Scotch-Brite(TM) brand, a leader in household cleaning products, proudly announces the winner of the first-ever Cleanest Volunteer Firehouse Kitchen contest, a national search designed to uncover which firehouse keeps their kitchen sparkling clean. Scotch-Brite products from 3M has awarded the Wallace Volunteer Fire Department in Wallace, N.C., the Grand Prize based on their inventive cleaning tip of taping a scrubber to their toes, which allows them to clean stubborn and hard-to-reach places.

As the Grand Prize winner of the Scotch-Brite Cleanest Volunteer Firehouse Kitchen contest, the Wallace Volunteer Fire Department received a $5,000 donation, which they plan to use for a new state-of-the-art accountability system to track personnel at a fire scene allowing for the Incident Commander to know exactly who is on the scene and where they are at all times. In addition, they received a catered party held at their firehouse for the firefighters and their families, June 19, 2003, as well as a year's supply of recently introduced Scotch-Brite products. Nine runners-up also received a $1,000 donation to their firehouse and a year's supply of the new Scotch-Brite products. The nine runners-up included:

-- Clear Springs Rural Fire Association, Willow Springs, Mo.

-- Berwyn Fire Co., Berwyn, Pa.

-- Howard Fire Co., Howard, Pa.

-- Dale City Volunteer Fire Dept Station 20, Dale City, Va.

-- Keizer Fire District, Keizer, Ore.

-- Level Volunteer Fire Co. Inc., Havre de Grace, Md.

-- Newington Volunteer Fire Department Co. 1, Newington, Conn.

-- Greenock Volunteer Fire Co., Greenock, Pa.

-- Tenth firehouse to be named pending acknowledgement of winnings

An expert panel of judges, including Janet Sobesky, Home Design & Lifestyle Editor at Woman's Day Magazine; Jim Ireland, cleaning expert and owner of White Glove Elite cleaning service; and Mark Sorlien, research and development manager for Scotch-Brite products, chose the Wallace Volunteer Fire Department based on how they keep their 24-hour a day kitchen clean and how they intend to use the cash prize donation for their firehouse.

"No one knows better about fast and efficient cleaning than those with a 24-hour kitchen, which is why we asked the volunteer firefighters of America to share their secrets and give us a chance to show our appreciation and gratitude for the important work that they do," said Tom Herbrand, Scotch-Brite brand manager, Home Care Division. "We are thrilled with the great response to this contest and are thoroughly impressed with the quality of each entry."

The Scotch-Brite contest took place in conjunction with the National Volunteer Fire Council and was held from March 31-May 16, 2003. The contest challenged firefighters in more than 10,000 volunteer firehouses to put their cleaning skills to the test. Entrants were required to submit a kitchen cleaning tip, a description of how they intended to use the cash prize donation to their firehouse and two color photos of their kitchen.

To help winners clean even smarter, they will each receive supplies of the new Scotch-Brite Cleaning products. These products include the Scotch-Brite(TM) Switchable Scrubbers and the Scotch-Brite(R) Microfiber Kitchen Cloth. The switchable scrubbers are a new line of products, which enable people to switch cleaning heads depending on the cleaning task at hand. The line is made up of three reusable ergonomically designed handled tools to help maximize productivity and comfort, and are a revolutionary way to make household cleaning easier and more effective. The new kitchen cloth is up to 50 percent more absorbent than ordinary cotton dishcloths and is designed to be used in multiple areas throughout the kitchen.

Scotch-Brite products are available at mass merchandisers, grocery and drug stores. For more information, log onto www.scotch-brite.com. For more information on the National Volunteer Fire Council, log onto www.nvfc.org.

About 3M

3M is a $16 billion diversified technology company with leading positions in consumer and office; display and graphics; electronics and telecommunications; health care; industrial; safety, security and protection services; transportation and other businesses. Headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, the company has operations in more than 60 countries and serves customers in nearly 200 countries. 3M is one of the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average and also is a component of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index. For more information about 3M, go to www.3M.com/profile/pressbox/index.jhtml.

Scotch-Brite is a registered trademark of 3M.

DeVries Public RelationsAlyssa Kautto, 212/891-0459akautto@devries-pr.comor3M Public RelationsKatherine Hagmeier, 651/575-4368klhagmeier@mmm.com