ASI Solutions has been selected to provide 3Com 4228G LAN switches for the Victorian Department of Education & Training (DE&T) tender, at an estimated value of over AUD$1.1million. “It was a very long and thorough evaluation process”, said Mr. Andre Massih, ASI’s Victorian state manager, “We are delighted with the outcome”.

ASI was successful in tendering the 3Com product set for two key aspects of this contract, firstly for the roll-out of 1660 3Com SuperStack® 3 4228G switches (a total of 46,480 ports at minimum). The 4228G switch will be provided to each Government school in Victoria for use in the Administration (CASES) side of the network, with the roll-out anticipated to begin early in 2004.

The second area is the panel of recommended suppliers for which ASI will offer the range of 3Com switches, bundled with support. ASI is the only re-seller of 3Com “Active LAN Products” for the Panel contract, covering products utilised in a LAN environment including switches, wireless, and 3Com’s NBX voice-over-IP solution. ASI was initially awarded the Panel contract in 2000.

RMIT and DE&T conducted rigorous testing on products from many different vendors, finally choosing the 3Com 4228G (after testing this and the 3Com 4400SE) for its technological functionality, cost effectiveness, and service capabilities (provided in conjunction with service and support from ASI).

3Com is the only product vendor to retain a position on the CASES contract from previous years, with the prior tender having been awarded for their SS2 3300 switch. ASI and 3Com will run product training for DE&T’s contracted Specialist Technicians and the school-based technicians in January 2004, to enable them to best utilise the technology.

Brett Hunter, National Education Manager 3Com Australia said “3Com and ASI have a long history of working together throughout Australia, particularly in education. Our past experience with DE&T, combined with our knowledge of the sector ensures that Victorian schools continue to offer students the most secure and reliable network available to support their learning environment.”

With the award of both the CASES and Panel business ASI will be able to provide network solutions and services for both the Administrative and Curriculum sides of the school networks, resulting in the best infrastructure possible to meet the aim of enabling students to learn in the most productive manner. The technology provided by 3Com and ASI will facilitate increasingly complex and bandwidth-demanding learning tools, such as multi-media applications and e-learning, to run seamlessly with minimum delay and maximum efficiency.

Having implemented 3Com’s NBX voice-over-IP networked telephony solution in a number of schools already, ASI has enabled increased and more efficient communications, with telephones in every classroom now a practical and cost-effective reality, rather than an expensive luxury. With new wireless phones on the NBX system, roaming campus staff are always immediately contactable. ASI hopes to offer the advantages of this technology to more schools under the panel arrangement.

“We are excited to have this opportunity to help enhance the provision of education in Victoria, and look forward to working closely with these schools and our valued partner 3Com over the coming months” concluded Mr. Massih “ASI sees this as an important link in the chain for our national service and support strategy.

END All product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. -----------------------------------------

• Additional Information: About 3Com Corporation 3Com is a tier-one provider of innovative, practical and high-value networking products for enterprises of all sizes and public sector organisations. 3Com is also a leader in providing Internet protocol (IP) service platforms and access infrastructure for network service providers. For further information, please visit www.3com.com, or the press site www.3com.com/pressbox.

3Com, the 3Com logo and SuperStack are registered trademarks of 3Com Corporation. All other company and products names may be trademarks of their respective holders.

3Com4228G Switch – Affordable, Flexible 10/100 Switching For copper-wired Ethernet networks that need premium switching performance and the flexibility of Fibre or Copper Gigabit uplinks (via fixed 10/100/1000 or GBIC ports) without the complexity and high price, the 3Com® SuperStack® 3 Switch 4228G is an innovative, yet very practical solution. The 4228G has 24 x 10/100 Ports, 2 x RJ-45 Gigabit (Uplink) Ports, and 2 x GBIC slots. Related 3Com product Information can be found here: http://www.3com.com/products/en_US/detail.jsp?tab=features&pathtype=purchase&sku=3C17304-US • Additional Information: Company Profile for ASI Solutions ASI Solutions offers quality-integrated products and services to the government, defence, education and corporate sectors. The parent company commenced trading in 1985 and remains totally Australian owned. As the name suggests, the business philosophy of ASI Solutions is based on providing total solutions to customer needs and taking full accountability for all aspects of system integration.

One of the largest computer manufacturers in Australia, ASI Solutions employs 190 staff (FTE) Australia-wide. ASI operates sales and service branches in major capital cities around Australia.

ASI is a single source provider of mission critical IT infrastructure to large, network-centric organisations including Federal and State Governments, Defence, Schools and Universities, and Point-of-Sale Retail chains. ASI has a long-standing relationship supplying to educational organisations around the nation, with a strong focus on quality, service, performance, and value for IT solutions.

ASI has a solid history of technological excellence, providing a comprehensive range of products and services including desktops, notebooks, servers, maintenance services, networking products, peripherals and internet services. The ASI range of computer equipment, manufactured in Australia, offers a variety of customised configurations.

ASI offers intensive service and support across the IT enterprise including: • Network Consultancy • Design and Implementation of LANs and WANs • Project Management • Prime Contracting • Customised Maintenance Service Contracts & Training Agreements • Software Configuration • On-site Services (Australia-wide) • Support (Australia-wide) • Direct sales/service branches (Australia-wide) • For further information please contact the following ASI staff:

Maree Lowe – Director of Sales Ph: (02) 9384 8053 Fax: (02) 9666 5460 mlowe@asi.com.au Kate Flaus – Marketing Communications Ph: (02) 9384 8023 Fax: (02) 9666 5655 kstrang@asi.com.au

• Sydney • Brisbane • Canberra • Darwin • Perth • Melbourne • Adelaide ASI Solutions is 100% Australian owned, supplying IT Solutions since 1985, Australia-wide - see www.asi.com.au for our complete range!