Appointment of Group MD

Smiths Group PLC
31 May 2006


London, 31 May 2006


Smiths Group: Appointment of Group Managing Director, Specialty Engineering and
details of Finance Director transition


Smiths Group plc today announced that  Paul Cox has been appointed the new Group
Managing Director, Specialty Engineering with effect from 1 August 2006, in
succession to John Langston who is due to become Finance Director of Smiths
Group in September 2006.

Paul Cox joined Smiths in January 2005, as President, Smiths Interconnect from
Andrew Corporation in Chicago, Illinois, where he had led both its Satellite
Communications and Antenna Products divisions.  Prior to joining Andrew
Corporation, he worked for 15 years at EMS Technologies in Norcross, Georgia,
rising to become Senior Vice President of its Space and Technology Division. He
is a US citizen and holds a Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering gained at
the Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. He and his family will be
relocating to London.

Keith Butler-Wheelhouse, Chief Executive of Smiths Group, said: 'I am delighted
that Paul will be heading up our Specialty Engineering Division. He brings a
strong track record of business leadership and success. With the support of his
colleagues, he will continue to build on the growth already achieved across the
Specialty Engineering division.'

Also with effect from 1 August 2006, John Langston will become Finance
Director-designate, working full-time alongside Alan Thomson, the Company's
outgoing Finance Director, until the latter's retirement on 6 September after
which he will remain available to Smiths Group on a consulting basis for up to
one year.


Smiths Group
Smiths is a global engineering business, listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Smiths Group focuses on high performance applications, building and sustaining
market-leading businesses in growth sectors. It reaches deep into global markets
taking its manufacturing closer to its customers. Smiths Group has four
divisions: Aerospace, Detection, Medical and Specialty. It employs 32,000 people
and has over 250 major facilities in 50 countries. For more information visit
www.smiths-group.com


Smiths Specialty Engineering
Smiths Specialty Engineering division comprises four businesses: John Crane
provides mechanical rotating seals used in process plants; Interconnect supplies
components and sub-systems for connecting, protecting and controlling critical
electronic and radio frequency systems; Flex-Tek provides ducting and hosing for
a wide range of applications, mainly for heating & ventilation and domestic
equipment; Marine Systems is a smaller activity and supplies marine electronics
and charts. Smiths Specialty Engineering employs 10,600 people. For further
information visit www.smiths-specialtyengineering.com


Contact: Media
Chris Fox
[phone]

Contact: Investor Relations
Russell Plumley
[phone]


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