02 May 2016 – Melbourne/Iselin - Ansell Limited (ASX:ANN), a global leader in protection solutions, today announced it has sold its ONGUARD® footwear-protection business to Dunlop Industrial and Protective Footwear, Inc. The transaction includes footwear protection products that are primarily sold in the U.S. under the ONGUARD brand, with annual net sales of approximately $30m. The Company's manufacturing facility in Havre de Grace, Maryland will be included in the transaction.

Dunlop Industrial and Protective Footwear, Inc., a U.S.-based subsidiary of Dunlop Protective Footwear Holdings, is headquartered in the Netherlands and is a leading global manufacturer, marketer and distributor of protective footwear. Recognized for the iconic Dunlop brand, the proprietary Purofort® technology and innovative product lines, the Company holds strong market positions in the Agriculture, Food, Industry and Oil and Gas sectors.

“We remain focused on the execution of our strategic priorities, and divestiture of the ONGUARD brand is a step to concentrate the Body Protection business to segments we can lead globally,” says Magnus Nicolin, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director at Ansell. “This move enables us to focus on the globalization of our innovative range of chemical clothing for Industrial, Chemical, Oil & Gas, and Life Science customers.”

Ansell acquired BarrierSafe Solutions International Inc. in January 2014 and ONGUARD footwear protection was a small portion of that business. ONGUARD has been run largely as a standalone business within Ansell and has performed well and increased in value. The transaction is expected to be marginally accretive to F’16 EPS and approximately 2 cents dilutive to F’17 EPS assuming the proceeds are used to repay debt.

All of the other Body Protection brands, including Microgard®, Microchem®, Hercules®, AlphaTec®, Trellchem®, and Viking® remain with Ansell and provide a comprehensive protection offering to the consumer.

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