Caterpillar Announces Opening of Component Manufacturing Campus in Wuxi, China

Caterpillar Announces Opening of Component Manufacturing Campus in Wuxi, China

May 09, 2007

Hydraulic hose assemblies, valves and cabs manufactured at
Wuxi campus for Caterpillar machines


    BEIJING, May 9 /Xinhua-PRNewswire / -- As part of a
long-term strategic plan to support manufacturing growth in
China and at its operations around the world, executives
with Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) celebrated today the
grand opening of new manufacturing operations in Wuxi,
China.  Located in Jiangsu province in East China, the Wuxi
campus includes nearly 47 acres (19 hectares) and will be
home to Caterpillar (China) Machinery Components Co. Ltd.
(CCMC), a wholly owned Caterpillar company.  CCMC will
manufacture a range of components to be used primarily in
Caterpillar machines and to be sold to select original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs).  CCMC is part of
Caterpillar's Motion & Power Control Division, which
has facilities located around the world. 

    "As demand for Caterpillar products continues to
increase, the development of our operations in Wuxi will
play an important role in supplying state-of-the-art,
world-class components for the Caterpillar machines used by
our customers and by discriminating OEMs," said Chris
Schena, Caterpillar vice president with responsibility for
the Motion & Power Control Division.

    The grand opening ceremony for the component
manufacturing campus took place at Caterpillar's new
100,000-square-foot valve operations building, which is
located in the Wuxi New District.  Caterpillar has already
begun hiring and training machinists, assemblers and other
front office and support staff for the valve operations in
Wuxi.  Caterpillar has two additional operations located in
the Wuxi New District.  Using leased buildings, Caterpillar
has produced hydraulic hose assemblies in Wuxi since
mid-2006; since early 2007, it has fabricated and assembled
cabs for core Caterpillar machines. 
  
    "Over the decades, Caterpillar has established
manufacturing operations in every major currency zone to
keep Caterpillar globally competitive while also ensuring
faster delivery times for our customers around the
world," said Rich Lavin, Caterpillar vice president
with responsibility for Asia Pacific Operations.  "The
establishment of the Wuxi campus for key components will be
an important element in our enterprise strategy as we
continue to support our growing customer base in China and
other key Asian markets." 

    Jiangsu province is home to Caterpillar's flagship
manufacturing facility in China, Caterpillar Xuzhou
Limited.  Caterpillar is also currently building a
world-class wheel loader manufacturing facility in Suzhou,
which is also located in Jiangsu province.

    "The land we have in the Wuxi New District gives
us room to expand our operations," said Schena.
"It is ideally located within close range of key
Caterpillar manufacturing operations in China, and it is
also close to ports for exporting components to Caterpillar
facilities in Asia and other regions."
  
    Caterpillar core products manufactured in China include
hydraulic excavators, track-type tractors, motor graders and
paving products, large diesel engines used primarily for
marine and power generation applications and generator sets
for use in China and the Asia Pacific region.  Caterpillar
also manufactures components at several facilities in
China.  In addition, Caterpillar holds a minority stake in
Shandong SEM Machinery Co., Ltd. (SEM), one of China's
leading wheel loader manufacturers. 

    In addition to its core machine, engine and component
manufacturing locations in China, Caterpillar operations in
China also include logistics, remanufacturing, financial
leasing, training, marketing and research and development.
Caterpillar's independent dealer network also provides
sales and product support to customers across greater
China.

    Caterpillar has a long history in China. The company
sold its first products there in 1975 and opened an office
in Beijing in 1978.  In the 1980s, Caterpillar launched
technology transfer agreements with Chinese manufacturers
who began building Caterpillar licensed products.
Caterpillar's expansion in China accelerated in the early
1990s with the establishment of a more significant local
production strategy.  

    For more than 80 years, Caterpillar Inc. has been
making progress possible and driving positive and
sustainable change on every continent. With 2006 sales and
revenues of $41.517 billion, Caterpillar is the world's
leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment,
diesel and natural gas engines and industrial gas turbines.
The company also is a leading services provider through
Caterpillar Financial Services, Caterpillar Remanufacturing
Services, Caterpillar Logistics Services and Progress Rail
Services. More information is available at
http://www.cat.com .
 
    SAFE HARBOR

    Certain statements in this release relate to future
events and expectations and as such constitute
forward-looking statements involving known and unknown
factors that may cause actual results of Caterpillar Inc.
to be different from those expressed or implied in the
forward-looking statements. In this context, words such as
"will" and "expect" or other similar
words and phrases often identify forward-looking statements
made on behalf of Caterpillar. It is important to note that
actual results of the company may differ materially from
those described or implied in such forward-looking
statements based on a number of factors and uncertainties,
including, but not limited to, changes in economic
conditions; currency exchange or interest rates; political
stability; market acceptance of the company's products and
services; significant changes in the competitive
environment; epidemic diseases; changes in law, regulations
and tax rates; and other general economic, business and
financing conditions and factors described in more detail
in the company's Form 10-K filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on February 23, 2007. This filing is
available on our website at http://www.cat.com/sec_filings
. We do not undertake to update our forward-looking
statements.  




    For more information, please contact:

     Jim Dugan
     Government Relations & Corporate Affairs
     Caterpillar (China) Investment Co., Ltd.
     Tel:    [phone] (Office)
     Mobile: [phone]
     Email:  [e-mail]