Ball Aerospace Expands Opticks Open Source Software

Defense News: BOULDER, Colo., April 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. announced today that it has expanded its Opticks open-source software offerings to include new extensions that perform hyperspectral, multispectral and image spectroscopy analysis.

Ball Aerospace launched Opticks in 2007 as its first open source software project designed to enable detailed analysis of remote sensing data and complement strategy promoted by theDepartment of Defense's Open Technology Development Roadmap. Opticks is used by scientists and analysts within theDoD community to analyze remote sensing data and produce actionable intelligence.

Ball's Opticks expansion includes a new Spectral Processing Extension. The extension includes tools to convert imagery from radiance to reflectance as well as tools to load and display signatures, specifically wavelength versus reflectance. The extension also includes signature matching algorithms to help locate specified materials within an image. This extension, along with Opticks, will be a valuable resource for environmental scientists.

Ball is also expanding Opticks to include new extensions focused on scripting, specifically for the Python and Interactive Data Language (IDL) languages preferred by researchers and scientists. The new scripting extensions allow an analyst or remote sensing researcher to directly prototype new algorithms and techniques for use with the Opticks application. Opticks can be used to load and visualize imagery and Python or IDL scripts can be used to manipulate the imagery. In addition, Python- or IDL-based algorithms can be packaged into a new Opticks extension, creating easy distribution to others in the scientific and remote sensing community.

Opticks supports Imagery, Motion Imagery, Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), and multi-spectral and hyper-spectral remote sensing data. Ball Aerospace expects Opticks to increase the demand for remote sensing data and broaden the features available in existing remote sensing software. To become a part of the open source community, download the Ball Aerospace Opticks software at: www.opticks.org.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. supports critical missions of important national agencies such as theDepartment of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities. The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications. For more information visitwww.ballaerospace.com.

Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL - News) is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of approximately $7.3 billion.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

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Ball to Announce First Quarter Earnings on April 29

Defense News: BROOMFIELD, Colo., March 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL - News) will announce its first quarter 2010 earnings on Thursday, April 29, 2010, before trading begins on the New York Stock Exchange. At 9 a.m. Mountain Time on that day (11 a.m. Eastern), Ball will hold its regular quarterly conference call on the company's results and performance.

The North American toll-free number for the call is 800-732-5617. International callers should dial 212-231-2901. Please use the following URL for a Web cast of the live call:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?p=irol-eventDetails&c=115234&eventID=2976701.

For those unable to listen to the live call, a taped replay will be available after the call's conclusion until 1 p.m. Eastern Time on May 6, 2010. To access the replay, call 800-633-8284 (North American callers) or 402-977-9140 (international callers) and use reservation number 21463971.

A written transcript of the call will be posted within 48 hours of the call's conclusion to Ball's Web site atwww.ball.com in the investors section under "presentations."

Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of more than $7.3 billion. For the latest Ball news and for other company information, please visit www.ball.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

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Ball Aerospace Integration of VIIRS Instrument for NPP Complete

Defense News: BOULDER, Colo., March 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. announced today that the fourth of five weather instruments that will fly aboard the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Preparatory Project (NPP) has been successfully integrated.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100318/LA72564)

Ball Aerospace technician adjusts NPP wire harness Click Here to Download Image

Ball Aerospace concluded integration of the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) on March 5. Instruments integrated earlier include the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder; the Cloud and the Earth's Radiant Energy System; and the Ball Aerospace Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite (OMPS). Integration of the Cross-track Infrared Sounder later this year will complete the spacecraft instrument suite.

"The efficient and successful integration of VIIRS onboard the NPP spacecraft required complex choreography and exemplary coordination of the spacecraft, satellite, and instrument partners, as well as the science team," said Cary Ludtke, vice president and general manager for the Ball Aerospace Civil and Operational Space business unit. "This marks another milestone in the steady progress being made in preparing for a 2011 launch."

NPP, a joint program between NASA and the Integrated Program Office, will provide continuity of data with NASA's Earth Observing System and will provide proof of concept for the nation's next generation low-Earth orbiting operational weather and climate monitoring system.

The VIIRS sensor will collect visible and infrared imagery and radiometric data about the atmosphere, clouds, earth's radiation, land/water surfaces, sea surface temperature, ocean color and other types of environmental data.

In addition to OMPS, Ball Aerospace built the NPP spacecraft, under contract to NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. supports critical missions of important national agencies such as theDepartment of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities. The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications. For more information visitwww.ballaerospace.com.

Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL - News) is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of more than $7.3 billion.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

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Ball Corporation Prices $500 Million Aggregate Principal Amount of Notes

Defense News: BROOMFIELD, Colo., March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Corporation (NYSE:BLL - News) announced today that it priced an underwritten public offering of $500 million, $50 million more than previously announced, in aggregate principal amount of 6.75 percent senior notes due Sept. 15, 2020. The offering is expected to close on March 22, 2010, subject to market conditions and other factors.

Ball intends to use the net proceeds from the offering, together with borrowings under its revolving credit facility or accounts receivable securitization facility or cash on hand, to retire all of its currently outstanding 6.875 percent senior notes due in 2012, whether by redemption, tender offer, open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions or otherwise. The retirement of the 6.875 percent senior notes due in 2012 is expected to result in a one-time, after-tax charge of approximately $4.7 million relating to the payment of a call premium and write off of unamortized debt issuance costs.

Deutsche Bank Securities; BofA Merrill Lynch; J.P. Morgan; Goldman, Sachs & Co.; and Barclays Capital are acting as joint book-running managers of the offering.

Ball is making the offer under a shelf registration statement previously declared effective by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This offering will be made solely by means of a prospectus and prospectus supplement, a copy of which may be obtained on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, Ball, any underwriter or any dealer participating in the offering will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request it by calling 1-800-503-4611.

This announcement is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

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Ball Aerospace Tests NASA's Landsat Operational Land Imager in Stray Light Test Facility

Defense News ~ BOULDER, Colo., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. has successfully completed stray light testing of the Operational Land Imager (OLI) telescope assembly for NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20100209/LA51698)
The first of its kind stray light test was conducted at Ball's new Stray Light Test Facility (SLTF) in Boulder, Colorado. Â The OLI instrument will provide 15-meter (49ft.) panchromatic and 30m multi-spectral earth-imaging spatial-resolution capability for the eighth mission in the Landsat satellite series. Control of stray light is critical to the quality of the OLI data product, requiring a level of testing no other earth remote sensing instrument of this caliber has undergone. The test included Point Source Rejection Ratio scans obtained over a wide range of angles and for four telescope configurations: open earth-view port, open and closed solar cal port and aperture shutter closed. Â Demonstrating sensitivity over 10 orders of magnitude, the quality and repeatability of the data proved that the OLI telescope has excellent margin on all on-orbit stray light requirements.
Ball's new SLTF is a Class 5 clean room designed to eliminate undesired sources of background light and to emphasize superior contamination control of the test environment. The double cylindrical chamber reflects the specular light away from the instrument under test. As the facility interior is nearly all black, illumination sources can be either a solar simulator or discrete laser wavelengths collimated into an 18-inch diameter beam. Â The facility is designed to test a wide variety of instruments up to approximately 2 meters per side and weighing up to 1,100 pounds over a wide range of elevation and azimuth angles.
"The universal value of the Landsat program is inestimable," said David L. Taylor, president and CEO of Ball Aerospace. "Testing of OLI in Ball's stray light facility brings us closer to delivering an instrument that will continue NASA's longest continuous imagery data record of our planet."
The Landsat program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey. For more than 36 years, Landsat satellites have continuously and consistently collected images of Earth, creating a historical archive unmatched in quality, detail, coverage and length. The Ball Aerospace OLI instrument, slated to launch in late 2012, includes a 185km swath allowing the entire globe to be imaged every 16 days. Â The multispectral imagery is gathered for applications that include agricultural monitoring, natural resource management, land-use planning and climate science. Â
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. supports critical missions of important national agencies such as the Department of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities. The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications. For more information visit http://www.ballaerospace.com/.
Ball Corporation (BLL: NYSE) is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,500 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of approximately $7.3 billion.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at http://www.sec.gov/. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.


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Boulder-built and Operated QuikSCAT Provides 10 Years of Data on Earth's Climate

BOULDER, Colo., June 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- This month marks a decade of success for NASA's QuikSCAT mission, one that continues to provide a wealth of information about Earth's climate since its launch June 19, 1999. Although QuikSCAT's mission life was designed for two years, the spacecraft continues to operate into its tenth year and its groundbreaking research is being used to help predict severe weather patterns, create wave-prediction models and to observe global climate change. Observations taken by QuikSCAT revealed the most extensive ice melting in the Arctic and Antarctic regions since scientists began taking measurements from space 30 years ago.
QuikSCAT, short for Quick Scatterometer, was built in a record-breaking 12 months at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo., for the Goddard Space Flight Center. The mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., with a team of professionals and undergraduate students at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP), Boulder, Colo., performing mission operations.
"QuikSCAT has clearly demonstrated its reliability to both government and commercial customers, providing quality forecasting data to scientists and meteorologists - the type of data that could easily be extended with a new scatterometer mission," said David L. Taylor, president and CEO of Ball Aerospace.
QuikSCAT orbits the Earth 14 times per day, providing coverage of 90 percent of the planet's surface. The instruments aboard the satellite measure sea-surface winds measuring the brightness of radar returns over the ocean. Over the course of its mission, QuikSCAT has become critical in detecting hurricanes and extra-tropical cyclones; improving ocean forecasts and weather warnings; and identifying changes in polar ice.
At LASP, students have played a vital role in the mission operations of the QuikSCAT satellite. LASP is a rare institution in that it offers this type of hands-on, mission training for undergraduate students. Twenty undergraduate students work with mission operations professionals at LASP's facilities in Boulder, Colo., controlling five different spacecraft, including the recently launched Kepler mission.
"QuikSCAT continues LASP's long and successful history of having professionals working side-by-side with students to operate spacecraft for NASA and Ball Aerospace," said Darren Osborne, LASP's QuikSCAT flight director. "We're extremely proud to be part of the QuikSCAT team."
The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado at Boulder, which began as the Upper Air Laboratory in 1948, is dedicated to making discoveries through the research and technology efforts of its atmospheric, space physics, solar, planetary, engineering and mission operations divisions.
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. supports critical missions for national agencies such as the Department of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities. The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications. Since 1956, Ball Aerospace has been responsible for numerous technological and scientific 'firsts' and is a technology innovator in aerospace.
Ball Corporation (NYSE: BLL - News) is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging products for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2008 sales of approximately $7.6 billion.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K, which are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions, including our beverage can end project; mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates, tax rates and activities of foreign subsidiaries. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government and commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting changes; changes in senior management; the current global credit squeeze and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and workplace safety, including in respect of chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust, patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.