INGRAM MICRO TO DISTRIBUTE 5E STRUCTURED CABLING SYSTEM FOR GIGABIT NETWORKING OVER COPPER
Ingram Micro partners with Prestolite Wire, MOD-TAP to distribute solution to more than 40,000 domestic resellers.

SANTA ANA, Calif., Oct. 21, 1998
Ingram Micro Inc., the world's leading wholesale distributor of technology products and services, today announced that it has partnered with Prestolite Wire Corporation and MOD-TAP to distribute a complete Category 5e structured cabling system.

Ingram Micro will offer the end-to-end warranted solution consisting of Prestolite's 55E' data cable and PowerCat' wall outlets, connector modules, and IDC patching. The system conforms to the forthcoming Category 5e standard that the industry-standards body, IEEE, will recommend for first-generation gigabit networking systems over copper. The solution is backward-compatible with existing copper-based networking standards. Prestolite's 55E' solution demonstrates the convergence of the Category 5 standard with the Category 5e standard, to form one solution that meets both.

"With voice and data technology convergence, a 5e solution just makes sense," said Laura Skinner, vice president and general manager of Ingram Micro's Telecom Integration Division. "It is a single solution for our resellers, which covers all existing applications, from telephony to gigabit Ethernet, without paying a premium for advanced technology."

"Prestolite's 55E' cable is a natural response to the forthcoming Category 5e standard," said Preston Speers, vice president and general manager of Prestolite Wire. "Consumers now have the 5e standard to reference when they upgrade to gigabit networks. The 55E' solution makes that migration painless. Prestolite Wire's investment in world-class technology enabled us to bring 55E' to our customers very quickly."

"The solution emphasizes performance, quality and value in a structured cabling system," said Peter Evans, general manager, MOD-TAP, Americas division. "It is intended to make structured cabling decisions simple and standards-based."

About Prestolite Wire Corp.
Prestolite Wire Corp., headquartered in Southfield, Mich., is a leading designer and manufacturer of specialty wire and cable products for the data communication market, including the most advanced unshielded twisted pair and fiber-optic cables available. Prestolite Wire serves a diverse global customer base with high-quality, innovative products designed to exceed customer expectations. A recently completed multimillion dollar plant-capacity expansion and process control investment gives Prestolite the most advanced technology available. Visit Prestolite Wire.

About MOD-TAP
MOD-TAP, headquartered in Harvard, Mass., designs and manufactures structured cabling systems and components, offering complete end-to-end solutions for physical layer networking. MOD-TAP services and supports the communication requirements of end users worldwide, with manufacturing operations in Manchester, N.H., England, Poland and Australia, and sales offices in 15 countries. MOD-TAP is a wholly owned subsidiary of Molex Inc., a global manufacturer of electronic, electrical, fiber-optic interconnection systems and products. MOD-TAP strives toward the highest level of manufacturing and services for the global multimedia structured cabling market. Visit MOD-TAP.

About Ingram Micro Inc.
Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE:IM), headquartered in Santa Ana, Calif., is the world's leading wholesale distributor of technology products and services, and a leading provider of assembly and integration services, with sales of $19.3 billion for the past four quarters. The company and its affiliates operate in 31 countries and distribute more than 145,000 products to more than 100,000 resellers in 120 countries.

Contacts:

Kirsten Frosh
Ingram Micro Inc.
(714) 382-2727

William Fetter
Prestolite Wire
(248) 386-4439

Kevin Lynch
MOD-TAP
(516) 777-8600, ext. 3400