Advantek Selects Expand To Boost Access To Critical J.D. Edwards And Citrix Applications.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

ROSELAND, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 27, 2003

Packaging Manufacturer Slashes Annual WAN Costs

by 20% With ACCELERATORs

Expand Networks, a leader in the field of bandwidth optimization technology, today announced that Advantek, Inc., the premier manufacturer of surface mount packaging materials for the electronic industry, has deployed Expand Networks' ACCELERATOR 4800 and 2800 Series to boost branch office access of critical networked ERP, and Thin Client applications.

Advantek uses a frame relay network to connect branch offices throughout the United States, Europe and Asia Pacific. Networked supply chain management, worldwide inventory control and effective cost management are at the heart of Advantek's global manufacturing and distribution operation. Advantek's Wide Area Network (WAN) team is responsible for ensuring reliable and quick remote access to J.D. Edwards OneWorld(R) via Citrix while maintaining a stringent handle on costs.

CompuNet, a leading network solutions provider, which implemented Expand's ACCELERATORs at Advantek, had initially introduced the manufacturer to only bandwidth management solutions. "What was absolutely crucial was an overall increase in WAN capacity at a much lower cost," said Tony Morris, Director of Sales at CompuNet. "Traffic prioritization alone did not solve Advantek's problem. It was therefore an easy decision for Advantek to invest in Expand's ACCELERATORs because they combine WAN capacity increases with application prioritization capabilities."

"Advantek planned on a substantial network infrastructure investment to support the roll out of the JDEdward's Oneworld ERP system in our Asian and European offices," said Dan Ramaekers, Director of Information Services at Advantek. "With the use of the Expand ACCELERATORs, we were pleased to not only avoid additional network infrastructure costs, but to actually reduce costs as well as improve network access to our JDEdwards' system."

"Advantek joins the ranks of dozens of other manufacturers that have deployed the ACCELERATORs to improve the productivity of remote supply chain management," said Zohar Pearl, CEO at Expand Networks. "Among recent product enhancements that will positively impact this market, is Expand's Instant QoS which combines WAN expansion with end-to-end link prioritization in a single device at no extra cost to the end-user."

About Advantek

Advantek, headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, was founded in 1978 as the exclusive United States agent and distributor of a wide range of electronic equipment for European and Asian interests. In the early 1980's, during the movement toward surface mount population of printed circuit boards, Advantek began the manufacturing of embossed "carrier tape" and packaging equipment for surface mount components. Today, Advantek is the premier manufacturer of surface mount packaging materials for the electronic and other industries.

About Expand Networks

Expand Networks pioneered the development of bandwidth boosting appliances - the ACCELERATORs - which increase network capacity by 100 -400+%. The ACCELERATORs eliminate the need for costly WAN link upgrades, enabling quicker deployments of new applications to remote offices. Networked applications such as CRM, Email, ERP, Thin Client and XML increase the strain on scarce WAN resources, often hindering productivity. By removing repeat data patterns found in any type of traffic, the ACCELERATORs provide important bandwidth savings. The end-result is the decrease in network congestion, which in turn speeds up data transfers. Expand Networks allows enterprises to support more networked users, applications and services with fewer resources delivering a typical ROI of 3 to 9 months. Clients include: Motorola, Texas Instruments, Hitachi Capital and the United States Department of Defense. Expand Networks is headquartered in Roseland, New Jersey and Tel Aviv, Israel with offices throughout the United States, United Kingdom, and Italy. To learn more, visit www.expand.com or call [phone].

Expand Networks, ACCELERATOR 6800, ACCELERATOR 4800, ACCELERATOR 4002, ACCELERATOR 4000, ACCELERATOR 2800, ACCELERATOR 2750 and ACCELERATOR 1800 are trademarks of Expand Networks, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.