Something's Cooking at Springboard

With an increase in customer demand for the testing of cooking products, Springboard Engineering has recently completed an expansion in its performance lab. The spacious new lab is climate controlled and although the area is designed for cooking products, our consumer scientists are now able to test many other small appliances there as well. The 780 sq ft room has 8 stations for either ranges or microwaves or a combination of both. Appliances are monitored with electronic data acquisition carts to capture data for analysis. One benefit to a lab like this is that when all those warm baked goodies are done being analyzed, they have to go somewhere - yum!

Trifecta of float building

For the third straight year in a row, Springboard's hard work paid off with a first place victory in the float competition for the Newton Fourth of July parade . This year's theme was heritage and pride as well as a celebration of the Jasper County Courthouse's 100 year anniversary. This year also marked the acquisition of Springboard by UL. The float team at Springboard stirred that all together with the Independence Day theme and came up with this year's striking entry. The courthouse employees enjoyed our courthouse replica so much, they agreed to display it inside the courthouse building! Springboard would like to once again thank the city of Newton and the chamber of commerce for sponsoring another great parade. To show our appreciation, Springboard Engineering will be donating the proceeds of the float prize to the city of Newton's 2012 fireworks fund.

UL Expands Performance, ENERGY STAR®, Reliability Testing and Engineering Advisory Services Capabilities with Acquisition of Springboard Engineering, Inc.

Press Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                        May 24, 2011

UL Expands Performance, ENERGY STAR®, Reliability Testing and Engineering Advisory Services Capabilities with Acquisition of Springboard Engineering, Inc.

Delivers Full-Breadth of Services for HVAC, Appliance, Component Customers
Positions UL To Win In Fast-Growing ENERGY STAR®, Smart Appliance Segments

Northbrook, IL / Newton, IA — May 24, 2011 — UL, a world leader in advancing safety, announced today a definitive agreement whereby UL will acquire the assets of Newton, Iowa-based Springboard Engineering, Inc., a leading performance, ENERGY STAR®, reliability and engineering advisory services company that was founded by Maytag design engineers.

“This acquisition will enable UL to strengthen and expand our capabilities to serve key customers in the HVAC, Appliances, and Components segments and give us a comprehensive suite of services to support global manufacturers,” said Sajeev Jesudas, President, UL Verification Services.  “Springboard Engineering’s experience and capabilities will allow us to increase our safety and performance testing capacity and expand our offerings in key growth markets such as ENERGY STAR® and smart appliances.”

“Springboard Engineering and UL share complementary offerings and we fully expect this will play a critical role in deepening our relationships with our combined customers,” said Jordan Bruntz, the president of Springboard Engineering.  “With our combined focus on safety, performance, energy testing, and engineering services, together we can play a key role in helping companies create safer and more energy efficient products.”

Upon completion of the transaction, Springboard Engineering will become part of UL’s Verification Services business.  Springboard Engineering will continue to be headquartered in Newton, Iowa, after the deal closes at the end of May.  Jordan Bruntz will remain in his role as the President of Springboard Engineering.

UL and Springboard Engineering acted as their own financial advisor for this transaction.

About Springboard Engineering, Inc.
Springboard Engineering, Inc. is a privately owned company, located in the heart of the American Midwest.  The company provides full-service product performance, ENERGY STAR®, reliability testing and engineering advisory services.  The eight shareholders launched Springboard Engineering in order to leverage the vast employee knowledge, equipment, and capabilities of the former Maytag design center.

About UL
UL is a premier global independent safety science company with more than 115 years of history.  Employing more than 6,800 professionals in over 96 countries, UL has five distinct business units -- Product Safety, Environment, Life & Health, University, and Verification Services – to meet the expanding needs of our customers and to deliver on our public safety mission.  Additional information about UL may be found at UL.com.

For more information:
Joe Hirschmugl, UL, +1 847-664-1508, joseph.f.hirschugl@us.ul.com