VWR International, Inc. Opens a Wholly Owned Subsidiary in INDIA

WEST CHESTER, PA, October 31, 2006 – VWR International, Inc., a leader in the global research laboratory industry, announced today the establishment of a full-service, wholly owned subsidiary in Bangalore, INDIA to better serve the needs of the rapidly expanding pharmaceutical and biotech industry in the subcontinent.

The new office for VWR Lab Products Private Limited, located at Richmond Road, Bangalore 560 025, serves as a central resource for customer service, sales support and technical services for the Indian subcontinent. As a fully licensed Indian company, the new office has the ability to hire locally and conduct transactions in local currency, offering an added convenience for VWR’s global customers. The office will also continue to serve as a location for VWR’s strategic sourcing of laboratory supplies, equipment and instruments within India.

“India has been a significant player in the global science and research arena for some time now. India’s abundant highly educated, competitive, English-speaking workforce continues to attract international companies. Several of VWR’s current global customers, have opened their research and manufacturing facilities in India,” said Ted Pulkownik, Senior Vice President of Strategy, Corporate Development and Emerging Markets, VWR. “Coupled with the rapidly expanding domestic pharmaceutical and biotech industry in the Indian subcontinent, this presents a tremendous opportunity for VWR to meet the needs of our existing customers and to tap into new market growth, while supporting VWR’s overall strategy of geographic expansion with first-class local service for our customers.”

“India is a growth market for VWR and has traditionally lacked a one-stop-shop provider for laboratory products with the capability to offer everything from consumables to instruments. VWR will now fill that void and help create procurement efficiencies along with global product standardization in terms of range and quality,” said MK Sathya, Vice President of Corporate Initiatives, VWR. “The needs of our customers will be better served with a local office that can provide immediate solutions for their business challenges.”

The formation of VWR Lab Products Private Limited comes closely on the heels of the recently announced joint distribution agreement with HiMedia Laboratories. The new VWR office enhances the company’s support capabilities at the local Indian subcontinent level, providing “real-time” service through export supply chain management, local sales and service representation, product seminars, training and response to end-user technology and application requests.

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