Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. has divided its defense operations organization unit into two separate business units to provide enhanced customer focus and to position the company for future opportunities. Ball Aerospace has leveraged its core technologies and capabilities into unprecedented business growth in all market segments over the past five years.

To refine the company's structure and further drive that success, two new business units have been established:

  *  National Defense Solutions is a new business unit led by Fred Doyle,
     formerly vice president, special programs.  This organization combines
     the company's space hardware capabilities and systems engineering
     expertise to provide focused solutions for nationally significant
     intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and space
     superiority missions.
     (Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060731/LAM060-b)

  *  The Advanced Technologies & Products business unit led by Drew Crouch,
     formerly vice president, corporate strategy, relations and
     administration, focuses the company's core technology and product
     capabilities into one organization serving civil, commercial and
     national security program needs.  Ball Aerospace is an industry leader
     in laser applications, satellite navigation, cryogenics, thermal
     management, acquisition, pointing and tracking, conformal antennas and
     communication subsystems for space, air, sea and ground platforms.
     This business unit will strengthen the company's merchant supplier
     position in the aerospace market.
     (Photo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060731/LAM060-a)

"Over the past 50 years, Ball Aerospace has enabled many of the nation's most technically challenging missions and dramatic scientific discoveries," said David L. Taylor, president and CEO. "In fact, our sales have nearly doubled in five years. This announcement demonstrates the additional commitment we are devoting to programs of national importance," Taylor concluded.

Fred Doyle joined Ball Aerospace in 2005 as vice president of special programs. He continues to oversee these programs. Prior to joining Ball Aerospace, Doyle held various executive-level positions at Space Imaging and spent 20 years in government service with the Defense Mapping Agency, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). He holds a master's degree in photogrammetry from Purdue University and a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Virginia Tech.

Drew Crouch has held a number of executive, managerial and technical positions at Ball Aerospace during his 13-year tenure with the company. He led strategic development and corporate relations and supported key operational and financial performance activities during the company's recent five-year period of unprecedented growth. In addition to his experience at Ball Aerospace, Crouch served in executive leadership positions in several venture-funded development stage technology companies and a privately funded venture finance firm. He holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado State University.

Ball Aerospace is celebrating its 50th year in business in 2006. The company began building pointing controls for military rockets in 1956, and later won a contract to build one of NASA's first spacecraft, the Orbiting Solar Observatory. Over the years, the company has been responsible for numerous technological and scientific 'firsts' and now acts as a technology innovator for important national missions.

Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging products and owns Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. Ball reported 2005 sales of $5.8 billion and employs 15,600 people.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news 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 in Exhibit 99.2 in our Form 10-K. These filings are available at our Web site and at www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments include fluctuation in consumer and customer demand and preferences; availability and cost of raw materials, including recent significant increases in resin, steel, aluminum and energy costs, and the ability to pass such increases on to customers; competitive packaging availability, pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; fruit, vegetable and fishing yields; industry productive capacity and competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated productivity improvements or production cost reductions, including those associated with our beverage can end project; the German mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or supplier; changes in foreign exchange rates, tax rates and activities of foreign subsidiaries; and the effect of LIFO accounting. Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding, authorization, availability and returns of government contracts; and delays, extensions and technical uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses; regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental and workplace safety; 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; changes to the company's pension plans; reduced cash flow; interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results due to statutory audits or other effects.

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SOURCE: Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.