General Cable Announces G10X™ Laser Optimized Optical Fiber for 10-Gigabit Ethernet Protocol

Highland Heights, KY, August 8, 2002 - General Cable announces the release of the newest addition to the NextGen™ Brand of G-Series multimode fiber – G10X. This 50-micron glass fiber allows for 10 Gb/s serial transmission over 300 meters at 850nm as specified in IEEE 802.3ae. Available across the entire line of NextGen fiber optic cables, this product provides guaranteed performance for 10 Gigabit Ethernet transmission while maintaining backward compatibility with existing networks.

"G10X provides a flexible solution, providing a migration path from LED-based protocols to laser-based networks of today and tomorrow," said Cedric Lindsay, Director of Marketing for the NextGen Brand. "The 10Gb/s technology extends the speed of Ethernet operation from 10 Mbps to 10,000 Mbps effectively linking Ethernet local area networks (LANs) to municipal and wide area networks (MANs and WANs). G10X meets the IEEE 802.3ae, ANSI/TIA/EIA-568-B.3 and ATM industry standards providing high-speed longer distance Ethernet links at very competitive costs."

General Cable manufactures the NextGen Brand of fiber optic cables. All of the cable products are engineered in accordance with such industry standards as Telcordia Technologies GR-20, GR-409, ICEA and RUS (REA PE-90), and listed by UL as compliant with NEC and verified to TIA/EIA-568-B.3 by ETL. The Company provides a full menu of fiber optic cables for data, voice and video networks ranging from tight buffer and armored products for military applications to loose tube and hybrid cables for communications networks including the advanced Blolite™ blown fiber systems for local area networks and campus applications.

General Cable (NYSE: BGC), headquartered in Highland Heights, Kentucky, is a leader in the development, design, manufacture, marketing and distribution of copper, aluminum and fiber optic wire and cable products for the communications, energy, industrial and specialty markets. The Company offers competitive strengths in such areas as breadth of product line, brand recognition, distribution and logistics, sales and service and operating efficiency. Communications wire and cable products transmit low-voltage signals for voice, data, video and control applications. Energy cables include low-, medium- and high-voltage power distribution and power transmission products. The Industrial and Specialty Segment is comprised of application-specific cables for uses such as electrical power generation (traditional fuels, alternative and renewable sources, and distributed generation), the oil, gas and petrochemical industries, mining, industrial automation, marine, military and aerospace applications, power applications in the telecommunications industry, and other key industrial segments. Visit our website at www.GeneralCable.com.

Release No. 0397
08/08/02