Richard A. Aurelio Elected to Additional Post of Chairman of Varian Semiconductor's Board.

Business and Technology Editors

GLOUCESTER, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 20, 2001

Ernest L. Godshalk Promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer;

Joins Board of Directors;

Robert J. Halliday Named Chief Financial Officer

The Board of Directors of Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ: VSEA) today announced the retirement of chairman J. Tracy O'Rourke and the election of chief executive officer Richard A. Aurelio to the additional post of chairman. The board promoted current chief financial officer Ernest L. Godshalk to the newly created position of president and chief operating officer and elected him a director of the company. The board also named Robert J. Halliday vice president and chief financial officer. All appointments are effective immediately.

O'Rourke was chairman of Varian Associates' board and its chief executive officer from 1990 until his retirement from the board in 1999. He has been chairman of Varian Semiconductor since the company's spin-off from Varian Associates in April 1999. "We thank Tracy for his long and dedicated service," Aurelio said. "He has been an enormous positive influence on the growth of our technology and our business, giving generously of his time and energy."

O'Rourke said, "Dick Aurelio is ideally suited to take over the additional leadership role as chairman of Varian Semiconductor's board. His sharp strategic focus, along with a cutting edge background in ion implant technology and the skills that build great businesses, has already served the company well. I wish him continued success."

Aurelio joined the predecessor Varian Associates from a position as executive vice president of Holland's ASM Lithography, where he was also president of its U.S. affiliate. He was hired as president of the semiconductor equipment business in 1991 and was elevated to executive vice president of Varian Associates in 1992. He became president and chief executive of Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates at the time of its spin-off from Varian Associates in April 1999.

Aurelio welcomed both Godshalk and Halliday to their new posts. "Ernie has worked tirelessly on both operational and financial challenges since joining our team shortly before our spin-off," Aurelio commented. "His proven ability to energize others and work through the tough questions that arise in a manufacturing environment, and his attention to customer needs, will be tremendous assets in his new position."

Godshalk joined Varian Associates as vice president of finance of the semiconductor equipment business in 1998. Prior to joining the company, he was managing director of Elgin Management Group (an investment company), a position he held from 1993 to 1996 and again in 1998. Mr. Godshalk was chief financial officer of Prodigy Communications Corporation from 1996 to 1998.

Commenting on Halliday's appointment as chief financial officer, Aurelio said, "Bob brings more than 20 years of financial leadership and information technology experience to our team. His global perspective and record of working with growth businesses in the high technology sector are valuable assets for us," Aurelio said.

Halliday holds an MBA from the Wharton School of Finance and is a Certified Public Accountant, as well as a member of the Financial Executives Institute. In addition to working in public accounting, Halliday has worked for a number of public technology companies, including Ionics (NYSE: ION), where he was chief financial officer for 10 years, Symbolics, Inc. and Millipore Corporation.

About Varian Semiconductor

Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates is a leading producer of ion implantation equipment used in the manufacture of semiconductors. The company is headquartered in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and operates worldwide. Varian Semiconductor maintains a web site at www.vsea.com. The information contained in our web site is not incorporated by reference into this release, and our web site address is included in this release as an inactive textual reference only.

Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For this purpose, the statements concerning the company's intention to repurchase shares of its common stock from time to time under the stock repurchase program and the intended use of any repurchased shares are forward-looking statements. There are a number of important factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those suggested or indicated by such forward-looking statements. These include, among others, the market price of the company's stock prevailing from time to time, the nature of other investment opportunities presented to the company from time to time, the company's cash flows from operations, general economic conditions, and other factors identified in the company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, and the most recent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company cannot guarantee any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievement. The company undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release.