Cupertino Electric Adds Two New Directors; Fluor Executive and Former Cisco Director Round Out Strong CEI Board.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 2, 2001

Cupertino Electric, Inc. announced today the addition of two new members to its board of directors, Robert L. Puette and James O. Rollans. Cupertino Electric, a total power and energy solutions company, is one of the largest privately held electrical contracting companies in the U.S.

Mr. Rollans is president and chief executive officer of Fluor Signature Services, and former chief financial officer of Fluor Corporation. Robert L. Puette is the former president and chief operating officer of Centigram Communications Corporation, and NetFrame Systems Inc. He formerly was president of Apple USA, and group general manager of the Personal Computer division of Hewlett-Packard, Inc.

James S. Ryley, president and CEO of Cupertino Electric said, "The addition of Jim Rollans and Bob Puette to our board brings vast experience and proven sound judgment to Cupertino Electric, and is a testament to the strength of our company and our continuing commitment to be the very best electrical, data infrastructure, and energy solutions provider in the country."

Mr. Rollans brings decades of experience in operations with him to the board, as well as a strong background in the construction industry. In addition, Mr. Rollans has expertise in offshore construction contractor operations, and has an excellent background in corporate finance through his many years as CFO of a public multibillion-dollar construction and engineering company. He is currently a director of Fluor Corporation, Lafayette Pharmaceutical, Inc., Flowserve Corporation, and the Irvine Medical Center. Mr. Rollans has held senior executive positions with Dart & Kraft, BF Goodrich, Chase Manhattan Bank and Singer Corporation.

"Cupertino Electric enjoys all the ingredients of a successful services company: a proud and well-deserved heritage, excellent leadership, talented and motivated employees, and financial staying power," said Mr. Rollans. "The future looks very bright and I'm honored to serve as a director."

Mr. Puette is currently a director on the boards of three private companies and was formerly a member of the board of directors of Cisco Systems, where he served as chairman of the compensation committee and a member of the audit and acquisition committee. Mr. Puette is also chairman of the Northwestern University engineering advisory board. Mr. Puette's strong Silicon Valley background will aid Cupertino Electric in the development of its next sectors of new technology usage and applications.

Mr. Puette noted, "Cupertino Electric has had 47 years of steady growth and profitability, and is known to be a pioneer in new areas of energy technology. I'm excited to be a part of a company like Cupertino, particularly today as it is poised to take advantage of the opportunities in the new field of distributed generation for highly reliable electrical power."

Financial Results for First Quarter 2001 and Year-end 2000

Cupertino Electric also announced the following financial milestones for year-end 2000 and first quarter 2001:

-- For year-end December 31, 2000, Cupertino Electric enjoyed 129% revenue
growth and 120% earnings growth (EBITDA) over the previous year. Revenue for
the year 2000 grew to more than $746 million and earnings (EBITDA) grew to over
$63 million.

-- Total revenue for the first quarter ending March 31, 2001, increased 62%
over the first quarter of 2000 and earnings (EBITDA) are up 52% over the
comparable quarter a year ago.

Cupertino Electric also reached the following important goals during fiscal year 2000:

-- Raised new equity capital from BancAmerica Capital Investors

and TA Associates, two of the country's leading private

investment firms.

-- Raised $175 million in new credit facilities to fund its

operations growth and future acquisition needs from a

consortium of banks including the Bank of America, Fleet Bank,

IBM Credit Corporation, Cupertino National Bank and National

City Bank.

-- Provided equity participation in Cupertino Electric, Inc. to

nearly 500 employees.

-- Launched the Energy Group, an initiative to meet customers'

needs in the areas of highly reliable, premium power and

distributed power generation, as a solution to the current

unreliable electric power supply.

-- Strengthened the Network Systems Group to meet the growing

infrastructure demands of the telecommunications and

voice/data/video market.

-- Expanded the engineering and management staff to now employ

more than 3,000.

-- Achieved coveted ISO 9001 status in record time to support the

company's commitment to quality and reliability.

Commenting on these results, president and CEO Jim Ryley said, "Our goal is to be the very best and strongest company in the electrical and data infrastructure business. Over the past year, our people have proven what we can do -- deliver a record number of complicated jobs reliably and with high quality. In the first three months of this year, we have continued to grow strongly from where we were a year ago."

Gene Ryley, chief operating officer, added, "We have had tremendous growth over the past decade, and have put an infrastructure into place that thrives on growth."

Ann Hayes, managing director of BankAmerica Capital Investors, noted, "We are proud to be a part of the Cupertino Electric team as a shareholder and a lender. It is a great company."

Roger Kafker, managing director of TA Associates, stated, "TA is particularly excited about Cupertino's expansion into the design, project management and construction of complex distributed energy projects to meet the needs of California's technology and medical community."

About Cupertino Electric, Inc.

Founded in 1954, Cupertino Electric Inc. (www.cei.com) provides total power and energy solutions, including backup energy systems and on-site permanent distributed electrical power generation facilities. Cupertino Electric is a leading provider of sophisticated electrical infrastructure solutions that deliver high quality, reliable power and speed-to-market for technology companies and other critical-use facilities and applications. Cupertino Electric's customers include leading corporations and institutions in technology-dependent markets, including the computer, Internet, semiconductor, software, telecommunications, and biotechnology industries. Cupertino Electric has a comprehensive engineering and design staff including more than 75 experienced project managers and 3,000 skilled union electricians. Cupertino clients include Hewlett Packard, Intel, Microsoft and Oracle Corporation.

Safe Harbor 

This press release may contain forward-looking statements concerning the company's anticipated future operating results, future revenues and earnings or adequacy of future cash flow. (These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements containing the words "expect," "believe," "will," "may," "should," "project," "estimate" and like expressions, and the negative thereof.) These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements, including the risks attendant to a growing business in a new industry as well as those risks described in the company's recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.