Position Statement on Hospira Power Cord Recall dated August 14, 2009

Westfield, PA August 19, 2009 - On August 14, 2009 Hospira issued a news release initiating a recall of "certain Hospira devices that have defective AC power cords manufactured by Electri-Cord Manufacturing Company" (ECM).

Electri-Cord Manufacturing, founded in 1946, has been manufacturing power cords for numerous industries for over 63 years and is considered an industry leader in this field. All power cords manufactured by ECM -- including all Hospital Grade Power Cords are manufactured, tested and approved to UL Standard 817 in their ISO-9001:2000 factory. This standard provides specific testing criteria to insure high quality, safe cords. ECM adheres strictly to this standard on a daily basis in its manufacturing process. The company is subject to frequent visits by a UL inspector to insure compliance with all standards.

One of the UL tests is an "Abrupt Removal" test whereby the plug is inserted into a hospital grade receptacle and a 10 pound weight is suddenly applied to the end of the cord at a 90 degree angle to the receptacle. This is designed to simulate having an employee yank on the cord improperly, without grasping the plug at the receptacle. All versions of the ECM power cords consistently pass this test.

Power cord abuse has been an acknowledged problem in the hospital setting for some time.

Hospira states that the recall " is limited to device power cords with a prong and ground pin insert design which can be identified by a black plastic bridge connecting the terminal prongs on the plug. " This is referred to as a "Taller Bridge" and has been used by ECM and others in the industry for manufacturing Hospital Grade Power Cords. ECM received UL approval of this Taller Bridge in February 2003. The bridge utilizes a "crimp style" termination to the individual cord conductors and is also fully approved by UL in the HGC application.

ECM conducts multiple daily tests during manufacturing to ensure strict compliance with manufacturing standards and agency criteria, including crimp height and pull testing. 100% electrical testing is performed including; opens, shorts, continuity, hi-pot and corona skin testing "Only after all of these tests are passed successfully does a cord have a green dot applied to the face of the plug. "

Documented on-going testing at ECM demonstrates that, when shipped from our factory, our Hospital Grade Cords not only meet but significantly exceed all design and testing requirements by the regulatory agency and our customers' specifications.

Since 2003 approximately 2,000,000 cords of the versions using the Taller Bridge have been shipped to our customers. In that time period there have been only 26 reported failures (13 DPPM). ECM firmly believes that the reported cords must have been subjected to "abusive" use significantly exceeding the UL 817 standards and that this explains the reported problems, not a defect in their manufacture.

Electri-Cord remains fully committed to our overall quality process, design for manufacturability and end use environment with our valued customers. We will continue to cooperate with Customers to resolve any issues related to this matter.

Further inquiries on this matter can be addressed to Dennis McDonald, General Manager or Russ Hastings, Director of Quality.

Dennis McDonald

General Manager

Electri-Cord Manufacturing Company