Columbus, OH – August 15, 2005 -- Kern, Inc., the manufacturer and distributor of the fastest production mail inserting systems in the world, announced today, the worldwide launch of its newest high performance cutting system, the Kern 999. At speeds topping 40,000 cuts per hour, the Kern 999 sets new performance standards for the industry. In combination with the Kern 3500, Kern's flagship high-speed inserting system, the Kern 999 enables processing up to four sheets at the full, rated speed of 20,000 envelopes per hour. The Kern 999 employs an integrated Unwinder that handles rolls up to 54” and reaches its running speed of almost 800 feet per minute. Kern plans to demonstrate the Kern 999 high-performance cutting system and the integrated K100 Unwinder RF at the upcoming Print '05 Exhibition in Chicago, September 9-15. Order taking begins immediately and the company plans to begin shipments in North America by early 2006. “There is an ongoing trend towards an ever increasing quantity of content in each envelope” said Uli Kern, Chairman and CEO, of Kern, AG. “This development in our document input capabilities complements our inserters' capabilities.” “The Kern 999 takes high-speed inserting, for customers with higher page counts, to a whole new level.” said Thomas Brock, Vice President, General Manager of Kern, Inc. “Our customers have been asking for breakthroughs in speed and we continue to deliver them”, he added.