Andrew Corporation Wins Contract to Supply a Distributed Communications System for Madrid Metro.

Business Editors

ORLAND PARK, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 7, 2001

Andrew Corporation today announced that it was selected by the Madrid Metro as the supplier of a distributed communications system to support TETRA and GSM 900/1800 communications within the public areas of the airport line metro stations and adjoining running tunnels. The new system can also be upgraded for future UMTS technology, the next generation of mobile communications. The system is scheduled to be installed and operational by July 2001.

The newly installed system will provide improved wireless communications for the Madrid Metro's existing Mar de Cristal, Campo de las Naciones (site of the Juan Carlos I Exhibition Center), Barajas Aeropuerto (Madrid's International Airport), and Barajas Pueblo stations and their adjoining commuter tunnels. These stations are along Line 8, one of the Metro's busiest commuter lines, bringing around 42,000 travelers a day from the airport to the city center. The Madrid Metro is also constructing a six-kilometer extension to Line 8 that will enable commuters to travel to the newly constructed Nuevos Ministerios station in the heart of the city.

The new distributed communications system is being installed as part of the Madrid Metro Expansion project, a US $1.4 billion scheme that was begun in 1995 to extend the network and create new lines and stations equipped with the latest technological advances for the safety and comfort of metro travelers. The Madrid Metro will use this new system to provide passengers with unified access to all the existing TETRA, GSM 900, and GSM 1800 cellular public services of carriers such as Telefonica, Airtel, Amena, and Dolphin. Metrocall, the recently founded joint venture between the Madrid Metro and the Tecnocom Group, will operate the common underground cellular infrastructure. When completed in 2003, the expansion project will make Madrid's metro network one of the largest in the world.

The Madrid Metro distributed communications system will include almost 20 kilometers of Andrew new tuned RCT7-LTCPUS RADIAX(R) radiating coaxial cable, 19 fiber-fed amplifiers, and 4 base station combiners. Andrew Corporation is responsible for the total RF design, testing and integration of the system from the point of interface between the base transceiver stations to the mobile phones, while the firm of ISOLUX Wat will be responsible for installing the system according to the requirements of the Madrid Metro.

With traffic congestion gradually getting worse, creating deteriorating air quality and increased traffic noise, the ambitious expansion of the Madrid Metro was a real necessity for Greater Madrid. By extending and creating lines and new stations and providing better communications for the safety and convenience of passengers, the Metro is encouraging Madrid's commuters to abandon their cars in favor of the Metro. The new distributed communications system plays a critical part in making commuting on the Madrid Metro a safe, comfortable, and convenient experience.

Andrew Corporation is a global supplier of communications systems equipment and services. Major markets are wireless communications - which includes cellular, personal communications services, and land mobile radio - broadcast, and common carrier. Andrew is an S&P 500 company whose common stock trades on The Nasdaq Stock Market (R) under the symbol:ANDW.

For further information on Andrew products and services, including the text of this release, visit our Web site at http//:www.andrew.com

RADIAX is a registered trademark of Andrew Corporation