July 17, 2007

Dear Valued Customer,

Welcome to the new Edwards!

Following our change of ownership in June when we parted company from BOC and The Linde Group, we are pleased to announce our ‘new’ branding which, as you can see, is Edwards. Of course, this name is not new as it has always been part of our name since we were founded by F. D. Edwards in 1919, and what we have been known as in the semiconductor and wider vacuum industries.

This is an exciting time for Edwards and our new owners, CCMP Capital, representing far more than just a new logo. As a newly-independent, privately-owned business with great potential, we want Edwards to represent a strong set of values so that we are known for surpassing your expectations, our exceptional hard work, earned loyalty and for using our unique skills for your benefit. It also marks more focused commitment to concentrate on what we do best – providing innovative vacuum products and services across the diverse markets and regions we serve. Serving our customers safely remains our top priority.

Our new branding will begin to appear from July onwards, and will replace the BOC Edwards brand over the next 12 months. Our website and email addresses will also change to ‘edwardsvacuum’ immediately, however the previous website and email addresses will continue to operate and will automatically redirect mail and enquiries. Over the next few months, some of our local legal entity names will change to be aligned with our new name. You will be notified separately of this, although it is not expected to affect transaction processing.

We are also pleased to announce our executive management team, each with regional responsibility to further strengthen our local presence and ensure customer satisfaction.

Nigel Hunton – Chief Executive Officer
Phil Blakey – President, Americas
Alan Purvis – Managing Director, Europe
Hiroshi Kusano – President, Japan
JC Kim – President, Korea
Neil Lavender-Jones – Managing Director, Asia

Edwards is the global semiconductor and vacuum technology company you have known and trusted for nearly 100 years. Our 4,000+ skilled employees are dedicated to providing innovative technology and products, applications expertise and best-in-class operations and maintenance services. Please visit our new website – www.edwardsvacuum.com – which combines corporate, application and product materials with a greatly-improved ecommerce function.

On behalf of all of us, thank you for your loyalty and we look forward to continuing our successful business relationship with you.

Sincerely,

Nigel Hunton                                                                  Phil Blakey
Chief Executive Officer                                                   President, Americas