Rockwood Press Release

Rockwood Specialties Inc. Acquires American Silicon Products, Inc.

PRINCETON, NJ (March 4, 2002) — Rockwood Specialties Inc., a leading specialty chemical company, announced today that its U.S. subsidiary, Exsil, Inc., acquired the business and assets of American Silicon Products, Inc., located in Providence, Rhode Island. The acquisition was effective March 1, 2002.

American Silicon Products, a subsidiary of SEMX Corporation, specializes in providing wafer polishing, refurbishing and reclaiming services to the North American semiconductor industry.

“The acquisition of American Silicon Products will help us to establish a broader, more customer-focused presence in the area of silicon wafer reclaim. This acquisition will significantly increase our capabilities to serve our customers.” said Seifi Ghasemi, Chairman and CEO, Rockwood Specialties Inc. “Rockwood's acquisition of American Silicon Products further enhances our strategic goal to be a global leader in providing state-of-the-art service and materials to the electronics industry.”

Rockwood currently serves the global semiconductor industry with silicon wafer reclaim through its subsidiaries Exsil, Inc. in North America and Rockwood Electronic Materials in Europe.

Rockwood Specialties Inc., headquartered in Princeton, NJ, is a leading specialty chemical company with sales of more than $800M and with operations throughout North America, Europe and Asia.

Rockwood, headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, USA, is a leading global specialty chemical company with sales of more than $800 million. The company focuses on niche segments of the specialty chemical market, including additives, specialty compounds, electronic chemicals, materials and services. Rockwood Specialties maintains operations in North America, Europe and Asia with a workforce of over 2,500 employees.