JCI and PGI Form Auto Products Partnership

PLYMOUTH, Mich., Aug. 28 - Leading automotive interior systems supplier Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE:JCI) and Polymer Group, Inc. (NYSE:PGI) -- the world's third largest producer of nonwovens and engineered materials -- announced today that they have entered into a mutually exclusive strategic supplier partnership.

The Polymer Group will work with Johnson Controls to develop and supply a variety of fiber-based products for headliners and other interior components, augmenting Johnson Controls' current offering for headliners and other interior components. Automakers and consumers will benefit through improved acoustical properties, lower interior vehicle noise and enhanced aesthetics.

"The Polymer Group's unmatched reputation for innovation and manufacturing excellence -- coupled with its outstanding technological capabilities -- made this partnership a natural fit," said Bob Stander, vice president and general manager - product and business development, overhead systems for Johnson Controls. "As a result of this partnership, our customers will not only benefit from Johnson Controls' vehicle interior integration experience, but also from the Polymer Group's APEX(TM) technologies and their experience in nonwovens and engineered materials."

Johnson Controls has been a leader in headliner materials, headliner assemblies and complete overhead systems for more than 15 years. According to Stander, fiber materials are used in the manufacturing of numerous automotive interior components -- from headliners to door trim panels -- to help automakers lower interior vehicle noise, meet important safety and acoustical requirements and enhance aesthetics.

"The partnership brings together leading companies from the fiber and automotive interior industries," said Jerry Zucker, Polymer Group's chairman, president and chief executive officer. "This relationship will allow us to manufacture high-quality, fiber-based interior components more quickly and cost effectively."

Polymer Group, Inc., the world's third largest producer of nonwovens, is a global, technology-driven developer, producer and marketer of engineered materials. With the broadest range of process technologies in the nonwovens industry, Polymer Group is a global supplier to leading consumer and industrial product manufacturers. The company employs more than 4,500 people and operates 25 manufacturing facilities throughout the world. Polymer Group is the exclusive manufacturer of Miratec(R) fabrics, produced using proprietary advanced laser technologies, which the company believes have the potential to replace traditionally woven and knit textiles in a wide range of applications.

The Plymouth, Michigan (U.S.A.)-based automotive business of Johnson Controls -- which employs more than 65,000 people at 275 facilities worldwide -- achieved US$12.1 billion in sales for the 1999 fiscal year. In model-year 2000, it will supply interior products for more than 23 million vehicles.

Johnson Controls, Inc. is a global market leader in automotive systems and facility management and control. In the automotive market, it is a major supplier of seating and interior systems, and batteries. For non-residential facilities, Johnson Controls provides building control systems and services, energy management and integrated facility management. Johnson Controls, founded in 1885, has headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, (U.S.A.). Its sales for 1999 totaled US$16.1 billion.

Contact: Dave Roznowski of Johnson Controls, Inc., 734-254-5632