Flow International Corporation Announces It Will Not Acquire OMAX Corporation and...

Flow International Corporation Announces It Will Not Acquire OMAX Corporation
and That It Has Added New Distributors

KENT, Wash., May 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Flow International Corporation
(Nasdaq: FLOW), the world's leading developer and manufacturer of industrial
waterjet machines for cutting and cleaning applications, announced today that
it would not exercise its option to acquire OMAX Corporation.

Charley Brown, President and CEO of Flow said, "After a thorough review of our
financing alternatives, and discussions with OMAX Corporation about modifying
the terms of the transaction, we have decided that acquiring OMAX would be
excessively dilutive to Flow shareholders."

Flow and OMAX agreed on March 10, 2009 to amend the terms of their merger
agreement changing Flow's opportunity to acquire OMAX from an obligation to an
option exercisable by Flow, and agreeing to a release of merger related
litigation if the acquisition did not close. Flow anticipates charges
consistent with its previous disclosures in connection with its decision not
to complete the transaction.

Flow separately announced today that it recently established a significant
network of new distributors, building the foundation of a new channel of
distribution to complement its industry-leading direct sales channel.
"Consistent with our strategy to increase our reach and enhance the
availability of waterjets across all market segments, we are building an
additional distribution channel globally, initially signing on eight leading
distributors in North America alone. These distributors will have access to
the full range of Flow's standard products, and we look forward to the
increased market penetration they will provide," said Jeff Hohman, Executive
Vice President of Flow.

Conference Call
As previously announced, Flow plans to hold a conference call to discuss this
announcement on Tuesday, May 12 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time (8:00 a.m. Pacific
Time). The conference call may be heard by dialing 1-877-941-7133 or
1-480-629-9818. A 48-hour replay will be available following the call by
dialing 1-800-406-7325 or 1-303-590-3030; the replay passcode is 4072981. A
live audio Webcast of the conference call may be found in the investor section
at www.flowcorp.com. A Webcast replay of the call will also be available for
two weeks.

About Flow International
Flow International Corporation is the world's leading developer and
manufacturer of ultrahigh-pressure waterjet technology for cutting and
cleaning. Flow provides state-of-the-art ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) technology
to numerous industries including automotive, aerospace, job shop, surface
preparation, food and dozens more. For more information, visit
www.flowcorp.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to future
events or future financial performance that involve risks and uncertainties.
The words "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," variations of such
words, and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements but their
absence does not mean that the statement is not forward-looking. These
statements are only predictions and actual results could differ materially
from those anticipated in these statements based on a number of risk factors,
including those set forth in the April 30, 2008 Flow International Corporation
Form 10-K Report, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-
looking statements in this press release include, without limitation,
statements regarding increased market penetration. Readers are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements that speak only as
of the date of this announcement.
Contact:
Flow Investor Relations Flow Media Relations
Geoffrey Buscher Lisa Brandli
253-813-3286 425-653-1237
investors@flowcorp.com lbrandli@flowcorp.com

SOURCE Flow International Corporation

Investor Relations, Geoffrey Buscher, +1-253-813-3286, investors@flowcorp.com;
or Media Relations, Lisa Brandli, +1-425-653-1237, lbrandli@flowcorp.com, both
of Flow International Corporation