Kawasaki Commences Construction of New Production Facility for Boeing 787 Dreamliner

Tokyo, January 29, 2008 — Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. today announced that it has begun construction of another facility devoted to increased production of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, located on the south side of its Nagoya Works 1. The existing Dreamliner facility, completed in July 2006, has already started production on the aircraft, a co-development program with the Boeing Company. Since the orders for the 787 Dreamliner are increasing, Kawasaki is constructing the new facility to meet the program requirements.

The facility will compromise approximately 38,000 m² total floor space, and will be 189 m in length, 207 m in width and 19.3 m in height. Kawasaki is taking part in the development and production work of the Dreamliner’s forward fuselage, the main landing gear wheel well, and the wing fixed trailing edge. In the new facility, the forward fuselage will be manufactured using similar state-of-the-art production equipment as those in the existing facility.

The 787 Dreamliner is a 200- to 300-seat medium-size commercial airplane with a high level of operational efficiency, incorporating a number of innovative design improvements. Cutting-edge manufacturing technology has been adopted for the aircraft, which features a world’s-first composite one-piece fuselage structure. This requires a significantly different production process from that used for existing planes.

Development of the 787 Dreamliner is currently in the final stage, with an anticipated entry into service in early 2009. Kawasaki delivered its initial forward fuselage from the existing facility in early 2007 and will continue production as scheduled until the new facility is available. By enhancing its Dreamliner production capabilities, Kawasaki demonstrates its commitment to contributing to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner program and the development of commercial airplane business.