Electroglas ranked as one of World's 10 BEST suppliers.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 19, 1996--Electroglas Inc. (NASDAQ:EGLS), a market leading supplier of automatic wafer probing systems to the worldwide semiconductor industry, today announced that, for the fifth year in a row, it has received the VLSI Research Inc. 10 BEST Award in the category of Test & Material Handling Equipment.

The company rose three notches from last year's ranking to place fourth in VLSI Research's annual customer satisfaction survey.

Commenting on the company's repeat appearance in the 10 BEST, VLSI Research Chief Executive Officer Jerry D. Hutcheson noted, "Electroglas has continued to emphasize customer service and satisfaction in a booming market, implementing new programs and facilities to expand its global reach. The company's performance in our annual survey reflects this ongoing customer focus."

In 1995, Electroglas established new customer service facilities in Singapore and Korea, adding to its network of satellite offices throughout Southeast Asia. In addition, the company initiated the process of consolidating and strengthening its customer operations activities to ensure localized customer service and support worldwide.

While pursuing certification under the Communite Europe (CE) product safety program, Electroglas has implemented an internal product training program that provides in-depth training for its global field support and engineering personnel on the company's entire product line. Conducted by Jack Gale, Electroglas' internal training manager, the program also includes pre-training on soon-to-be-introduced products.

Electroglas CEO Curt Wozniak noted, "In today's environment of global competition, you can't lose sight of your customers and their needs because they are ultimately what determines your success. This award is one of the highest honors Electroglas can receive because it indicates customer recognition of our efforts to provide high-quality, reliable products backed by strong service and support."

The 10 BEST Award is presented annually by VLSI Research to companies rated by customers as the 10 best in each of five equipment categories: Small Suppliers of Process Equipment (those with sales less than $300 million), Large Suppliers of Process Equipment (those with sales greater than $300 million).

Assembly & Specialty Equipment, Process Diagnostic Equipment and Test & Material Handling Equipment. VLSI Research sends out more than 54,000 questionnaires worldwide in six different languages.

Survey respondents rate companies on a 10-point scale across eight criteria, including three measures of equipment performance -- product performance, uptime and quality of results -- and five measures of customer service: process support, software support, technical leadership, service after sales, and overall commitment to supporting customers' needs.

Of these performance categories, Electroglas' ratings improved in the areas of service after sales, quality of results, uptime and overall commitment. According to VLSI Research, customer comments most frequently centered on the excellent performance of Electroglas equipment and the strong service orientation of its personnel.

VLSI Research Inc., a market research company located in Silicon Valley, is generally recognized as the leading company covering semiconductor capital equipment.

Founded in 1976, VLSI Research's principal purpose in performing the annual customer satisfaction surveys is to provide a report card on individual suppliers to promote improved customer relationships and to identify issues and trends that are most sensitive to customers' needs.

About Electroglas: Founded in 1960, Electroglas Inc. is a world-leading supplier of the automated wafer-probing products that semiconductor manufacturers rely on to sort and classify integrated circuits. The company's products position semiconductor devices that are still in wafer form under contact probes to facilitate accurate, rapid, reliable testing, and manage information collected during the testing process.

CONTACT: Electroglas Inc.

Yolanda Ruiz, 408/727-6500

or

MCA Inc.

Lisa Gillette, 415/968-8900

or

VLSI Research Inc.

Lisa Steele, 408/453-8844