Jacobsen® A Textron Company

Karla R. Cuculi Jacobsen 704-504-6668

Angela B. Jamison Communicopia 919-371-2730

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Customer Focus Drives Investment in New Facility for Jacobsen

 

Charlotte, N.C., February 22, 2007 - Jacobsen®, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, is investing in a new facility to bring together its corporate headquarters, Global Distribution Center for whole goods and parts and state-of-the-art training center.

Located just four miles from the current manufacturing plant in Charlotte, North Carolina, the new Jacobsen facility was designed with customers' needs in mind. By April 2007, approximately 150 employees will be relocated to the 185,000 square-foot facility.

"Customer satisfaction is our number one priority," said Dan Wilkinson, president of Jacobsen. "Bringing all of our customer service functions under one roof helps us respond more quickly to the turf professionals who buy our equipment."

More than 300 manufacturing, assembly and engineering employees will continue to work at the Wilmar Boulevard location. The 260,000 square-foot building has been a Jacobsen plant for more than 20 years.

Jacobsen's new Charlotte, N.C. headquarters will house offices, Jacobsen University training center and a Global Distribution Center for Whole Goods and Parts. (more photos)

Introducing Jacobsen University

The new Jacobsen University training center is cutting edge, with the latest in classroom technology, a meeting room, a dining room and three labs that will be used with turf professionals, students, dealers and new employees for sales and technical training. One lab will be reserved to demonstrate efficient reel maintenance and grinding techniques, one for electrical systems training and the other for teaching the ins and outs of hydraulic systems.

The electrical lab will use a live work board to show how to properly diagnose and troubleshoot problems and the hydraulic lab will use similar training boards capable of diagramming and explaining matters in detail. Each lab will feature teardown bays where students and visiting professionals will learn how Jacobsen products work and how to keep them running up to factory specifications.

Jacobsen University Opens Doors

Upon establishing Jacobsen University, the company can now reinstate its Future Turf Manager's program, which offers exclusive training seminars to top students from the country's leading turf colleges. The program gives turf students the opportunity to learn and interact with industry professionals.

The first group of 30 students is already scheduled to visit Charlotte in May 2007. Visiting superintendents and dealers also will have a chance to use the training center, classrooms, labs and tour the Global Distribution Center as part of the Charlotte Experience. The Charlotte Experience consists of a two-day tour designed to give prospective business partners and customers a glimpse of Jacobsen's production process through a behind-the-scenes look at the facilities in the company's hometown.

Jacobsen takes this face-to-face opportunity to gather feedback from customers on existing product issues and new product development ideas. The Charlotte Experience provides customers with a direct pipeline to leadership, product management and engineering teams that are working to deliver innovative products of the highest quality.

New Global Distribution Center Maintains Excellence

Jacobsen has maintained a parts delivery fill-rate in the 97 percent range for the past two years, an impressive mark that has remained unchanged since the new Global Distribution Center for whole goods and parts opened in January 2007. The company's Never Out program remains intact at the new location, ensuring that an extensive supply of Jacobsen's 1000 most-requested parts are constantly on-hand for quick delivery.

"We began moving the Distribution Center and other parts of our headquarters in late 2006 to guarantee that the transition process would be seamless," said Peter Whurr, Jacobsen vice president of Customer Care. "Our parts-delivery rate has remained high and we haven't seen the slightest dip in turnaround time. Our customers are going to enjoy the benefits of the new Distribution Center, mainly because we can continue to process their orders in a quick and efficient manner."

In the new facility, approximately 30,000 square-feet will be allocated for offices, 10,000 square-feet for the training center and the rest for the Global Distribution Center and parts storage. The address for Jacobsen's new headquarters is 11108 Quality Drive, Charlotte, N.C. 28273.

For more information, visit www.jacobsen.com or call 888-922-TURF.

About Jacobsen
Jacobsen manufactures a full range of turf maintenance equipment and vehicles for golf courses, sports fields, and municipal grounds applications. The company markets Jacobsen brand products internationally through an extensive independent distribution network, and Ransomes brand products through independent distribution in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Jacobsen is a Textron company with headquarters in Charlotte, NC.  Additional information is available at www.jacobsen.com.

About Textron
Textron Inc. is an $11 billion multi-industry company operating in 32 countries with approximately 40,000 employees. The company leverages its global network of aircraft, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna Aircraft, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Greenlee, Fluid & Power, Textron Systems and Textron Financial Corporation. More information is available at www.textron.com.

 

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