Lear Corporation Recognized for Innovations In

Manufacturing Technology, Safety Southfield, Mich. (PROTEXT) - Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA)continues to provide winning innovations in automotive interiors,taking home three awards from Automotive and TransportationInteriors Magazine at its annual Design and Technology Awards andBenefit Scholarship Banquet. The Lear Extractable Safety Seat System was named best in theSafety category of systems in production. Although theExtractable Safety Seat was developed and tested for use inFormula One (F-1) open cockpit vehicles, Lear engineers are usingthe knowledge gained during the production of the system tosomeday benefit every driver. The Extractable Safety Seat Systemhas been mandated by the FIA for inclusion in all F-1 vehiclesfor 1999 and beyond. Lear also was awarded the SEMA MotorsportsAward for 1998 in recognition of the seat's outstandingcontribution to safety in motorsports. In the Concept Division, Lear swept the ManufacturingTechnology category with a first place for EnviroFibre(TM)Recycled Urethane for Automotive Applications. TheElectroBond(TM) Seat Bonding Process from Lear closed out thecategory. Envirofibre has the potential to eliminate more than twomillion pounds of headliner scrap by recycling it into resinmaterial that can be compression molded. The material alsoimproves acoustical properties and is very cost effective. Inawarding the Envirofibre first place, one judge said, "Recyclingwaste will become an increasingly important driver in the nextdecade." ElectroBond was viewed by judges as "clever and innovative"... representing "a new way of thinking about manufacturing."The process bonds seat cover material to foam using an electrical'mat' that can be used as a seat heater as well. The concept wasdeveloped to combine a process and a product to save process timeand equipment cost. A Fortune 200 company, Lear Corporation is one of the world'slargest automotive suppliers, with 1998 proforma sales of morethan $12 billion. The company's world-class automotive interiorproducts are designed, engineered and manufactured by more than100,000 employees at over 300 facilities located in 33 countries.Information about Lear and its products is available on theInternet at http://www.lear.com. ots Original Text Service: LearCorporation Internet: http://www.newsaktuell.de Contact: KarenStewart, Director Corporate Communications of Lear (USA) 248-447-1651 Company News On-Call:http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/518304.html or fax, (USA) 800-758-5804, ext. 518304 Web site: http://www.lear.com

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