AEES Launches New Brand Identity, Marks New Vision as a Stand-Alone Global Supplier

FARMINGTON HILLS, Michigan -

AEES - a world leader in the design, development and production of high- quality electrical and electronic distribution systems for commercial and personal vehicles - today launched its new brand identity, which celebrates the company’s rich heritage while supporting its new strategic direction as a focused, stand-alone business.

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The launch was announced by Frank Sovis, who was recently named president and chief executive officer for AEES. The company, formerly part of Alcoa’s Electrical and Electronic Solutions business, was acquired by Platinum Equity on June 13, 2009.

“AEES, our new brand identity, is the culmination of insight we sought from our customers, employees and suppliers in order to better reflect their perspectives in our brand positioning,” said Sovis. “During the process, we learned that we should build upon our company’s strong image, culture and heritage, rather than replace it. As a result, our new identity has a strong connection to our past, but is represented in a bold, new way to suggest our approach to the future.”

The new AEES logo features “AEES” in bold block letters, representing the company’s solid foundation. The letters tilt forward to express momentum and carry a deep red tone to reflect strength, energy, passion and confidence. The supporting ’swoosh’ provides momentum and represents the road the company has traveled. It begins with a connection to the past and moves through the letters AEES to emerge as a straight road to the future. The incorporated tagline, “enabling power,” underscores the company’s name and strategic mission.

To ensure that the new identity aligned with the company’s culture and direction, the process to create the new brand involved in-depth research and interviews with customers, employees, suppliers and other stakeholders around the world, according to Sovis.

With today’s launch, the AEES name is being adopted widely across the company’s operations, with the exception of a few locations where legal clearances have not yet been secured.

About AEES

With global sales of US$1.2 billion in 2008, AEES is headquartered in Farmington Hills, Mich. and operates 32 locations in 12 countries with approximately 17,000 employees. Founded in 1955, AEES has grown to become a world leader in the design, development and production of high-quality electrical and electronic distribution systems for commercial and light vehicles manufactured around the globe. Among its worldwide portfolio of brands are such respected names as AFL, DixieWire (wire), EPC (connectors) and GTS (terminals). Visit the company’s Website at www.aeesinc.com.

About Platinum Equity

Platinum Equity (www.platinumequity.com) is a global M&A&O(R) firm specializing in the merger, acquisition and operation of companies that provide services and solutions to customers in a broad range of business markets, including information technology, telecommunications, logistics, metals services, manufacturing and distribution. Since its founding in 1995 by Tom Gores, Platinum Equity has completed nearly 100 acquisitions with more than US$27.5 billion in aggregate annual revenue at the time of acquisition.

Editor’s Note: M&A&O(R) is a registered trademark of Platinum Equity LLC.

The AEES logo is available at www.aeesinc.com

Source: AEES

Global: Rico Mutone, AEES, +1-248-489-4987, Rico.mutone at alcoa.com; North America: Adriana Ferrari, Bianchi PR, +1-248-269-1122, aferrari at bianchipr.com; Europe: Thomas Apfelbacher, AFL Europe GmbH, +49-7022-940-443, Thomas.Apfelbacher at alcoa.com
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