due to delevereging and lower interest rates."

The Company announced that it will be providing updated earnings guidance for fiscal 2002, reflecting the removal of Mox-Med results on its fourth quarter earnings conference call which will be held on October 4, 2001. It will also disclose the net gain associated with the Mox-Med divestiture at that time.

About Actuant

Actuant, headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a diversified industrial company with operations in 15 countries. The Actuant businesses are market leaders in highly engineered position and motion control systems and branded hydraulic and electrical tools. Products are offered under such established brand names as Enerpac, Gardner Bender, Milwaukee Cylinder, Nielsen Sessions, Power-Packer and Power Gear.

For further information on Actuant and its business units, visit the Company's website at www.actuant.com.