Otmar Hauck appointed to the Executive Board of KION Group

• A manager with wide-ranging experience of vehicle manufacturing
• Otmar Hauck to become COO

Wiesbaden, 23 September 2009: Otmar Hauck (54) has been appointed to the Executive Board of KION Group GmbH. As Chief Operating Officer (COO) he will be in charge of product planning, product development, purchasing and truck production as well as the business unit Hydraulics and Components and will continue the existing process of driving forward the integration of these units in KION Group and its brand companies. He is due to assume his new responsibilities on
1 November this year. Gordon Riske, KION's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), has recently performed the role of acting COO.

Riske commented: 'We are delighted to have such an internationally experienced engineering expert as Otmar Hauck on board. As a manager in the automotive industry, he has been highly successful at raising the global competitiveness of manufacturing and product development activities and will contribute his experience and capabilities to the KION Group. He is therefore an ideal addition to the Company's senior management team.'

The Supervisory Board welcomed the fact that KION had been able to recruit to its Executive Board a manager with such extensive managerial experience of the automotive industry as Otmar Hauck. Manfred Wennemer, chairman of the Supervisory Board of KION Group GmbH, stressed: 'Otmar Hauck has played a key role in introducing lean organisational and manufacturing processes into the automotive industry, and his abilities will enable him to make a major contribution to KION's continued success. We are delighted to have found such an experienced senior manager for our organisation.'

Otmar Hauck commented: 'I am greatly looking forward to my new role with KION. The Company is well-placed to emerge as a winner from the current global economic crisis. As COO I want to help ensure that we take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the strong position in which we find ourselves. I look forward to working closely with Gordon Riske and Harald Pinger as well as the Company's staff, customers, partners and shareholders.'

Hauck's most recent position was as Executive Director Business Unit Plastics at Volkswagen AG in Wolfsburg, Germany, where he was responsible for the development and manufacturing of plastic components and modules for the Volkswagen brand. He was also in charge of pooling the Volkswagen Group's plastic components operations across all brands. In addition, he was responsible for the introduction and implementation of Volkswagen's production system in the brand's components business. Previously, from 2004 to 2007, he ran the vehicle plant at Volkswagen de México. Between 1992 and 2003 he worked in various managerial roles in Volkswagen's manufacturing and human resources functions. From 1986 to 1992 he held executive positions in human resources at Audi AG. Between 1974 and 1986 Hauck was a regular soldier in the German armed forces and, during this period, studied electrical engineering at the armed forces university in Munich. He is married and has two children.

The Company

The KION Group, with its Linde, STILL, OM and Baoli brands, is Europe's market leader in industrial trucks, the global number two in the industry and the leading international supplier in China. The KION Group employed over 21,000 people and generated revenue of around EUR4.6 billion in the 2008 financial year.

For further information please contact

Michael Hauger
Head of Communications and Investor Relations
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 655
Email: michael.hauger@kiongroup.com

Frank Kopfinger
Head of Investor Relations
Tel.: +49 (0)611 770 220
Email: frank.kopfinger@kiongroup.com