Niederweningen, 11 May 2006

Kuhn Group, a division of Bucher Industries, which manufactures specialized agricultural machinery, is planning to restructure its production facilities in France. Items under discussion include the relocation of the production of Kuhn-Nodet SA in Montereau to other French plants and the shutdown of the Montereau facility.

Today, the management of Kuhn-Nodet presented the restructuring project to the employee representatives for consultation. One objective of the project is to bring the high losses Kuhn-Nodet has experienced for years to an end, while preserving as many jobs as possible in France. At the same time, a sustainable production structure must be established to satisfy the growing demand for combination soil preparation and seeding equipment. Therefore, the company is planning to merge the manufacture of soil preparation machines at the current locations in Saverne (Alsace) and Châteaubriant (Western France) with the seeding equipment of Kuhn-Nodet. Actual restructuring costs cannot be determined until the negotiations with the employee representatives have been completed, which is expected to take several months.

Kuhn-Nodet has 145 employees and generated sales of EUR 24 million in 2005. Kuhn Group, which has a workforce of 2800 worldwide and maintains production facilities in France, the United States and Brazil, reported sales of EUR 503 million in the same period.

Bucher Industries is a global technology group with leading market positions in specialty areas of mechanical and vehicle engineering. The company's operations include specialized agricultural machinery, municipal vehicles, wine and fruit juice production plant, hydraulic components, and production equipment for the glass container industry. Bucher Industries' shares are traded on SWX Swiss Exchange (SWX: BUCN).


Contact
Philip Mosimann, CEO
Roger Baillod, CFO
Phone +41 44 857 22 07