$200,000,000 OWENS & MINOR, INC. 6.35% Senior Notes due 2016 UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

EX-1.1 2 dex11.htm UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

Exhibit 1.1

EXECUTION COPY

$200,000,000

OWENS & MINOR, INC.

6.35% Senior Notes due 2016

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

April 4, 2006

Lehman Brothers Inc.,

Banc of America Securities LLC

Citigroup Global Markets Inc.

SunTrust Capital Markets, Inc.

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

KeyBanc Capital Markets, a division of McDonald Investments Inc.

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

c/o Lehman Brothers Inc.

745 Seventh Avenue

New York, New York 10019

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen:

Owens & Minor, Inc., a Virginia corporation (the “Company”), proposes, upon the terms and considerations set forth herein, to issue and sell to you, as the underwriters (the “Underwriters”), for whom Lehman Brothers Inc. (“Lehman Brothers”) is acting as the representative (the “Representative”) $200,000,000 in aggregate principal amount of its 6.35% Senior Notes due 2016 (the “Notes”). The Company’s obligations under the Notes, including the payment of principal, premium, if any, and interest with respect to the Notes, will be unconditionally guaranteed (the “Guarantees”) by Owens & Minor Medical, Inc., a Virginia corporation; Owens & Minor Distribution, Inc., a Virginia corporation; Access Diabetic Supply, LLC, a Florida limited liability company; and Owens & Minor Healthcare Supply, Inc., a Virginia corporation (collectively, the “Guarantors”). The Notes and the Guarantees are hereinafter collectively called the “Securities.” The Securities will (i) have terms and provisions which are summarized in the Prospectus (as defined below) dated as of the date hereof and (ii) are to be issued pursuant to an Indenture (to be dated as of April 7, 2006 (the “Indenture”)) to be entered into between the Company, the Guarantors and SunTrust Bank, as trustee (the “Trustee”). This is to confirm the agreement concerning the purchase of the Securities from the Company by the Underwriters.

Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings given to such terms in the Indenture.

1. Representations, Warranties and Agreements of the Company and the Guarantors. The Company and each of the Guarantors represents, warrants and agrees that:

(a) An “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405) on Form S-3 relating to the Securities (i) has been prepared by the Company in conformity with the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the rules and regulations (the “Rules and Regulations”) of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) thereunder; (ii) has been filed with the Commission under the Securities Act not earlier than the date that is three years prior to the Closing Date (as defined in Section 4 hereof); and (iii) is effective under the Securities Act. Copies of such registration statement and any amendment thereto have been delivered by the Company to the Representative. As used in this Agreement:

(i) “Applicable Time” means 12:30 p.m. (New York City time) on the date of this Agreement;

(ii) “Effective Date” means any date as of which any part of such registration statement relating to the Securities became, or is deemed to have become, effective under the Securities Act in accordance with the Rules and Regulations;

(iii) “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” means each “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations) prepared by or on behalf of the Company or used or referred to by the Company in connection with the offering of the Securities, including the final term sheet prepared pursuant to Section 5(a)(i) hereof and attached to this Agreement as Schedule 2 (the “Final Term Sheet”);

(iv) “Preliminary Prospectus” means any preliminary prospectus relating to the Securities included in such registration statement or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations and provided to the Representative for use by the Underwriters in relation to the Securities;

(v) “Pricing Disclosure Package” means, as of the Applicable Time, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Final Term Sheet, together with each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus filed or used by the Company on or before the Applicable Time, other than a road show that is an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus under Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations;

(vi) “Prospectus” means the final prospectus relating to the Securities, including any prospectus supplement thereto relating to the Securities, as filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations; and

(vii) “Registration Statement” means, collectively, the various parts of such registration statement, each as amended as of the Effective Date for such part, including any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus and all exhibits to such registration statement.

Any reference to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Form S-3 under the Securities Act as of the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be. Any reference to the “most recent Preliminary Prospectus” shall be deemed to refer to the latest Preliminary Prospectus included in the Registration Statement or filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) prior to or on the date hereof (including, for purposes hereof, any documents incorporated by reference therein prior to or on the date hereof). Any reference to any amendment or supplement to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any document filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), after the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, and incorporated by reference in such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be; and any reference to any amendment to the Registration Statement shall be deemed to include any annual report of the Company on Form 10-K filed with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the Effective Date that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement. The Commission has not issued any order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, and no proceeding or examination for such purpose has been instituted or threatened by the Commission. The Commission has not notified the Company under Rule 401(g)(2) of any objection to the use of the form of the Registration Statement;

(b) The Company has been since the time of initial filing of the Registration Statement and continues to be a “well-known seasoned issuer” (as defined in Rule 405) eligible to use Form S-3 for the offering of the Securities, including not having been an “ineligible issuer” (as defined in Rule 405) at any such time or date;

(c) Both before and after giving effect to the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, neither the Company nor any Guarantor is or will be an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”) and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder;

(d) The Registration Statement conformed and will conform in all material respects on the Effective Date and on the Closing Date, and any amendment to the Registration Statement filed after the date hereof will conform in all material respects when filed, to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. The Preliminary Prospectus conformed, and the Prospectus will conform, in all material respects when filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) and on the Closing Date to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations. The documents incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus conformed, and any further documents so incorporated will conform, when filed with the Commission, in all material respects to the requirements of the Exchange Act or the Securities Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder;

(e) The Registration Statement did not, as of the Effective Date, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated

therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statement in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 9(e);

(f) The Prospectus will not, as of its date and on the Closing Date, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Prospectus in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 9(e);

(g) The documents incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus did not, and any further documents filed and incorporated by reference therein will not, when filed with the Commission, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;

(h) The Pricing Disclosure Package did not, as of the Applicable Time, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that no representation or warranty is made as to information contained in or omitted from the Pricing Disclosure Package in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is specified in Section 9(e);

(i) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (including, without limitation, any road show that is a free writing prospectus under Rule 433) did not, and on the Closing Date will not, include any information that conflicts with the information in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Disclosure Package and, when considered together with the Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time, did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;

(j) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conformed or will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations on the date of first use, and the Company has complied with any requirements of Rule 433 with respect to each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus pursuant to the Rules and Regulations. The Company has not made any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (other than the Final Term Sheet) without the prior written consent of the Representative. Any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the

use of which as been consented to by the Representative, is listed on Schedule 2 hereto. The Company has retained in accordance with the Rules and Regulations all Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses that were not required to be filed pursuant to the Rules and Regulations;

(k) The market-related and customer-related data and estimates included under the caption “Summary—The Company” in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company believes to be reliable and accurate;

(l) Each of the Company and the Guarantors has been duly organized and is validly existing and in good standing as a corporation or other business entity under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization and is duly qualified to do business and in good standing as a foreign corporation or other business entity in each jurisdiction in which its respective ownership or lease of property or the conduct of its respective businesses requires such qualification except where the failure to be so qualified would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the business, financial condition or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole (“Material Adverse Effect”), and have all power and authority necessary to own or hold their respective properties and to conduct the businesses in which they are engaged. The Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed in Exhibit 21 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year. None of the subsidiaries of the Company (other than Owens & Minor Distribution, Inc. (collectively, the “Significant Subsidiaries”)) is a “significant subsidiary” (as defined in Rule 405);

(m) The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, and all of the issued shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable. All of the issued shares of capital stock of each Guarantor have been duly and validly authorized and issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and (except for directors’ qualifying shares and except as set forth in each of the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus) are owned directly or indirectly by the Company, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, equities or claims; and none of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company or any of its subsidiaries was issued in violation of the preemptive rights or similar rights of any security holder of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, respectively;

(n) The Indenture has been duly and validly authorized by the Company and the Guarantors, and upon its execution and delivery and, assuming due authorization, execution and delivery by the Trustee, will constitute the valid and binding agreement of the Company and the Guarantors, enforceable against the Company and the Guarantors in accordance with its terms, except that the enforceability of the Company’s and the Guarantors’ obligations thereunder may be limited by bankruptcy, fraudulent conveyance, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, and other similar laws relating to or affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles (regardless of whether such enforceability is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law);

(o) The Notes have been duly and validly authorized by the Company and when duly executed by the Company in accordance with the terms of the Indenture and, assuming due authentication of the Notes by the Trustee, upon delivery to the Underwriters against payment therefor in accordance with the terms hereof, will have been validly issued and delivered, and will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company entitled to the benefits of the Indenture, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except that the enforceability of the Company’s obligations thereunder may be limited by bankruptcy, fraudulent conveyance, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, and other similar laws relating to or affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles (regardless of whether such enforceability is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law);

(p) The Guarantees have been duly and validly authorized by the Guarantors and when the Indenture is duly executed and delivered by the Guarantors and upon the due execution, authentication and delivery of the Notes in accordance with the Indenture and the delivery of the Notes to the Underwriters against payment therefor in accordance with the terms hereof, will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Guarantors, enforceable against the Guarantors in accordance with their terms, except that the enforceability of the Guarantors’ obligations thereunder may be limited by bankruptcy, fraudulent conveyance, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, and other similar laws relating to or affecting creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles (regardless of whether such enforceability is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law);

(q) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and the Guarantors;

(r) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the Indenture by the Company and the Guarantors and the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and the application of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described under “Use of Proceeds” in each of the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus will not conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, (i) any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject and that is required to be filed by the Company with the Commission under Item 601 of Regulation S-K, (ii) the provisions of the charter or by-laws of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or (iii) any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties or assets, except, in the case of clauses (i) and (iii), for such conflicts, breaches or violations that would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect;

(s) No consent, approval, authorization or order of, or filing or registration with, any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties or assets is required for the execution,

delivery and performance of this Agreement or the Indenture by the Company or any Guarantor, the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby by the Company and the Guarantors, the application of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities as described under “Use of Proceeds” in each of the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, except for the registration of the Securities under the Securities Act and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under the Exchange Act or under applicable state securities laws in connection with the purchase and sale of the Securities by the Underwriters.

(t) There are no contracts, agreements or understandings between the Company or the Guarantors and any person granting such person the right (other than rights which have been waived or satisfied) to require the Company to file a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to any securities of the Company owned or to be owned by such person or in any securities being registered pursuant to any other registration statement filed by the Company under the Securities Act;

(u) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has sustained, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, which would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, except pursuant to the exercise of options or warrants or pursuant to the issuance of common stock under the Company’s stock purchase plan, incentive plan, dividend reinvestment plan, stock option or incentive plans and except for any borrowing under the Credit Agreement in the ordinary course of business for working capital purposes, or any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus;

(v) The consolidated financial statements (including the related notes and supporting schedules) included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus comply as to form in all material respects with the requirements of Regulation S-X under the Securities Act and present fairly the financial condition and results of operations and cash flows of the entities purported to be shown thereby, at the dates and for the periods indicated, and have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved, except as otherwise stated therein and in the case of unaudited financial statements, if any, subject to year-end audit adjustments;

(w) KPMG LLP, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries, whose report appears in the most recent

Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus or is incorporated by reference therein and who have delivered the initial letter referred to in Section 7(g) hereof, is an independent registered public accounting firm as required by the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and were independent as required by the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations during the periods covered by the financial statements on which they reported contained or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus;

(x) The Company and each Guarantor have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property and good and marketable title to all personal property owned by them, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects (except for taxes not yet due and payable), except such as are described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or such as do not materially affect the value of such property or do not materially interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and the Guarantors; and all real property and buildings held under lease by the Company and the Guarantors are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases, with such exceptions as do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company and the Guarantors or as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect;

(y) The Company and each of the Guarantors carry, or are covered by, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as the Company believes is adequate for the conduct of their respective businesses and the value of their respective properties and as is customary for companies engaged in similar businesses in similar industries;

(z) The Company and each of the Guarantors own or possess adequate rights to use all material patents, patent applications, trademarks, service marks, trade names, trademark registrations, service mark registrations, copyrights and licenses necessary for the conduct of their respective businesses, except where the failure to own or possess any such rights would not have a Material Adverse Effect, and have no reason to believe that the conduct of their respective businesses will conflict with, and have not received any notice of any claim of conflict with, any such rights of others;

(aa) Except as described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or of which any property or assets of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is the subject which, if determined adversely, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect or could, in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the performance of this Agreement or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby; and to the Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or threatened by others;

(bb) No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company or any Guarantor on the one hand, and the directors, officers, shareholders, customers or suppliers of the Company on the other hand, that would be required to be described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus which is not so described;

(cc) No labor disturbance by the employees of the Company or its subsidiaries exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent that would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect;

(dd) (i) Each “employee benefit plan” (within the meaning of Section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”)) for which the Company or any member of its “Controlled Group” (defined as any organization which is a member of a controlled group of corporations within the meaning of Section 414 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”)) would have any liability (each a “Plan”) has been maintained in compliance in all material respects with its terms and the requirements of all applicable statutes, rules and regulations including ERISA and the Code; (ii) with respect to each Plan subject to Title IV of ERISA (a) no “reportable event” (within the meaning of Section 4043(c) of ERISA) has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur for which the Company and any member of its Controlled Group would have any liability, (b) no “accumulated funding deficiency” (within the meaning of Section 302 of ERISA or Section 412 of the Code), whether or not waived, has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur, (c) the fair market value of the assets under each such Plan exceeds the present value of all benefits accrued under such Plan (determined based on those assumptions used to fund such Plan) and (d) neither the Company nor any member of its Controlled Group has incurred, or reasonably expects to incur, any liability under Title IV of ERISA (other than contributions to the Plan or premiums to the PBGC in the ordinary course and without default) in respect of a Plan (including a “multiemployer plan”, within the meaning of Section 4001(c)(3) of ERISA); and (iii) each Plan that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code has received a favorable determination letter to the effect that the form of such Plan satisfies the requirements under Section 401(a) of the Code and neither the Company nor any member of its Controlled Group has any reason to believe that anything has occurred, whether by action or by failure to act, which would adversely affect such qualification;

(ee) The Company and the Guarantors have filed all federal, state and local income and franchise tax returns required to be filed through the date hereof and has paid all taxes due thereon, other than those being contested in good faith, those for which reserves have been provided in accordance with GAAP, those currently payable without penalty or interest, or those the nonpayment of which would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; other than as described in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, no tax deficiency has been determined adversely to the Company or any of its subsidiaries which has had (nor does the Company have any knowledge of) any tax deficiency which, if determined adversely, would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect;

(ff) Since the date as of which information is given in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus through the date hereof, and except as may otherwise be disclosed or contemplated in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company has not (i) incurred any liability or obligation, direct or contingent, other than liabilities and obligations which were incurred in the ordinary course of business, (ii) entered into any material transaction not in the ordinary course of business or (iii) declared or paid any dividend on its capital stock (other than the dividend declared on February 2, 2006 and paid on March 31, 2006);

(gg) The Company (i) makes and keeps accurate books and records and (ii) maintains internal accounting controls which provide reasonable assurance that (A) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s authorization, (B) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of its financial statements and to maintain accountability for its assets, (C) access to its assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s authorization and (D) the reported accountability for its assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals;

(hh) Neither the Company nor any Guarantor (i) is in violation of its charter or by-laws(or similar organizational documents), (ii) is in default, and no event has occurred which, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant or condition contained in any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which it is a party or by which it is bound or to which any of its properties or assets is subject and that is required to be filed by the Company with the Commission under Item 601 of Regulation S-K or (iii) is in violation of any law, ordinance, governmental rule, regulation or court decree to which it or its property or assets may be subject or has failed to obtain any license, permit, certificate, franchise or other governmental authorization or permit necessary to the ownership of its property or to the conduct of its business, except, in the case of (ii) and (iii) above, for any such defaults or violations that, individually or in the aggregate, would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect;

(ii) To the knowledge of the Company, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries, nor any director, officer, agent, employee or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, has: (i) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made any direct or indirect unlawful payment to any foreign or domestic government official or employee from corporate funds; (iii) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977; or (iv) made any bribe, unlawful rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful payment;

(jj) There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company and any of the Company’s directors or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith;

(kk) There has been no storage, disposal, generation, manufacture, refinement, transportation, handling or treatment of toxic wastes, medical wastes, hazardous wastes or hazardous substances by the Company or any of its subsidiaries (or, to the knowledge of the Company, any of their predecessors in interest) at, upon or from any of the property now or previously owned or leased by the Company or any of its subsidiaries in violation of any applicable law, ordinance, rule, regulation, order, judgment, decree or permit or which would require remedial action under any applicable law, ordinance, rule,

regulation, order, judgment, decree or permit, except for any violation or remedial action which would not have, or could not be reasonably likely to have, singularly or in the aggregate with all such violations and remedial actions, a Material Adverse Effect; there has been no spill, discharge, leak, emission, injection, escape, dumping or release of any kind onto such property or into the environment surrounding such property of any toxic wastes, medical wastes, solid wastes, hazardous wastes or hazardous substances due to or caused by the Company or any of its subsidiaries or with respect to which the Company has knowledge, except for any such spill, discharge, leak, emission, injection, escape, dumping or release which would not have or would not be reasonably likely to have, singularly or in the aggregate with all such spills, discharges, leaks, emissions, injections, escapes, dumpings and releases, a Material Adverse Effect; and the terms “hazardous wastes,” “toxic wastes,” “hazardous substances” and “medical wastes” shall have the meanings specified in any applicable local, state, federal and foreign laws or regulations with respect to environmental protection;

(ll) The statements set forth in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus under the caption “Description of the Notes,” insofar as they purport to constitute a summary of the terms of the Securities, and under the caption “Certain U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations,” insofar as they purport to describe the provisions of the laws referred to therein, are accurate and complete in all material respects;

(mm) The Company has not distributed and, prior to the later to occur of the Closing Date and completion of the distribution of the Securities, will not distribute any offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Securities other than any Preliminary Prospectus, the Final Term Sheet, the Prospectus and any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to which the Representative has consented in accordance with Section 1(j) or 5(a)(vii);

(nn) None of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement (including, without limitation, the use of the proceeds from the sale of the Securities) will violate or result in violation of Section 7 of the Exchange Act or any regulation promulgated thereunder; and

(oo) The Company and its subsidiaries have not taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that might reasonably be expected to cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Securities to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities.

2. Purchase of the Securities by the Underwriters. The Company hereby agrees, on the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements of the Underwriters contained herein and subject to all the terms and conditions set forth herein, to issue and sell to the Underwriters and, upon the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements of the Company and the Guarantors herein contained and subject to all the terms and conditions set forth herein, each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at a purchase price of 99.289% of the principal amount thereof, the principal amount of Notes set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto. The Company shall not be obligated to deliver any of the Notes to be delivered hereunder except upon payment for all of the Notes to be purchased as provided herein.

3. Offering of Securities by the Underwriters. Upon authorization by the Representative of the release of the Securities, the several Underwriters propose to offer the Securities for sale upon the terms and conditions to be set forth in the Prospectus.

4. Delivery of and Payment for the Securities. (a) Delivery to the Underwriters of and payment for the Securities shall be made at the offices of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, 425 Lexington Avenue, New York, New York at 9:00 A.M., New York City time, on the third full business day following the date of this Agreement or at such other date or place as shall be determined by agreement between the Representative and the Company. This date and time are sometimes referred to as the “Closing Date.” The Securities will be delivered to the Underwriters against payment of the purchase price therefor in immediately available funds. Time shall be of the essence, and delivery at the time and place specified pursuant to this Agreement is a further condition of the obligation of each Underwriter hereunder. The Notes will be evidenced by one or more global securities in definitive form (the “Global Notes”) and/or by additional definitive securities, and will be registered, in the case of the Global Notes, in the name of Cede & Co. as nominee of The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”), and in the other cases, in such names and in such denominations as the Underwriters shall request prior to 9:30 A. M., New York City time, on the second business day preceding the Closing Date. The Notes to be delivered to the Underwriters shall be made available to the Underwriters in New York City for inspection and packaging not later than 12:00 P.M., New York City time, on the business day next preceding the Closing Date.

5. Agreements of the Company and the Guarantors. (a) The Company and the Guarantors, jointly and severally, agree with each of the Underwriters as follows:

(i) To prepare the Prospectus in a form approved by the Representative and to file such Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act not later than the Commission’s close of business on the second business day following the execution and delivery of this Agreement; to make no further amendment or any supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus prior to the Closing Date except as provided herein; to advise the Representative, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the time when any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus has been filed and to furnish the Representative with copies thereof; to prepare a final term sheet substantially in the form attached hereto as Schedule 2 and agreed by the Representative and file it with the Commission pursuant to, and within the time period prescribed by, Rule 433; to file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act subsequent to the date of the Prospectus and for so long as the delivery of a prospectus is required in connection with the offering or sale of the Securities (or would be required but for Rule 172); to advise the Representative, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus, the Pricing

Disclosure Package or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, of the suspension of the qualification of the Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, of the initiation or threatening of any proceeding or examination for any such purpose, of any notice from the Commission (pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2)) objecting to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto or of any request by the Commission for the amending or supplementing of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or for additional information; and, in the event of the issuance of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or suspending any such qualification, to use promptly all commercially reasonable efforts to obtain its withdrawal;

(ii) To pay the applicable Commission filing fees relating to the Securities within the time required by Rule 456(b)(1) without regard to the proviso therein;

(iii) To furnish promptly to the Representative and to counsel for the Underwriters a signed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed with the Commission, and each amendment thereto filed with the Commission, including all consents and exhibits filed therewith;

(iv) To deliver promptly to the Representative such number of the following documents as the Representative shall reasonably request: (A) conformed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed with the Commission and each amendment thereto (in each case excluding exhibits other than this Agreement and the computation of ratios of earnings to fixed charges), (B) each Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus and any amended or supplemented Prospectus, (C) each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and (D) any document incorporated by reference in any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus; and, if the delivery of a prospectus is required (or would be required but for Rule 172) at any time after the date hereof in connection with the offering or sale of the Securities or any other securities relating thereto and if at such time any events shall have occurred as a result of which the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made when such Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus was or is delivered (or would have been required to have been delivered but for Rule 172), not misleading, or, if for any other reason it shall be necessary to amend or supplement the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or to file under the Exchange Act any document incorporated by reference in the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus in order to comply with the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, to notify the Representative and, upon its request, to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter and to any dealer in securities as many copies as the Representative may from time to time reasonably request of an amended or supplemented Pricing Disclosure Package or Prospectus that will correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance;

(v) To file promptly with the Commission any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that may, in the judgment of the Company or the Representative, be required by the Securities Act or requested by the Commission;

(vi) Prior to filing with the Commission any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus or any amendment to any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, to furnish a copy thereof to the Representative and counsel for the Underwriters and obtain the consent of the Representative to the filing (such consent not to be unreasonably withheld);

(vii) Not to make any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus without the prior written consent of the Representative and to comply with any requirements of Rule 433 with respect to each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus pursuant to the Rules and Regulations;

(viii) To retain in accordance with the Rules and Regulations all Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses not required to be filed pursuant to the Rules and Regulations; and if at any time after the date hereof any events shall have occurred as a result of which any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented, would conflict with the information in the Registration Statement, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, or, if for any other reason it shall be necessary to amend or supplement any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, to notify the Representative and, upon its request, to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter as many copies as the Representative may from time to time reasonably request of an amended or supplemented Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that will correct such conflict, statement or omission or effect such compliance;

(ix) As soon as practicable after the Effective Date and in any event not later than 16 months after the date hereof, to make generally available to the Company’s security holders and to the Representative an earnings statement of the Company and its subsidiaries (which need not be audited) complying with Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations;

(x) The Company and each of the Guarantors will cooperate with the Underwriters and with their counsel in connection with the qualification of the Securities for offering and sale by the Underwriters and by dealers under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as the Underwriters may designate and will

file such consents to service of process or other documents necessary or appropriate in order to effect such qualification; provided, that in no event shall the Company or any of the Guarantors be obligated to qualify to do business in any jurisdiction where it is not now so qualified or to take any action which would subject it to service of process in suits, other than those arising out of the offering or sale of the Securities, in any jurisdiction where it is not now so subject;

(xi) The Company and the Guarantors will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Securities to be sold by it hereunder substantially in accordance with the description set forth in the Prospectus under the caption “Use of Proceeds”;

(xii) The Company and the Guarantors will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that might reasonably be expected to cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Securities to facilitate the sale or resale of the Securities;

(xiii) The Company and the Guarantors agree to comply with all the terms and conditions of all agreements set forth in the representation letters of the Company and the Guarantors to DTC relating to the approval of the Securities by DTC for “book entry” transfer;

(xiv) The Company and the Guarantors will not voluntarily claim, and will resist actively all attempts to claim, the benefit of any usury laws against holders of the Securities; and

(xv) The Company and the Guarantors will do and perform all things required or necessary to be done and performed under this Agreement by them prior to the Closing Date, and to satisfy all conditions precedent to the Underwriters’ obligations hereunder to purchase the Securities.

(b) Each Underwriter severally agrees with the Company and each other Underwriter that such Underwriter has not made, and will not make, any offer relating to the Securities that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405) required to be filed with the Commission without the prior consent of the Company and the Representative.

6. Expenses. Whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company and the Guarantors agree to pay all costs, expenses, fees and taxes incident to and in connection with: (i) the authorization, issuance, sale and delivery of the Securities and any stamp duties or other taxes payable in that connection, (ii) the preparation, printing and filing under the Securities Act of the Registration Statement (including any exhibits thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto; (iii) the distribution of the Registration Statement (including any exhibits thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, or any document incorporated by reference therein, all as provided in this Agreement; (iv) the

issuance and delivery by the Company of the Securities, (iv) the preparation, printing (including, without limitation, word processing and duplication costs) and delivery of this Agreement, the Indenture, and all other agreements, memoranda, correspondence and other documents printed and delivered in connection therewith (but not, however, legal fees and expenses of your counsel incurred in connection with any of the foregoing), (v) the preparation of certificates for the Securities, (vi) qualification of the Securities under the securities laws of the several jurisdictions as provided in Section 5(a)(x) and the preparation, printing and distribution of a Blue Sky Memorandum (including related fees and expenses of counsel to the Underwriters), (vii) all fees and expenses (including fees and expenses of counsel) of the Company and the Guarantors in connection with approval of the Securities by DTC for “book-entry” transfer, (viii) all fees and expenses of the Company and the Guarantors incurred in connection with any roadshow and (ix) the performance by the Company and the Guarantors of their other obligations under this Agreement; provided that, except as provided in this Section 6 and in Section 12, the Underwriters shall pay their own costs and expenses, including the costs and expenses of their counsel, any transfer taxes on the Securities which they may sell and the expenses of advertising any offering of the Securities made by the Underwriters.

7. Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations. The respective obligations of the Underwriters hereunder are subject to the accuracy, when made and on the Closing Date, of the representations and warranties of the Company and the Guarantors contained herein, to the performance by the Company and the Guarantors of their respective obligations hereunder, and to each of the following additional terms and conditions:

(a) The Prospectus shall have been timely filed with the Commission in accordance with Section 5(a)(i); the Final Term Sheet shall have been prepared and timely filed pursuant to Section 5(a)(i); the Company shall have complied with all filing requirements applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus used or referred to after the date hereof; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been issued and no proceeding or examination for such purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; any request of the Commission for inclusion of additional information in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or otherwise shall have been complied with; and the Commission shall not have notified the Company of any objection under Rule 401(g)(2) to the use of the form of the Registration Statement.

(b) No Underwriter shall have discovered and disclosed to the Company on or prior to the Closing Date that the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or the Pricing Disclosure Package, or any amendment or supplement thereto, contains an untrue statement of a fact which, in the opinion of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, is material or omits to state a fact which, in the opinion of such counsel, is material and is required to be stated therein or is necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.

(c) All corporate proceedings and other legal matters incident to the authorization, form and validity of this Agreement, the Indenture, the Securities, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, and all

other legal matters relating to this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby shall be reasonably satisfactory in all material respects to Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, and the Company and the Guarantors shall have furnished to such counsel all documents and information that they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(d) Grace R. den Hartog, Esq. shall have furnished to the Underwriters her written opinion, as Senior Vice President and General Counsel of the Company, addressed to the Underwriters and dated the Closing Date, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representative, substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit B-1.

(e) Hunton & Williams LLP shall have furnished to the Underwriters its written opinion, as counsel to the Company, addressed to the Underwriters and dated the Closing Date, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representative, substantially in the form attached hereto as Exhibit B-2.

(f) The Underwriters shall have received from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, such opinion or opinions, dated the Closing Date, with respect to the issuance and sale of the Securities, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package and other related matters as the Underwriters may reasonably require, and the Company and the Guarantors shall have furnished to such counsel such documents as they reasonably request for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon such matters.

(g) At the time of execution of this Agreement, the Underwriters shall have received from KPMG LLP, a letter, in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters, addressed to the Underwriters and dated the date hereof (i) confirming that they are independent registered public accountants within the meaning of the Securities Act and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, (ii) stating, as of the date hereof (or, with respect to matters involving changes or developments since the respective dates as of which specified financial information is given in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, as of a date not more than three days prior to the date hereof), the conclusions and findings of such firm with respect to the financial information and other matters ordinarily covered by accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters in connection with registered public offerings.

(h) With respect to the letter of KPMG LLP referred to in the preceding paragraph and delivered to the Underwriters concurrently with the execution of this Agreement (the “initial letter”), the Company shall have furnished to the Underwriters a letter (the “bring-down letter”) of such accountants, addressed to the Underwriters and dated the Closing Date (i) confirming that they are independent registered public accountants within the meaning of the Securities Act and are in compliance with the applicable requirements relating to the qualification of accountants under Rule 2-01 of Regulation S-X of the Commission, (ii) stating, as of the date of the bring-down letter (or, with respect to matters involving changes or developments since the respective dates as

of which specified financial information is given in the Prospectus, as of a date not more than three days prior to the date of the bring-down letter), the conclusions and findings of such firm with respect to the financial information and other matters covered by the initial letter and (iii) confirming in all material respects the conclusions and findings set forth in the initial letter.

(i) The Company shall have furnished to the Underwriters a certificate, dated the Closing Date, of its Chairman of the Board, its President or a Vice President and its Chief Financial Officer stating that:

(i) The representations and warranties of the Company and the Guarantors in Section 1 are true and correct in all material respects as of the Closing Date and the Company and the Guarantors have performed in all material respects all of their obligations hereunder to be performed at or prior to the Closing Date;

(ii) No stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued; no proceedings or examination for that purpose have been instituted or, to the knowledge of such officers, threatened; and the Commission has not notified the Company of any objection to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto;

(iii) They have carefully examined the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Pricing Disclosure Package, and, in their opinion, (A) (1) the Registration Statement, as of the Effective Date, (2) the Prospectus, as of its date and on the Closing Date, or (3) the Pricing Disclosure Package, as of the Applicable Time, did not and do not contain any untrue statement of a material fact and did not and do not omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein (except in the case of the Registration Statement, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made) not misleading and (B) since the Effective Date, no event has occurred that should have been set forth in a supplement or amendment to the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that has not been so set forth; and

(iv) Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries has sustained, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus which would reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and, since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, except pursuant to the exercise of options or warrants or pursuant to the issuance of common stock under

the Company’s stock purchase plan, incentive plan, dividend reinvestment plan, stock option or incentive plans and except for any borrowing under the Credit Agreement in the ordinary course of business for working capital purposes, or any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus.

(j) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded the Company’s debt securities by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as that term is defined by the Commission for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) of the Rules and Regulations and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s debt securities.

(k) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement there shall not have occurred any of the following: (i) trading in securities generally on the New York Stock Exchange or the American Stock Exchange or in the over-the-counter market, or trading in any securities of the Company on any exchange or in the over-the-counter market, shall have been suspended or minimum prices shall have been established on any such exchange or such market by the Commission, by such exchange or by any other regulatory body or governmental authority having jurisdiction; (ii) a banking moratorium shall have been declared by Federal or state authorities; (iii) the United States shall have become engaged in hostilities, there shall have been an escalation in hostilities involving the United States or there shall have been a declaration of a national emergency or war by the United States; or (iv) there shall have occurred such a material adverse change in general economic, political or financial conditions, including, without limitation, as a result of terrorist activities after the date hereof (or the effect of international conditions on the financial markets in the United States shall be such) as to make it, in the judgment of the Representative, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering or delivery of the Securities being delivered on the Closing Date on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus.

(l) The Securities shall be eligible for clearance and settlement through the Depositary Trust Company.

All opinions, letters, evidence and certificates mentioned above or elsewhere in this Agreement shall be deemed to be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

8. Representations, Warranties and Agreements of Underwriters. Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, agrees with the Company that:

(a) In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area (each, a “Relevant Member State”), it has not made and will not make an offer of the Securities to the public in that Relevant Member State that would require the publication or approval

of a prospectus in relation to the Securities in that Relevant Member State, or where appropriate, another Relevant Member State; subject to such restriction, it may make an offer of Securities to the public in that Relevant Member State at any time: (i) to legal entities that are authorized or regulated to operate in the financial markets or, if not so authorized or regulated, whose corporate purpose is solely to invest in securities; (ii) to any legal entity that has two or more of (1) an average of at least 250 employees during the last financial year; (2) a total balance sheet of more than €43,000,000 and (3) an annual net turnover of more than €50,000,000, as shown in its last annual or consolidated accounts; or (iii) in any other circumstances that do not require the publication by the Company or any Guarantor of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.

For purposes of this Section 8(a), the expression an “offer of Securities to the public” in relation to any Securities in any Relevant Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the Securities to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for the Securities, as the same may be varied in that Relevant Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Relevant Member State and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant Member State.

(b) It will comply with applicable laws and regulations in each jurisdiction in which it acquires, offers, sells or delivers Securities, or has in its possession or distributes any Free Writing Prospectus, any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus.

(c) It has only communicated or caused to be communicated and will only communicate or cause to be communicated an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the “FSMA”)) received by it in connection with the issue of sale of the Securities in circumstances in which Section 21(1) of the FSMA does not apply to us.

(d) It has complied and will comply with all applicable provisions of the FSMA with respect to anything done by it in relation to the Securities in, from or otherwise involving the United Kingdom.

9. Indemnification and Contribution.

(a) The Company and each Guarantor, jointly and severally, shall indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its directors, officers and employees and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act, from and against any loss, claim, damage or liability, joint or several, or any action in respect thereof (including, but not limited to, any loss, claim, damage, liability or action relating to purchases and sales of Securities), to which that Underwriter, director, officer, employee or controlling person may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in (A) the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration

Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or in any amendment or supplement thereto, (B) any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or (C) any “issuer information” (as defined in Rule 433) in any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405) with respect to whose use the Company has given its consent (“Permitted Issuer Information”) used or referred to in any “free writing prospectus” (as defined in Rule 405) used or referred to by any Underwriter, (D) any “road show” (as defined in Rule 433) not constituting an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (a “Non-Prospectus Road Show”) or (E) any Blue Sky application or other document prepared or executed by the Company (or based upon any written information furnished by the Company for use therein) specifically for the purpose of qualifying any or all of the Securities under the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction (any such application, document or information being hereinafter called a “Blue Sky Application”), (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Permitted Issuer Information, any Non-Prospectus Road Show or any Blue Sky Application, any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading or (iii) any act or failure to act or any alleged act or failure to act by any Underwriter in connection with, or relating in any manner to, the Securities or the offering contemplated hereby, and which is included as part of or referred to in any loss, claim, damage, liability or action arising out of or based upon matters covered by clause (i) or (ii) above (provided that the Company and the Guarantors shall not be liable under this clause (iii) to the extent that it is determined in a final judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction that such loss, claim, damage, liability or action resulted directly from any such acts or failures to act undertaken or omitted to be taken by such Underwriter through its gross negligence or willful misconduct), and shall reimburse each Underwriter and each such director, officer, employee or controlling person promptly upon demand for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by that Underwriter, director, officer, employee or controlling person in connection with investigating or defending or preparing to defend against any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred; provided, however, that the Company and the Guarantors shall not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any such amendment or supplement thereto or in any Permitted Issuer Information, any Non-Prospectus Road Show or any Blue Sky Application, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information concerning such Underwriter furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of any Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information consists solely of the information specified in Section 9(e). The foregoing indemnity agreement is in addition to any liability which the Company or the Guarantors may otherwise have to any Underwriter or to any director, officer, employee or controlling person of that Underwriter.

(b) Each Underwriter, severally and not jointly, shall indemnify and hold harmless the Company and the Guarantors, their officers and employees, each of their

directors, and each person, if any, who controls the Company or the Guarantors within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act, from and against any loss, claim, damage or liability, joint or several, or any action in respect thereof, to which the Company or the Guarantors or any such director, officer, employee or controlling person may become subject, under the Securities Act or otherwise, insofar as such loss, claim, damage, liability or action arises out of, or is based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show or Blue Sky Application, or (ii) the omission or alleged omission to state in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show or Blue Sky Application, any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, but in each case only to the extent that the untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in reliance upon and in conformity with written information concerning such Underwriter furnished to the Company through the Representative by or on behalf of that Underwriter specifically for inclusion therein, which information is limited to the information set forth in Section 9(e), and shall reimburse the Company or the Guarantors and any such director, officer, employee or controlling person for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Company or the Guarantors or any such director, officer, employee or controlling person in connection with investigating or defending or preparing to defend against any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action as such expenses are incurred. The foregoing indemnity agreement is in addition to any liability which any Underwriter may otherwise have to the Company or the Guarantors or any such director, officer, employee or controlling person.

(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under this Section 9 of notice of any claim or the commencement of any action, the indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under this Section 9, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the claim or the commencement of that action; provided, however, that the failure to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have under this Section 9 except to the extent it has been materially prejudiced by such failure and, provided further, that the failure to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have to an indemnified party otherwise than under this Section 9. If any such claim or action shall be brought against an indemnified party, and it shall notify the indemnifying party thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent that it wishes, jointly with any other similarly notified indemnifying party, to assume the defense thereof with counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party. After notice from the indemnifying party to the indemnified party of its election to assume the defense of such claim or action, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to the indemnified party under this Section 9 for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by the indemnified party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation; provided, however, that the Representative shall have the right to employ counsel to represent jointly the Representative and those other

Underwriters and their respective directors, officers, employees and controlling persons who may be subject to liability arising out of any claim in respect of which indemnity may be sought by the Underwriters against the Company or any Guarantors under this Section 9 if (i) the Company, the Guarantors and the Underwriters shall have so mutually agreed; (ii) the Company and the Guarantors have failed within a reasonable time to retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Underwriters; (iii) the Underwriters and their respective directors, officers, employees and controlling persons shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to them that are different from or in addition to those available to the Company and the Guarantors; or (iv) the named parties in any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the Underwriters or their respective directors, officers, employees or controlling persons, on the one hand, and the Company and the Guarantors, on the other hand, and representation of both sets of parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them, and in any such event the fees and expenses of such separate counsel shall be paid by the Company and the Guarantors. No indemnifying party shall (i) without the prior written consent of the indemnified parties (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld), settle or compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to any pending or threatened claim, action, suit or proceeding in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified parties are actual or potential parties to such claim or action) unless such settlement, compromise or consent includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all liability arising out of such claim, action, suit or proceeding and does not include any findings of fact or admissions of fault or culpability as to the indemnified party, or (ii) be liable for any settlement of any such action effected without its written consent (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld), but if settled with the consent of the indemnifying party or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff in any such action, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify and hold harmless any indemnified party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment.

(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 9 shall for any reason be unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under Section 9(a) or 9(b) in respect of any loss, claim, damage or liability, or any action in respect thereof, referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall, in lieu of indemnifying such indemnified party, contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, (i) in such proportion as shall be appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company and the Guarantors on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, from the offering of the Securities or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) above but also the relative fault of the Company and the Guarantors, on the one hand, and the Underwriters on the other with respect to the statements or omissions which resulted in such loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company and the Guarantors, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, with respect to such offering shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering of the Securities purchased

under this Agreement (before deducting expenses) received by the Company and the Guarantors, as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus, on the one hand, and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriter with respect to the Securities purchased under this Agreement, as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus, on the other hand. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company and the Guarantors or the Underwriter, the intent of the parties and their relative knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Company, the Guarantors and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this Section 9(d) were to be determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take into account the equitable considerations referred to herein. The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the loss, claim, damage or liability, or action in respect thereof, referred to above in this Section 9(d) shall be deemed to include, for purposes of this Section 9(d), any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 9(d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the net proceeds from the sale of the Securities underwritten by it exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise paid or become liable to pay by reason of any untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations to contribute as provided in this Section 9(d) are several in proportion to their respective underwriter obligations and not joint.

(e) The Underwriters severally confirm and the Company and each Guarantor acknowledges and agrees that the statements regarding delivery of the Securities by the Underwriters set forth on the cover page of, and the concession and reallowance figures appearing in the third paragraph, the information relating to stabilization by the Underwriters in the seventh paragraph, and the information contained in the ninth and eleventh paragraphs all appearing under the caption “Underwriting” in, the most recent Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus are correct and constitute the only information concerning such Underwriters furnished in writing to the Company by or on behalf of the Underwriters specifically for inclusion in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or in any amendment or supplement thereto or in any Non-Prospectus Road Show.

10. Defaulting Underwriters. If, on the Closing Date, any Underwriter defaults in the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated to purchase the Securities which the defaulting Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on the Closing Date in the respective proportions which the number of the Securities set opposite the name of each remaining non-defaulting Underwriter in Schedule I hereto bears

to the total number of the Securities set opposite the names of all the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters in Schedule I hereto; provided, however, that the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters shall not be obligated to purchase any of the Securities on the Closing Date if the total amount of Securities which the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on such date exceeds 9.09% of the total amount of Securities to be purchased on the Closing Date, and any remaining non-defaulting Underwriter shall not be obligated to purchase more than 110% of the amount of Securities which it agreed to purchase on the Closing Date pursuant to the terms of Section 3. If the foregoing maximums are exceeded, the remaining non-defaulting Underwriters, or those other underwriters satisfactory to the Underwriters who so agree, shall have the right, but shall not be obligated, to purchase, in such proportion as may be agreed upon among them, all the Securities to be purchased on the Closing Date. If the remaining Underwriters or other underwriters satisfactory to the Underwriters do not elect to purchase the Securities which the defaulting Underwriters or Underwriter agreed but failed to purchase on the Closing Date, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company or the Guarantors, except that the Company will continue to be liable for the payment of expenses to the extent set forth in Sections 6 and 12. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” includes, for all purposes of this Agreement unless the context requires otherwise, any party not listed in Schedule 1 hereto that, pursuant to this Section 12, purchases Securities that a defaulting Underwriter agreed but failed to purchase.

Nothing contained herein shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter of any liability it may have to the Company or the Guarantors for damages caused by its default. If other Underwriters are obligated or agree to purchase the Securities of a defaulting or withdrawing Underwriter, the Company may postpone the Closing Date for up to seven full business days in order to effect any changes that in the opinion of counsel for the Company or counsel for the Underwriter may be necessary in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or in any other document or arrangement.

11. Termination. The obligations of the Underwriters hereunder may be terminated by the Underwriters by notice given to and received by the Company prior to delivery of and payment for the Securities if, prior to that time, any of the events described in Sections 7(j) and 7(k), shall have occurred or if the Underwriters shall decline to purchase the Securities for any reason permitted under this Agreement.

12. Reimbursement of Underwriters’ Expenses. If the Company shall fail to tender the Securities for delivery to the Underwriters by reason of any failure, refusal or inability on the part of the Company or the Guarantors to perform any agreement on their part to be performed, or because any other condition of the obligations hereunder required to be fulfilled by the Company or the Guarantors is not fulfilled for any reason or the Underwriters shall decline to purchase the Securities for any reason permitted under this Agreement, the Company or the Guarantors will reimburse the Underwriters for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses (including the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel) incurred by the Underwriters in connection with this Agreement and the proposed purchase of the Securities, and upon demand the Company or the Guarantors shall pay the full amount thereof to the Underwriters. If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 10 by reason of the default of one or more Underwriters, the Company or the Guarantors shall not be obligated to reimburse any Underwriter on account of those expenses.

13. Research Analyst Independence. Each of the Company and the Guarantors acknowledges that the Underwriters’ research analysts and research departments are required to be independent from their respective investment banking divisions and are subject to certain regulations and internal policies, and that such Underwriters’ research analysts may hold views and make statements or investment recommendations and/or publish research reports with respect to the Company and/or the offering that differ from the views of their respective investment banking divisions. Each of the Company and the Guarantors hereby waives and releases, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any claims that the Company or the Guarantors may have against the Underwriters with respect to any conflict of interest that may arise from the fact that the views expressed by their independent research analysts and research departments may be different from or inconsistent with the views or advice communicated to the Company or the Guarantors by such Underwriters’ investment banking divisions. Each of the Company and the Guarantors acknowledges that each of the Underwriters is a full service securities firm and as such from time to time, subject to applicable securities laws, may effect transactions for its own account or the account of its customers and hold long or short positions in debt or equity securities of the companies that may be the subject of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

14. No Fiduciary Duty. Each of the Company and the Guarantors acknowledges and agrees that in connection with this offering, sale of the Securities or any other services the Underwriters may be deemed to be providing hereunder, notwithstanding any preexisting relationship, advisory or otherwise, between the parties or any oral representations or assurances previously or subsequently made by the Underwriters: (i) no fiduciary or agency relationship between the Company, the Guarantors and any other person, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, exists; (ii) the Underwriters are not acting as advisors, expert or otherwise, to any of the Company or the Guarantors, including, without limitation, with respect to the determination of the public offering price of the Securities, and such relationship between the Company and the Guarantors, on the one hand, and the Underwriters, on the other, is entirely and solely commercial, based on arms-length negotiations; (iii) any duties and obligations that the Underwriters may have to the Company or the Guarantors shall be limited to those duties and obligations specifically stated herein; and (iv) the Underwriters and their respective affiliates may have interests that differ from those of the Company and the Guarantors. Each of the Company and the Guarantors hereby waives any claims that the Company or the Guarantors may have against the Underwriters with respect to any breach of fiduciary duty in connection with this offering.

15. Notices, etc. All statements, requests, notices and agreements hereunder shall be in writing, and:

(a) if to the Underwriters, shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to Lehman Brothers Inc., 745 Seventh Avenue, New York, New York 10019, Attention: Fixed Income Syndicate (Fax: 212 ###-###-####), with a copy to the General Counsel at the same address;

(b) if to the Company, shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to the address of the Company set forth in the Registration Statement, Attention: Grace R. den Hartog, Esq. (Fax: (804) ###-###-####); with a copy to C. Porter Vaughan, III, Esq., Hunton & Williams LLP, Riverfront Plaza – East Tower, 951 East Byrd Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219 (Fax: (804) ###-###-####);

provided, however, that any notice to an Underwriter pursuant to Section 9(c) shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to such Underwriter at its address set forth in its acceptance telex to Lehman Brothers, which address will be supplied to any other party hereto by Lehman Brothers upon request. Any such statements, requests, notices or agreements shall take effect at the time of receipt thereof. The Company shall be entitled to act and rely upon any request, consent, notice or agreement given or made on behalf of the Underwriters by Lehman Brothers.

16. Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Underwriters, the Company, the Guarantors and their respective successors. This Agreement and the terms and provisions hereof are for the sole benefit of only those persons, except that (A) the representations, warranties, indemnities and agreements of the Company and the Guarantors contained in this Agreement shall also be deemed to be for the benefit of the directors, officers and employees of the Underwriters and each person or persons, if any, who control any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act and (B) the indemnity agreement of the Underwriters contained in Section 9(b) of this Agreement shall be deemed to be for the benefit of directors of the Company, officers of the Company, the employees of the Company and any person controlling the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act. Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any person, other than the persons referred to in this Section 16, any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision contained herein.

17. Survival. The respective indemnities, representations, warranties and agreements of the Company, the Guarantors and the Underwriters contained in this Agreement or made by or on behalf on them, respectively, pursuant to this Agreement, shall survive the delivery of and payment for the Securities and shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of any of them or any person controlling any of them.

18. Definition of the Terms “Business Day” and “Subsidiary.” For purposes of this Agreement, (a) “business day” means any day on which the New York Stock Exchange, Inc. is open for trading and (b) “subsidiary” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.

19. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

20. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts and, if executed in more than one counterpart, the executed counterparts shall each be deemed to be an original but all such counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument.

21. Headings. The headings herein are inserted for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement.

If the foregoing correctly sets forth the agreement among the Company, the Guarantors, and the Underwriters, please indicate your acceptance in the space provided for that purpose below.


Very truly yours,

OWENS & MINOR, INC.

By		/s/ Craig R. Smith
Name:		Craig R. Smith
Title:		President & Chief Executive Officer

OWENS & MINOR DISTRIBUTION, INC.
OWENS & MINOR MEDICAL, INC.
ACCESS DIABETIC SUPPLY, LLC
OWENS & MINOR HEALTHCARE SUPPLY, INC.

By		/s/ Craig R. Smith
Name:		Craig R. Smith
Title:		President & Chief Executive Officer


Accepted:

LEHMAN BROTHERS INC.
For itself and as Representative of the several Underwriters named in Schedule 1 hereto

By:		/s/ Allen B. Cutler
		Authorized Representative