Carrier Corporation Pledges $1.5 Million for New Indoor Environmental Quality Laboratory

(Syracuse, NY, Oct. 24, 2005) – Carrier Corporation, the world's largest provider of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration solutions, today pledged $1.5 million to the Syracuse Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems to create a world-class laboratory to study the effects of indoor air quality in buildings. Carrier is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE:UTX).

Dr. Greg Powers, Carrier's Vice President of Engineering, was joined by U.S. Representative James T. Walsh and Syracuse University Chancellor Nancy Cantor in making the announcement before 200 attendees at the annual symposium sponsored by the Center of Excellence. "Innovation is center to Carrier's DNA, and Syracuse is center to Carrier's innovation. That's why we are so pleased to support the creation of this new facility," said Powers.

"Today's announcement by Carrier is indication of UTC's strong commitment to the Central New York research community and further leverages private investment in this important effort," said Rep. Jim Walsh (NY-25), who has secured over $26.6 million in federal resources for the Center of Excellence. "The Environmental and Renewable Energy Systems Center of Excellence supports Carrier's own Syracuse-based research and design activities."

"The creation of a New Indoor Environmental Quality Laboratory is important to our goal of making Central New York a worldwide leader in the development of environmental and energy technologies," Governor Pataki said. "Together with our private sector and academic partners, our Center of Excellence in Environmental and Energy Systems has attracted public and private investment that will not only transform the region's economy, but yield innovative inventions that improve the natural living environment of all New Yorkers and people around the world."

"This important commitment from Carrier Corp. represents the beginning of a new era of collaborations with Syracuse University and our partners in the Syracuse Center of Excellence," said Nancy Cantor, chancellor and president of Syracuse University. "This era holds tremendous promise for all of us, including the entire community of Central and Upstate New York, as we confidently expect the new collaborations will create innovations that fuel economic development in the region for generations to come."

In May 2004, Carrier designated its operations in Syracuse as a global lead research, development and design center to support its worldwide application of air conditioning and refrigeration products. "Carrier's campus in Syracuse is today our largest design center in the world, including about 300 employees applying the latest technologies to products that serve the global marketplace," said Powers. He added that the Center of Excellence provides outstanding collaboration opportunities for Carrier's ongoing engineering work, which will be enhanced with the creation of the new lab.

Carrier's grant will also establish a doctoral fellowship at Syracuse University to advance the study of indoor environmental quality. The grant will be made over a 5 year period subject to renewal each year.

UTC is a provider of a broad range of high technology products and support services to the aerospace and building system industries.