Parker Celebrates Opening of 2000th ParkerStore® Location in Lyon, France

CLEVELAND, Oct. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Parker Hannifin Corporation (NYSE: PH), the global leader in motion and control technologies, today celebrated the opening of the 2000^th ParkerStore, located in Lyon, France.  Senior executives from Parker joined the leadership team of industrial supply company Mabeo, a Parker distributor and Lyon store owner, at a ceremony to mark the occasion.  The Lyon store is Mabeo's 12^th ParkerStore.

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"For us to reach 2,000 stores is a remarkable achievement and further validates the need for the industrial retail services we provide for our customers everywhere around the world," said Don Washkewicz, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Parker. "These distributor-owned and operated stores give our customers immediate access to Parker products and exceptional services in towns across all regions. The ParkerStore concept is the fastest growing portion of our distribution channel and we anticipate reaching the next major milestone of 3,000 stores in the not-too-distant future, consistent with our target to open one store each business day for the foreseeable future."

Parker introduced its Industrial Retail™ concept with the opening of the first ParkerStore in Cleveland, Ohio in 1993. Working with Parker's global distribution partners, Parker designed the ParkerStore channel to reach the walk-in maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) or "industrial retail" marketplace. Parker marked the occasion of the 1,000^th ParkerStore location in Grand Junction, Colorado in 2007 and worked with distributors to double the network in the past five years with continued growth even through a global economic recession.

"The ParkerStore opportunity presents a complete business plan for distributors who are interested in operating a retail location," said Brad Fischer, Parker's Director of Global Retail Operations. "The stores also provide an important opportunity for our distributors to support local customers and boost MRO sales, which has become particularly important when business downturns can impact OEM business."

ParkerStores enable local access to the full depth and breadth of Parker products for the MRO market. The ParkerStore environment is designed to bring the warehouse out to the showroom by providing immediate access to critical components, which can have a big impact on a business' bottom line by helping to reduce the money and time lost due to equipment downtime.

ParkerStores can be found in over 80 countries around the globe, and the network is expanding every day. For more information please visit www.parkerstore.com.

About Parker Hannifin

With annual sales exceeding $13 billion in fiscal year 2012, Parker Hannifin is the world's leading diversified manufacturer of motion and control technologies and systems, providing precision-engineered solutions for a wide variety of mobile, industrial and aerospace markets. The company employs approximately 60,000 people in 48 countries around the world. Parker has increased its annual dividends paid to shareholders for 56 consecutive fiscal years, among the top five longest-running dividend-increase records in the S&P 500 index. For more information, visit the company's web site at www.parker.com, or its investor information web site at www.phstock.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Forward-looking statements contained in this and other written and oral reports are made based on known events and circumstances at the time of release, and as such, are subject in the future to unforeseen uncertainties and risks. All statements regarding future performance, earnings projections, events or developments are forward-looking statements. It is possible that the future performance and earnings projections of the company, including its individual segments, may differ materially from current expectations, depending on economic conditions within its mobile, industrial and aerospace markets, and the company's ability to maintain and achieve anticipated benefits associated with announced realignment activities, strategic initiatives to improve operating margins, actions taken to combat the effects of the current economic environment, and growth, innovation and global diversification initiatives. A change in the economic conditions in individual markets may have a particularly volatile effect on segment performance. Among other factors which may affect future performance are: changes in business relationships with and purchases by or from major customers, suppliers or distributors, including delays or cancellations in shipments, disputes regarding contract terms or significant changes in financial condition, changes in contract cost and revenue estimates for new development programs and changes in product mix; ability to identify acceptable strategic acquisition targets; uncertainties surrounding timing, successful completion or integration of acquisitions; ability to realize anticipated cost savings from business realignment activities; threats associated with and efforts to combat terrorism; uncertainties surrounding the ultimate resolution of outstanding legal proceedings, including the outcome of any appeals; competitive market conditions and resulting effects on sales and pricing; increases in raw material costs that cannot be recovered in product pricing; the company's ability to manage costs related to insurance and employee retirement and health care benefits; and global economic factors, including manufacturing activity, air travel trends, currency exchange rates, difficulties entering new markets and general economic conditions such as inflation, deflation, interest rates and credit availability. The company makes these statements as of the date of this disclosure, and undertakes no obligation to update them unless otherwise required by law.

SOURCE Parker Hannifin Corporation