March 20, 2001 — DUBLIN, OH — The Electronic Chemicals Division of Ashland Specialty Chemical Company, a division of Ashland Inc., has been awarded QS 9000 certification of its chemical management services (CMS) operations at Motorola’s MOS 11 and MOS 13 semiconductor manufacturing facilities in Austin, Texas.

According to the American Society of Quality, Ashland has become the first company providing CMS to achieve this certification in the United States.

“This accomplishment exemplifies Ashland’s dedication to quality as a service supplier and the strong teamwork and partnership we achieve with our CMS customers,” said Charles W. Cook Jr., vice president and general manager, Ashland’s Electronic Chemicals Division.

Ashland’s ECD Fab Services business has expanded to provide additional complementary services such as equipment parts cleaning and preventive maintenance services.

“Through our MicroClean business, we now offer 24-7 availability to meet the demanding turnaround schedules and up-time requirements of cleanrooms and fabricators, ” said Mike Pregent, business manager of ECD Fab Services. “We offer an environmentally friendly cleaning process that gets down to the sub-micron level for cleaning and servicing a broad range of production tools. This is just one of the steps we are taking to redefine the scope and level of services Ashland makes available to fab customers.”

The Electronic Chemicals Division of Ashland Specialty Chemical Company is a global supplier of ultrapure chemicals, photoresist strippers and on-site chemical management and parts cleaning services to the worldwide microelectronics industry. The division operates ISO 9002-certified production facilities in Pueblo, Colo.; Dallas; Easton, Pa.; Milan, Italy; and Pyongtaek City, Korea; and also participates in a joint venture, Ashland Union Electronic Chemical Corp. (AUECC), serving Taiwan and the region.