Crown Acquires 49 Percent Stake in Minority-Owned Torres & Towers

New Partnership is First Minority-Owned Enterprise Selling Plastic Injection Molded Closures
Monday, November 22, 2004
Investors

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CROWN Zeller USA, an affiliate of Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) (Crown), today announced its purchase of 49 percent of Torres & Towers, LLC, a privately held, certified minority-owned enterprise located in Hazleton, Pennsylvania.

Hispanic-owned Torres & Towers specializes in 28- and 38-mm plastic closures for carbonated soft drinks, bottled water, motor oil and other applications. CROWN Zeller USA is a leading provider of dispensing closures for health, beauty, personal care and food products.

"Along with satisfying our customers' needs for supplier diversity, this is an excellent strategic move for Crown," says Joseph Pierce, president of CROWN Closures Americas. "As Crown provides Torres & Towers with new economies of scale and technical support, they will help us round out our product portfolio in order to offer our current and prospective customers the most comprehensive selection of both dispensing and non-dispensing closures."

In addition to selling Crown's dispensing closures, Torres & Towers will also act as in-house contract molder for CROWN Zeller USA, immediately increasing Crown's own minority business spending.

"This strategic alliance with Crown provides us with a tremendous advantage within the closures industry," says Ray Torres, president and managing partner of Torres & Towers. "It helps us address the many challenges facing a small, minority-owned business. We can now reach beyond the 'minority business' label and compete on an entirely new level of service, technology and quality."

Crown Holdings, Inc., through its affiliated companies, is a leading supplier of packaging products to consumer marketing companies around the world. World headquarters are located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

SOURCE  Crown Holdings, Inc.
    -0-                             11/22/2004
    /CONTACT:  In the United States: Steve Nelson, Vice President and General
Manager, CROWN Zeller USA, +1-847-247-7930, Email: steve.nelson@crowncork.com;
For editorial inquiries: Thomas T. Fischer, Vice President, Investor Relations and Corporate Affairs; 
Tel: (215) 698-5266; Email: thomas.fischer@crowncork.com; For investors: Timothy J. Donahue, Senior Vice
President - Finance, Crown Holdings, +1-215-698-5088; For Torres & Towers:
Ray Torres, President and Managing Partner, +1-570-459-9001, ext. 102, Email:
ray@torres-towers.com/
    /Web site:  http://www.crowncork.com /
    (CCK)

CO:  Crown Holdings, Inc.; CROWN Zeller USA; Torres & Towers, LLC; CROWN
     Closures Americas
ST:  Pennsylvania
IN:  CHM FOD HOU PAP
SU:  TNM HSP

MZ 
-- PHM027 --
5134 11/22/2004 11:52 EST http://www.prnewswire.com

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