Columbus McKinnon Managing Director of CMCO Europe to Retire

Columbus McKinnon Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCO), a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of material handling products, today announced that Wolfgang Wegener, who led the Columbus McKinnon European operations for the last 25 years, will retire this fall. He will be succeeded by Dr. Ivo Celi, who joined the company and began transitioning to Managing Director, CMCO EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) effective January 4, 2010.

Timothy T. Tevens, President and CEO of Columbus McKinnon, commented, "Wolfgang has been an instrumental part of the success we have had in growing our presence in Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He was also a key player when we established our manufacturing capabilities in China in the early 1990’s. Over the next several months, Wolfgang will assist in the transition of his knowledge and experience to Ivo and then assist us in a variety of special projects prior to his retirement.”

Dr. Celi was with Hilti AG, one of the world's leading manufacturers of power tools for the professional construction and building maintenance markets, for the last 13 years, progressing through positions of increasing responsibility, most recently as Senior Vice President – Business Unit Diamond Systems. In his various roles, Dr. Celi had responsibility for significantly growing businesses both organically and through acquisitions. His experience includes roles in strategy development, sales and marketing, product portfolio management, customer-oriented product development, procurement, production and logistics.

Mr. Tevens added, "Ivo brings exceptional experience in industrial business expansion as well as with market channels and end markets similar to ours. We expect that he will be able to successfully translate this experience into the expansion of our market share throughout his territory as we advance toward our goal of 50% international sales.”

Dr. Celi graduated from Rheinisch-Westfalische Technische Hochschule RWTH in Aachen Germany with a degree in Mechanical Engineering studies, and a specialization in production technologies. He also received a doctorate with distinction from Fraunhofer-Institut for Production Technology IPT, also in Aachen, Germany.

About Columbus McKinnon

Columbus McKinnon is a leading worldwide designer, manufacturer and marketer of material handling products, systems and services, which efficiently and ergonomically move, lift, position or secure materials. Key products include hoists, cranes, actuators, chain and forged attachments. The Company is focused on commercial and industrial applications that require the safety and quality provided by its superior design and engineering know-how. Comprehensive information on Columbus McKinnon is available on its web site at http://www.cmworks.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release contains "forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning future revenue and earnings, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results of the Company to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by such statements, including general economic and business conditions, conditions affecting the industries served by the Company and its subsidiaries, conditions affecting the Company's customers and suppliers, competitor responses to the Company's products and services, the overall market acceptance of such products and services, the effect of operating leverage, the pace of bookings relative to shipments, the ability to expand into new markets and geographic regions, the success in acquiring new business, the speed at which shipments improve, and other factors disclosed in the Company's periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking information contained in this release.