Kaiser Aluminum Aids Effort to Provide Armor for Military Vehicles

December 2004 (Newstream) -- With all the recent publicity about shortages of armor for U.S. military vehicles in Iraq, at least one U.S. metals company has gone out of its way to help deliver needed materials for these vehicles. 

So far this year, Kaiser Aluminum has shipped more than four million pounds of aluminum plate to specialized producers of vehicle armor kits for military applications. In 2005, Kaiser expects to boost shipments even further -- despite the fact that broad industry demand for aluminum plate has been so strong that many non-military customers are receiving only limited-allocation shipments. 

Kaiser has shipped most of the vehicle armor plate to the Phoenix and Cincinnati manufacturing facilities of Armor Holdings Aerospace & Defense Group. The company uses the aluminum in combination with steel to provide ground vehicle armor and mine blast kits for U.S. military vehicles such as the Humvee and heavy trucks. 

Robert Mecredy, President of the Armor Holdings Aerospace & Defense Group explains, "The aluminum plate is a crucial piece of the armor kits. When combined with steel, the aluminum basically acts as an additional buffer to decelerate projectiles." 

Kaiser sells the plate, which is typically about a half inch thick or greater and available in alloys of 7075-T6 and 6061-T6, to Armor Holdings through distributors and through direct sales. 

The relationship between Kaiser and Armor Holdings got a big boost in October when the U.S. Armed Services Committee called a meeting of plate manufacturers, end users, and military and government agencies to prioritize and expedite the moving of armor material to the troops in Iraq. 

Keith Harvey, a Kaiser Vice President, attended the meeting and realized that the company was in a position to offer almost immediate assistance in delivering the needed aluminum plate. 

"We produce this material at our Trentwood facility near Spokane, Washington," said Harvey, "and while overall demand for plates this year has been extremely strong, we were eager to jump in and do what we could to juggle some of our production and delivery schedules to meet this critical need. A lot of credit goes to the exceptionally skilled and dedicated workforce at the Trentwood plant." 

Mecredy added, "Kaiser's ability to deliver aluminum plate has enabled us to meet our aggressive production schedule -- and thus the military's immediate needs -- for vehicle armor kits. We are proud to work alongside suppliers who are as dedicated as Armor Holdings is to increasing production as needed to protect our troops." 

Kaiser shortly expects to hear from the Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) regarding additional quantities of plate that may be required for the balance of 2005. 

Kaiser Aluminum (OTCBB:KLUCQ) is a leading producer of fabricated aluminum products and owns interests in alumina and primary aluminum assets. 

Armor Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:AH) is a diversified manufacturer of branded products for the military, law enforcement and personnel safety markets. Additional information can be found at http://www.armorholdings.com. 

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Produced for Kaiser Aluminum 

Contact:

Scott Lamb
Kaiser Aluminum
713-332-4751

Michael Fox
Integrated Corporate Relations for Armor Holdings
203-682-8218
mfox@icrinc.com

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