Washington, DC — February 14, 2007 — Peter F. Baranay, president of ABRO Industries, South Bend, Ind., testified on intellectual property piracy in China before the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Trade on Feb. 15 in Washington D.C.

Baranay, testifying on behalf of MEMA’s Brand Protection Council, spoke on the council’s legal battle with Chinese companies that have perpetrated large scale counterfeiting operations against ABRO’s products.

“ABRO Industries has been pro-active in protecting its products, but still find ourselves victims of tenacious, audacious counterfeiters,” Baranay said. “Senior members of the Chinese government recognize the need to respect intellectual property, but in many respects actions have not followed their words.”

The supplier industry suffers approx $12 billion in lost sales each year due to counterfeiting.

MEMA (www.mema.org) represents more than 700 motor vehicle product manufacturers with nearly 12,000 U.S. plant locations and 783, 000 workers. Together, these companies keep the U.S. automotive and truck industry supplied with the components that enable it to produce some 17 million vehicles annually and keep the 232 million vehicles on the road with replacement products and services. MEMA supports its members through its three market segment associations: Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association (AASA), Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association (HDMA) and Original Equipment Suppliers Association (OESA).