Gelsenkirchen, 24 April 2012 - Masterflex AG has had a successful start to the 2012 financial year. According to the provisional figures, revenue rose to €14.5 million from January to March 2012. This represents a good 4% increase on the same quarter of the previous year. The revenue growth at the beginning of 2012 is even more remarkable given that the comparable period of the previous year - Q1 2011 - was characterised by non-recurring effects due to the sharp economic upturn, which saw a 24% increase in revenue.

"On the basis of the non-recurring effects in 2011, such a noticeable increase in revenue did not figure in our internal plans for the first quarter of 2012", says Dr Andreas Bastin, CEO of Masterflex AG."Based on this promising start to the new financial year, we are now reaffirming our ambitious organic growth targets for 2012: Our revenue target is in the region of €57 to €58 million with operating earnings (EBIT) of €8 million." EBIT for the first three months of the year came to €2.1 million, resulting in an EBIT margin of 14.6%. As Bastin comments, "We anticipate that the EBIT margin will remain stable over the course of the year." The final figures will be presented as planned on 7 May 2012.

As announced a few weeks ago, the Executive and Supervisory Boards have decided to press ahead with the conversion of Masterflex AG's legal form into that of an SE (Societas Europaea) as well as with the reorganisation of Masterflex AG into a pure management and financial holding company. We are now in a position to finalise the time frame with a view to making further preparations and in anticipation of the forthcoming Annual General Meeting in Gelsenkirchen:

1. The conversion process of Masterflex AG to become an SE is ongoing; this will be proposed for resolution by the forthcoming Annual General Meeting on 19 June 2012. All formal examinations and practical preparations have since been concluded successfully. Details on this will be given along with the invitation, which will be handed out at the beginning of May.

2. The spin-off process of Masterflex AG's operational business into a GmbH is still underway. On the basis of current tax legislation (edict of 2011 regarding the changes of corporate forms 'Umwandlungssteuererlass'), the spin-off project is still not free of risk. It will still take some time before we are able to ensure the requisite legal security for the shareholders. As a result, the spin-off of Masterflex AG's operational business into a pure management and financial holding company will be proposed for resolution at a later Annual General Meeting.

Masterflex has also taken another important step forward in the area of product innovation. With a brand new generation of flame-resistant hose products - the XFlame® series - Masterflex is taking into account the particularly stringent requirements governing the use of hoses, for example in welding equipment, welding robots, spot welding guns and grinding machines. The XFlame® product series will be unveiled to the general public at this year's industrial trade fair in Hanover by Halberstadt-based company Novoplast Schlauchtechnik GmbH - a wholly-owned subsidiary of Masterflex AG.

This new generation of products not only demonstrates impressive flammability resistance according to the regulations UL 94-V2 to V0, but also boasts the all-important characteristic of being halogen-free so that no corrosive acids are released in the worst-case scenario. The welding-spatter-resistant XFlame® hoses are even self-extinguishing in the event of a fire: The development engineers achieve this particular characteristic - which extends far beyond flammability resistance - by introducing specific additives that do not adversely affect the desired hose properties. To meet the requirements of the automotive industry, for example, all XFlame® hoses are also free from substance-inhibiting materials that could prevent the application of lacquer to metal surfaces. In addition, these hoses are also distinguishable by their specific kink resistance, high elasticity and spectacular abrasion resistance.

"With the market launch of the XFlame® product series, we are underpinning our claim to be a market leader in all of the specialist markets we serve. Today, we already have enormous potential to develop and bring to market new and innovative connector solutions with great customer benefits. And another array of undiscovered opportunities is just waiting to be tapped here in the future", says the CEO.

The Hanover industrial trade fair will take place from 23 to 27 April in Hanover. The Masterflex Group companies will be located in Halls H5 / A32 and H 16/ D10.

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