FORT SASKATCHEWAN, ALBERTA, CANADA - The Westaim Corporation today announced that Ted Redmond has been appointed President of Westaim Surface Engineered Products division and Dr. Steve Petrone has been appointed Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

"Hiring seasoned leadership is an important step in building what we expect to be a significant and fast-growing business," said Westaim President and CEO Kevin Jenkins.

Previously, Mr. Redmond was a senior manager with the Toronto office of The Boston Consulting Group where he developed and implemented business strategies to improve the competitiveness of large companies. Mr. Redmond has extensive experience across a number of industries, including the petrochemical industry. He has worked in Asia, Latin America, Europe and North America. Mr. Redmond holds an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business, an M.A.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Toronto and B.Sc. in Computer Engineering from The University of Alberta.

Dr. Petrone has been with Westaim since 1991 and has led the development of Westaim Surface Engineered Products' anti-coking technology. Dr. Petrone has a Bachelor of Science and a PhD in Chemistry from McMaster University.

The Technology

Westaim has developed proprietary anti-coking coatings and unique coating processes that have been shown to reduce the rate of coking or carbon build-up in ethylene furnace tubes by up to 90%. This results in longer and more economical ethylene production runs. The build-up of carbon in furnaces is a major problem for ethylene producers because it leads to costly decoking steps, reduced efficiency of operation and increased rates of metal corrosion. The coking problem is estimated to cost the worldwide ethylene industry more than $2 billion annually in lost production alone.

Ethylene producers currently consume $400 million per year of tubular products worldwide and are projected to consume $600 million per year by 2005. The market is typically 80% for maintenance or retubing of existing furnaces and 20% for new installations.

Westaim announced in September 1997 the construction of an $18.2-million commercial scale coating application plant in Alberta. The plant will have the capacity to coat 10,000 meters a year of 150-millimeter diameter tubes--which when fully operational can service 9% of the North American ethylene industry. The plant is expected to commence operation in the fall of 1998 to coincide with the commercial launch of CoatAlloy-I-- Westaim's first product line of standard commercial alloy steel tubes and fittings that have been coated with the company's anti-coking coatings.

CoatAlloy-I products are currently being qualified for use in three furnace types operated by three major ethylene producers. Currently, Westaim is coating furnace tubes in its pilot plant in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta. The pilot facility has been fully committed since it began operation in January 1996.

Westaim has a portfolio of new business opportunities consisting of Westaim Surface Engineered Products, Westaim Display Technologies and Westaim Biomedical. Westaim also manufactures aerospace materials, chemicals and coin blanks. Westaim is a TSE 300 company listed on The Toronto Stock Exchange, The Alberta Stock Exchange and the Montreal Exchange under the trading symbol "WED".

For more information contact:

Tony Johnston
Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs
(403) 234-3103
tjohnsto@westaim.com

website: www.westaim.com