ST. PAUL, MN -- Pentair, Inc. (NYSE: PNR) significantly increased its penetration of fast-growing technology markets with the acquisition of WEB Tool & Manufacturing, Inc. of Elk Grove Village, Illinois. WEB designs, manufactures, and markets custom server subracks and chassis for computer technology applications. The purchase price was not disclosed, but Pentair said that WEB is profitable and is expected to be accretive to Pentair earnings in 1999. The cash transaction was financed through bank borrowings.

"WEB substantially increases our product offering in targeted, high-growth computer server, datacom, and telecom markets," said Winslow Buxton, Pentair chairman, president, and chief executive officer. "WEB's considerable strengths in technology markets will be leveraged with Pentair's financial resources, extensive market reach, and global presence to better serve the needs of the world's major computer firms."

WEB's 1999 annual sales are expected to be in excess of $80 million. The company employs approximately 700 people at manufacturing facilities in Elk Grove Village and Wood Dale, Illinois, and Houston, Texas. WEB also utilizes a European distribution operation based in Scotland. WEB will be operated as part of Pentair's Electrical and Electronic Enclosures Group.

"The acquisition of WEB reinforces our design, manufacturing, assembly, and integration capabilities and gives us new strength to compete in the dynamic computer, telecom, and datacom technology markets," said Randall J. Hogan, president of Pentair's Electrical and Electronic Enclosures Group. "Working in tandem with existing Pentair Enclosures operations in New Jersey, California, and Rhode Island, WEB will provide a platform for growth in custom enclosures."

Pentair's Hoffman brand is currently the market leader in North American standard products while the Schroff brand is a leader in European electronic enclosure markets. The acquisition allows Pentair to capture a number of synergies. Pentair will take immediate advantage of joint sales and purchasing opportunities, maximize capacity of WEB's manufacturing facilities to boost productivity, and use Pentair's existing base in Scotland to provide the international capabilities necessary to expand the reach of the custom enclosures business.

"Pentair has enclosure facilities in all key European markets, as well as in Japan," Hogan said. "This worldwide presence allows us to serve large original equipment manufacturers through both our standard enclosure offering and through our expanded custom enclosures capabilities. We intend to vigorously grow these capabilities and establish ourselves as the global leader in enclosure technology and service."

Pentair's Electrical and Electronic Enclosures Group generated sales of $564 million in 1998. The October 30, 1998, acquisition of the Walker Dickson Group Limited of Edinburgh, Scotland, was a first step in the expansion of the Group's custom enclosures capabilities.

Pentair (http://www.pentair.com) is a diversified manufacturer operating in three principal markets: professional tools and equipment, water and fluid technologies, and electrical and electronic enclosures. Pentair brands include Delta woodworking machinery; Porter-Cable power tools; Myers, Fairbanks Morse, Aurora, and Hydromatic pumps; Fleck water conditioning control valves; Century, Solar, and Lincoln service equipment; Lincoln Industrial automated lubrication systems; and Hoffman and Schroff enclosures. Pentair employs 10,500 people in 56 locations around the world, and had 1998 sales of $1.9 billion.

Any statements made about the Company's anticipated financial results are forward-looking statements subject to risks and uncertainties such as those described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10K for the year ended December 31, 1998. Actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.