The Carlyle Group Agrees to Sell Colin Medical Technology to Omron Corporation; Company Successfully Revitalized Under Japan's Civil Rehabilitation Law

Tokyo, Japan - Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group today announced an agreement to sell Colin Medical Technology (CMT) to Omron Corporation. This agreement is conditional on Omron retaining CMT’s current management and workforce, respecting CMT’s managerial independence and maintaining the CMT brand. Financial terms were not disclosed. (Carlyle’s head office is in Washington, DC and its Representative in Japan is Tamotsu Adachi.)

Carlyle purchased Colin Corporation in October 2003 following Colin entering the Japanese equivalent of Chapter 11 bankruptcy (Civil Rehabilitation Law) and thereafter revitalized Colin’s business under the newly formed CMT.

CMT develops, manufactures and sells medical instruments, such as patient monitors, blood pressure monitors and vascular profiling devices. Its blood pressure and patient monitors have gained widespread acclaim among medical institutions, vaulting the company into a leadership position in this medical field. The company also possesses unique technologies such as the Form ABI/PBW, a revolutionary instrument for measuring atherosclerosis.

Mr. Tamotsu Adachi, Carlyle Managing Director, said, "Carlyle has proactively supported CMT since October 2003, including through long-term lending of Carlyle employees to CMT, and has provided steady support despite a change in the legal process. Carlyle resolved over-loaded inventory at distribution channels and patent lawsuits inherited from Colin. We have also enhanced CMT’s corporate value by helping them form strategic alliances with global partners.

"As a result, CMT’s business was able to stage a quick turnaround so that the company recorded an operating profit of approximately 300 million yen in fiscal 2004.

"Omron originally approached us about the possibility of a business alliance with CMT and, as a result of discussions with CMT’s management, it has been decided that CMT would be able to maximize its growth potential under Omron, which offers a high level of business synergy and has high regard for CMT’s corporate culture and independence.

"Our original investment in CMT was a challenging undertaking, but we are very satisfied that we have fulfilled our responsibility as a fund through the company’s rapid revitalization and establishment of a solid base for future growth."

Kenji Nakayama, Chairman of CMT, said, "We have resolved a variety of problems and achieved a speedy revitalization through Carlyle’s vigorous support since the launch of CMT in 2003. We are now the top maker of blood pressure monitors for medical facilities, while Omron is the top maker of blood pressure monitors for use in the home. By joining forces with Omron, we will expand into new fields that would not have been within reach on our own, and thereby realize new growth potential.

"The new arrangement will enable us to more fully carry out our mission of helping to reduce medical accidents 100-fold and to reduce the number of bedridden elderly people to half the current number in Japan. In specific terms, we will develop high-quality, low-cost medical instruments for the home healthcare market, which is forecast to grow rapidly, and also develop medical instruments for the prevention of lifestyle diseases, as we have with our atherosclerosis measuring instruments. We expect to realize a substantial synergy for global growth with Omron."

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