CHICAGO, August 22, 2001 - Oce-USA has added three new independent dealers to its Document Printing Systems' (DPS) dealer network to strengthen its North American presence and expand its market reach. These dealers are the first additions to the new independent dealer network Oce DPS is establishing in North America. The three dealers -- CSU L.L.C., of Overland Park, Kansas; Informatique Comtel, of Quebec City, Quebec, and Minneapolis-based Metro Sales Inc. -- will sell and service products from the Oce DPS line in the U.S. and Canada, including the Oce DPS400 digital printing system, the Oce 3165 digital copier/printer and other Oce DPS equipment and software. Oce will continue to maintain its relationship with IKON Office Solutions Inc., which also distributes Oce DPS products. "We have taken aggressive steps recently to increase our market share in North America," said Wendell Wilson, group vice president of Oce DPS. "We are excited about the opportunity these new dealers provide in accessing additional customers seeking reliable, high-performance document management and printing solutions in expanded geographic markets." The partnerships come four months after Oce announced lower prices for select digital and analog copier/printers and production printers. These initiatives support the DPS business unit's goal to enhance critical business functions of companies by providing effective document-management solutions. They follow recent introductions of the Oce DPS400 digital printing system and Oce Office Exec(tm) document logistics software. CSU, L.L.C. CSU is the largest independent service organization in North America dedicated to servicing Xerox and Kodak high-volume equipment. Founded in 1984, the company will market Oce DPS digital products in 16 markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis, Denver, Dallas and Houston, among others. "We anticipate a substantial increase in sales from our agreement with Oce," said Dick Watkins, president and chief executive officer of CSU. "We are replacing analog machines with digital, and the quality and reliability and extended life of Oce's digital products made them a logical partner for us." Informatique Comtel Founded in 1983 in Quebec City, Informatique Comtel is a systems integrator for hardware and software in multiplatform environments in Quebec Province. The company is an authorized dealer of NEC and Konica products and is a Microsoft Solution provider. Aligning with Oce will allow Informatique Comtel to target reprographics centers, insurance companies and government agencies with high-volume equipment. "Oce has a good reputation and its products are well-known in the industry," said Georges Dallaire, president and general manager, Informatique Comtel. "We're eager to open new doors in our markets and deliver high-quality, high-volume products to customers." Metro Sales Inc. A major dealer in the upper mid-west, Metro Sales has established a reputation for delivering the highest quality of service and support to its customers during the past 32 years. Metro Sales sees strong growth potential in the high-volume copier/printer and color copier arena based on the company's new relationship with Oce. "Oce has one of the most reliable high-volume copy solutions in the industry, and we recognize the sales opportunities our partnership will create," said Jerry Mathwig, president, Metro Sales. Metro Sales focuses on markets in Minnesota and North Dakota.