RIVERSIDE, Calif. – June 28, 2001 -- Bourns, Inc., a leading manufacturer of electronic components and integrated solutions, today announced they are the recipients of the 2001 Kent Electronics’ Passive Supplier of the Year award.

This prestigious award is given annually to the passive component company achieving superior sales and customer service support. Kent’s distributor branches were polled to ascertain which companies provided the greatest amount of customer support and training while handling customer service requests in the most expeditious manner. Bourns was recognized from more than 30 companies represented as Kent’s fastest growing product line in the passive component commodity, and acknowledged for their continued sales growth year after year.

Bourns works hard to maintain their relationships with distributors,” said Patricia Moorman, Vice President of Worldwide Distributor Sales. “We are committed to providing a level of customer service unparalleled in the industry. Kent Electronics is a pleasure to work with, and we are delighted to be the recipients of this award.”
Kent Electronics, which was acquired by Avnet in June 2001, presents the Supplier of the Year award each spring.

About Bourns, Inc.:
Bourns, Inc. is the leading manufacturer of Trimming Potentiometers, Precision Potentiometers, Panel Controls, Encoders, Modular Contacts, Switches, and Resistor/ Capacitor Networks. Bourns also sells Chip Resistors, Chip Arrays and Inductive Components. Bourns produces an extensive line of PPTC Resettable Fuses, Line-feed Surge Networks, and thyristor-based overvoltage protectors, which are part of its Circuit Protection product offering. Headquartered in Riverside, CA, Bourns serves a broad range of markets, including telecommunications, computer, industrial, instrumentation, automotive, consumer, medical, audio and various other market segments. Bourns’ products are manufactured according to ISO-9000 and QS-9000 standards under Six Sigma quality programs. For more information, contact Bourns’ corporate headquarters at 1200 Columbia Avenue, Riverside, Calif. 92507. Phone: (909) 781-5500; Fax: (909) 781-5006; URL: .