Bacou-Dalloz announces the acquisition of STX Protective Apparel, owner of Securitex and FireGear brands.

World Leader in personal protection equipment reinforces its position in the fire service and domestic preparedness markets in North America.

Smithfield, RI (April 7, 2003)) Bacou-Dalloz, the world leader in Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), today announced that it has acquired STX Protective Apparel, the third largest manufacturer of fire-resistant protective garments in North America. STX Protective Apparel manufactures and sells premium protective apparel to the emergency responder community under the well known Securitex, FireGear and STX brand names.

This acquisition is consistent with our selective external growth strategy and allows the Group to enter the North American market for premium branded, added-value protective garments, said Claude Balleyguier, CEO of Bacou-Dalloz. Furthermore, the combination of the well-respected, innovative Securitex and FireGear product lines with our Survivair brand of respiratory protection products delivers an even wider bundle of complementary products to our customers. This further strengthens our position within firefighting and other areas of the emergency responder markets as well as industrial applications.

We are pleased to join the Bacou-Dalloz Group and feel that we have partnered with a company that shares many of our own corporate values and vision for success, said Ross Cochran, President and CEO of STX Protective Apparel. Since the founding of our company in 1981 we have stayed true to our mission of offering unique, differentiated protective apparel and a superior value proposition in terms of price, performance, quality, service and selection for todays emergency responders. The success of many of the leading, world-class Bacou-Dalloz brands has been built on a similar commitment and provides great confidence that this union will achieve new levels of success for both of our teams.

This acquisition will follow our well-established process for successful acquisitions, stated Mike Moorefield, Senior Vice President of the Market Business Unit for the Americas. The entire current team at STX Protective Apparel in both the Grand Junction, Colorado and Montreal facilities will remain in place and in charge of the day-to-day operations. It will be business as usual with respect to the people that our customers deal with on a daily basis. We will work diligently over the coming weeks to fully understand the core competencies and successful strategies of the company and how we can best leverage across both organizations for growth. Also, for our many customers in the fire service and emergency responder markets, we ask that you please stop by both our Survivair and STX Protective Apparel booths at the FDIC Trade Show beginning this week in Indianapolis to discuss this new partnership.

STX Protective Apparel manufactures and markets protective garments for firefighters and emergency response services. These products are sold to a broad range of traditional user markets such as municipal, airport, military, industrial and forestry firefighters as well as the newly emerging areas of domestic preparedness. The company has two premium brands, Securitex and FireGear, sold through specialty distributors and directly to end-users. These protective garments– jackets, pants and coveralls–are innovative, premium products recognized for their differentiated comfort and ergonomic designs.

The Bacou-Dalloz Group is the world leader in the design, manufacturing and sale of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). The company employs about 6,700 people and operates 48 production facilities. Bacou-Dalloz provides unmatched head-to-toe protection through two strategic business segments: head protection (eye, hearing and respiratory) and body protection (fall protection, gloves, clothes and shoes). Bacou-Dalloz offers a full product range aimed at the manufacturing, construction, telecommunications, medical, public services and other sectors. Its products are available through its distributor partners worldwide. Bacou-Dalloz is listed on the Euronext Premier March in Paris and is eligible to the SRD (Monthly Settlement Service).
Euroclear Code 6089 Reuters Code CRDZ.PA Bloomberg Code DAL. FP.

Investor Relations
Bacou-Dalloz :
Stphane Bisseuil
Tel. +33 (0)1 49 90 79 74
e-mail: InvestorRelations@bacou-dalloz.com

Press Relations
Bacou-Dalloz:
John Montigny
Tel. (401) 233 – 0333
e-mail: jmontigny@Bacou-dalloz.com

Christophe Mathy
Tel. 33 (0)1 49 90 79 72
e-mail : cmathy@bacou-dalloz.com