AMPAC Fine Chemicals Wins Prestigious SOCMA Performance Improvement Award

Rancho Cordova, CA /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AMPAC Fine Chemicals LLC (AFC), a subsidiary of American Pacific Corporation (Nasdaq: APFC), announced today that it has been recognized by the Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates (SOCMA) as the 2009 Silver Award Winner of the annual Performance Improvement Awards for environmental, health, safety and security (EHS&S) practices. The awards are sponsored by ChemStewards®, SOCMA's EHS&S initiative.

This year, a record number of member facilities applied for the awards that recognize outstanding commitment to continuous improvement in EHS&S practices.

Recipients earned awards in four categories: Gold, Silver, Bronze and Educational Outreach, and were recognized at SOCMA's Annual Dinner during a special awards reception on December 7th in New York City.

"AMPAC Fine Chemicals' hard work on their comprehensive environmental, health, safety and security program shows their commitment to constant improvement and to contributing to the quality of life in their community. SOCMA commends them on their Silver Award honors and encourages AMPAC Fine Chemicals to continue these efforts through the ChemStewards performance improvement program," said SOCMA President Joe Acker.

Recognized by the award was AMPAC Fine Chemicals' work in reducing hazardous waste by 2.18 million pounds in 2007 and 2.57 million pounds in 2008 and the recycling and reuse of over a quarter million pounds of methylene chloride.

"Corporate responsibility and environmental sustainability are key metrics for success of the chemical and pharmaceutical industry with regards to EHS&S practices. To be recognized nationally by an organization such as SOCMA is exceptional and gratifying," stated Martha M. Murray, AFC, Director, EH&S Compliance.

Dr. Aslam Malik, President of AFC stated, "We are truly honored by this award. This is the fifth recognition award in recent years for our efforts demonstrating AFC's commitment to pollution prevention through continuous improvement and optimization in our processes. Technical excellence combined with outstanding environmental stewardship are core values for AFC and we are grateful that SOCMA has recognized our team for its efforts."

ABOUT AMPAC FINE CHEMICALS LLC
AFC is a U.S.-based company with demonstrated capabilities in process development, scale-up, and cGMP-compliant commercial production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API's) and registered intermediates for pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers. Its specially engineered facilities and experienced staff allow AFC to safely produce highly energetic compounds at commercial scale. In addition, AFC's other technology platforms include production of highly potent compounds, continuous processes and industrial-scale chromatographic separation using simulated moving bed chromatography (SMB).

ABOUT AMERICAN PACIFIC CORPORATION
American Pacific Corporation (AMPAC) is a leading custom manufacturer of fine chemicals, specialty chemicals and propulsion products within its focused markets. We supply active pharmaceutical ingredients and advanced intermediates to the pharmaceutical industry. For the aerospace and defense industry we provide specialty chemicals used in solid rocket motors for space launch and military missiles. AMPAC also designs and manufactures liquid propulsion systems, valves and structures for space and missile defense applications. We produce clean agent chemicals for the fire protection industry, as well as electro-chemical equipment for the water treatment industry. Our products are designed to meet customer specifications and often must meet certain governmental and regulatory approvals. Additional information about us can be obtained by visiting our web site at www.apfc.com.

ABOUT SOCMA
SOCMA is the leading trade association, serving the batch, custom and specialty chemical industry since 1921. SOCMA's nearly 300 members employ more than 100,000 workers across the country and produce 50,000 products valued at $60 billion annually. For more information please visit www.socma.com.

ABOUT ChemStewards®
ChemStewards® is SOCMA's flagship environmental, health, safety and security (EHS&S) continuous performance improvement program. ChemStewards was created from industry's commitment to reducing the environmental footprint left by member's facilities. Industry created ChemStewards to meet the unique needs of the batch, custom, and specialty chemical industry. As a mandatory requirement for SOCMA members engaged in the manufacturing or handling of chemicals, ChemStewards is helping participants reach for superior EHS&S performance. To learn more visit www.chemstewards.com

SOURCE AMPAC Fine Chemicals LLC