DAYTON, Ohio March 5, 2004 - For nearly 60 years, successful companies in the printing industry have partnered with Day International, Inc.--the Dayton based manufacturer of pressroom consumable products--to gain a competitive advantage. Day International has diligently worked to earn its reputation as a technology leader and trustworthy business partner, and its recent acquisition of Network Distribution International (NDI) builds upon this legacy, while establishing a new standard in collaboration. NDI IS A GREAT FIT "Day International has always been committed to getting closer to our customers. The NDI acquisition allows us to gain more insight into customer needs and better serve them," says Dennis Wolters, Day International president and chief executive officer. "We hope to utilize this insight in our R&D efforts so that we can continue to give printers innovative products to help them be more productive. We believe our distribution partners will find that Day is a stronger business partner who can provide more competitive products." "We've built our business by offering great service to printers," according to Scott Morrison, who was NDI co-chairman with Glenn Hicks. "Day's philosophy of supporting customers through innovative technology and superior service is a great fit with ours." In the extremely competitive and rapidly evolving printing world, Day's forward-thinking collaborative strategy is leveraging the NDI acquisition into new business opportunities for Day distributors and end-user customers. Previously, a privately held company based in Rockland, Massachusetts, NDI is the nation's leading converter of offset printing blankets and a distributor of pressroom consumable products. With facilities located in six key geographic regions of the United States, NDI offers an extensive line of offset printing blankets that includes products manufactured by Day International, Reeves, Duco International and Fujikura. As a key criterion of Day's acquisition, NDI will continue to sell product lines produced by other manufacturers. CUSTOMER FOCUSED "By combining the NDI sales and distribution system with Day products, technical support and knowledgeable sales representatives, we're now better aligned with the needs of printers. At the end of the day, the acquisition of Network Distribution International takes us back to our fundamental principles regarding customers and partnerships," Wolters says. "Customers are the focus of all we do. We will always strive to meet or exceed their expectations. Partnerships will be fiercely protected, and our partnerships with dealers, distributors, end-users and suppliers will continue to be mutually beneficial." Indeed, the two companies' lines are complementary. Day's engineered consumable products of offset printing blankets, sleeves and pressroom chemistry and flexographic products will enable NDI to offer customers a broad product range with printing solutions for virtually every printing application. "We acquired NDI, but we certainly did not absorb them. We fully intend for NDI to remain a viable, stand-alone business that operates in very much the same fashion as in the past." Wolters adds, "Bringing NDI under the Day umbrella is not solely about getting into the distribution business or changing Day's selling approach. Rather, our goal is to increase customer value by strengthening our partnerships at the end-user level." BETTER COMMUNICATION "As a manufacturer, one of our challenges has been staying close enough to our customers-listening to their concerns and better understanding their needs. NDI greatly enhances our ability to do just that," says Steve Noe, Day International senior vice president. "We want to find new and better ways to help printers reduce costs, improve print quality and improve efficiency. Being able to share the combined knowledge and experience of Day and NDI allows us to achieve that goal." Day International is unwaveringly committed to its dual distribution partners and believes the NDI acquisition will allow Day International to reach more customers, and develop a more balanced perspective of customer needs and emerging market trends. This perspective will allow Day International to stay ahead of the curve on market trends and enable it to strengthen R&D efforts, further benefiting both printers and distribution partners. "It's important to remember that the NDI acquisition represents only one component of our overall channel strategy," Noe says. "Our other converters represent another key component. They're valued business partners and we intend to create new and unique ways of working more closely with them to build upon these relationships." BETTER DISTRIBUTION MEANS BETTER SERVICE Wolters believes it's important to be up front about concerns that the NDI acquisition may threaten other Day distributors, suppliers or end-user customers. "Adding NDI to the Day International family does not mean we want to sell direct," Wolters says. "On the contrary, we strongly believe all our distribution partners provide added value to the printer that Day--a manufacturer--does not provide. High quality, responsive service can only come from the close proximity our distributors enjoy. Trust only comes from long-standing business relationships, ease and the convenience of being able to buy a wide range of products from a single supplier. These are just a few examples of the value that our distributors add."