H O N I N D U S T R I E S I n c . a n d S U B S I D I A R I E S R E P O R T O F I N D E P E N D E N T A U D I T O R S Predecessor Auditor (Arthur Andersen LLP) Opinion To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of HON INDUSTRIES Inc.  59 The following report is a copy of a report previously issued by Arthur Andersen LLP and has not been reissued by Arthur Andersen LLP. In 2002,  the corporation adopted the provisions of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (SFAS  No. 142). As discussed in the Goodwill and Intangible Assets note, the Company has presented the transitional disclosures for 2001 required by  SFAS No. 142. The Arthur Andersen LLP report does not extend to these changes to the 2001 consolidated financial statements. The adjustments  to the 2001 consolidated financial statements were reported on by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as stated in their report appearing herein.  We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of HON INDUSTRIES Inc. and Subsidiaries as of December 29, 2001,  December 30, 2000*, and January 1, 2000*, and the related consolidated statements of income, shareholders equity, and cash flows for each of  the fiscal years then ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an  opinion on these financial statements based on our audits.  We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States. Those standards require that  we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit  includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing  the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.  We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.  In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of  HON INDUSTRIES Inc. and Subsidiaries as of December 29, 2001, December 30, 2000*, and January 1, 2000*, and the results of its operations  and its cash flows for each of the three fiscal years then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States.  Arthur Andersen LLP  Chicago, Illinois February 1, 2002  *The December 30, 2000, and January 1, 2000, consolidated financial statements are not required to be presented in the 2003 annual report.