(Archived) Praxair, Inc. Signs Marketing and Supply Alliance with MEI

DANBURY, Conn., April 11, 2003 — Praxair, Inc. (NYSE:PX) today announced that it has entered into a marketing alliance with Material Enhancement International, LLC (MEI^®) of Effingham, Illinois. The Praxair and MEI relationship will provide complete extrusion cooling systems to the plastic, rubber and metal wire and cable extrusion industries.

"The MEI Cryogenic Extrusion Cooling Technology will allow our customers to significantly increase production rates without having to purchase new extrusion lines," said Jim Fuchs, president of Praxair North American Industrial Gases and president of Praxair Canada. "In addition, it will give our customers an innovative way to comply with new water use and discharge regulations by reducing water usage or by eliminating the requirement of water."

Praxair first pioneered cryogenic nitrogen systems in the early 1960s. Operating expertise includes extensive knowledge in freezing and chilling technology and system design as well as a proprietary load-tracking capability that allows automatic adjustment of nitrogen flow to match volume requirements.

Material Enhancement International (MEI) is a proven developer and manufacturer of cryogenic cooling equipment and cryogenic cooling applications. MEI designs and develops cryogenic cooling equipment for many applications specific to the customer’s requirements and processes. "Customers who have implemented the MEI Technology for cooling in their process are experiencing a significant advantage in the market place over their competition," said Scott Olexa, vice president of Product Development for MEI. "The superior cooling ability of our technology is changing the way the manufacturer is processing their material and the design of the final product."

MEI's patented cryogenic cooling process and equipment is engineered to solve manufacturing equipment cooling/heating problems and designed to replace and /or augment existing conventional cooling systems. MEI is currently working with over 100 companies in the plastic, rubber and aluminum industries and has placed over 50 units that provide this cooling technology and process. To obtain more information on MEI visit www.meicryo.com or call 1-217-347-2901.

Praxair is the largest industrial gases company in North and South America, and one of the largest worldwide, with 2002 sales of $5.1 billion. The company produces, sells and distributes atmospheric and process gases, and high-performance surface coatings. Praxair products, services and technologies bring productivity and environmental benefits to a wide variety of industries, including aerospace, chemicals, food and beverage, electronics, energy, healthcare, manufacturing, metals and others. More information on Praxair is available on the Internet at www.praxair.com.