OMRON Announces Preliminary Agreement to Acquire Semiconductor Business Assets from Seiko Epson Subsidiary

JCN Newswires, Oct 25, 2006

Tokyo, Japan, Oct 25, 2006 - (JCN Newswire) - OMRON Corporation (TSE: 6645, NYSE: OMRNY), a global leader in automation, sensing and control technologies, announced that it has reached a preliminary agreement to acquire the semiconductor business assets of Seiko Epson's consolidated subsidiary, Yasu Semiconductor Corporation.

OMRON develops, manufactures, and markets custom ICs that offer functionality and cost-performance not found in general-purpose semiconductors, as well as MEMS (Micro Electro Mechanical Systems) products such as flow sensors and pressure sensors that utilize semiconductor processes in their manufacture. OMRON's semiconductor-related sales for fiscal 2005 were 6.6 billion yen. The acquisition of the business assets resulting from this preliminary agreement is aimed at further reinforcing these semiconductor operations, while strengthening the OMRON Group's line of semiconductor-equipped products.

The parties will now enter into detailed discussions, aiming to conclude the final contract and complete the acquisition by March 2007.

Assets to be Acquired

The asset to be acquired is the semiconductor factory owned by YSC in Yasu, Shiga, Japan.

Site area:        Approx. 42,000 m2
Floor area:       Approx. 40,000 m2
Facilities:       Semiconductor manufacturing equipment (8-inch
                  CMOS line), and YSC intellectual properties related to
                  equipment operation

Outline of YSC

Name:             Yasu Semiconductor Corporation
Business lines:   Semiconductor manufacturing
Representative:   Tsuguo Gomi, President
Capital:          16.2 billion yen
Location:          686-1 Ichimiyake, Yasu, Shiga, Japan
Employees:        209 (as of March 31, 2006)
Sales:            10 billion yen (fiscal year ending March 2006)

Outline of Seiko Epson

Name:             Seiko Epson Corporation
Business lines:   Development, manufacture, marketing, and servicing of
                  information equipment (inkjet printers, scanners, POS
                  system products, LCD projectors, etc.), electronic
                  devices (small- and medium-size LCD displays,
                  semiconductors, crystal devices, etc.), precision
                  instruments (watches, plastic eyeglass lenses, FA
                  equipment, etc.), and other products
Representative:   Seiji Hanaoka, President
Capital:          53.204 billion yen
Location:         3-3-5 Owa, Suwa, Nagano, Japan
Employees:        90,701 consolidated
                  12,414 non-consolidated (as of March 31, 2006)
Sales:            1.5495 trillion yen consolidated
                  863.1 billion yen non-consolidated
                  (fiscal year ending March 2006)

Business Outlook

The acquisition resulting from this preliminary agreement is not expected to have a significant material effect on OMRON's consolidated or non-consolidated financial outlook for the fiscal year ending March 2007.

About OMRON Corporation

Headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, OMRON Corporation (TSE: 6645; NYSE: OMRNY) is a global leader in the field of automation. Established in 1933 and headed by President and CEO Hisao Sakuta, OMRON has more than 28,000 employees in over 35 countries working to provide products and services to customers in a variety of fields including industrial automation, electronic components, social systems (ticket gate machines, ticket vending machines, and traffic control) and healthcare. The company is divided into five regions and head offices are in Japan (Kyoto), Asia Pacific (Singapore), China (Shanghai), Europe (Amsterdam) and US (Chicago). For more information, visit OMRON's website at www.omron.com

Source: OMRON Corporation

Contact:

James Seddon
Corporate Brand Communications Department
Tel:  81-3-3436-7202
E-mail: james_seddon@omron.co.jp

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