Littelfuse Announces New Chief Financial Officer

20 November 1998
Littelfuse Announces New Chief Financial Officer
    DES PLAINES, Ill., Nov. 20 -- Littelfuse, Inc.
announced that Philip G. Franklin, 47, will be joining the company as its Vice
President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer.
    Franklin, who will formally join the company before the end of December,
was previously Vice President-Finance and Chief Financial Officer for OmniQuip
International, a publicly traded multi-division construction equipment
company.  In two and a half years with OmniQuip, Franklin played a key role in
two major acquisitions and three major financings, including OmniQuip's
initial public offering, a $165 million syndicated bank loan and a secondary
equity offering.  During Franklin's tenure, OmniQuip's revenues grew from
$125 million to $455 million.
    "We are excited to have Phil joining the Littelfuse team," said Howard B.
Witt, Littelfuse's Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.  "He
brings a wealth of experience and relationships with the investment community
coupled with a strong track record of managing internal growth and
acquisitions coupled with operations experience.  His demonstrated talents and
broad perspective will be an asset to our company and enhance our ability to
reach our goals."
    Before joining OmniQuip in 1996, Franklin was Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer of Monarch Marking Systems, a $270 million manufacturer of
bar code printers and supplies.  In the early 1990s, he served as Vice
President, Finance and Administration for Hill Refrigeration, Inc. after
spending 11 years in finance and general management at FMC Corporation.
Franklin attended Dartmouth College, where he earned a bachelor's degree cum
laude in economics and an MBA in finance.
    Littelfuse is the world's leading producer of electronic, power and
automotive fuses.  In addition to its Des Plaines world headquarters,
Littelfuse has manufacturing facilities in England, Switzerland, Mexico,
Korea, China and the Philippines as well as Centralia, Arcola and Watseka,
Ill.  It also has sales, engineering and distribution facilities in the
Netherlands, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Brazil and Farmington Hills, Mich.
    For more information, please visit Littelfuse's web site at
http://www.littelfuse.com.
    "Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995.  Any forward looking statements contained herein involve risks and
uncertainties, including, but not limited to, product demand and market
acceptance risks, the effect of economic conditions, the impact of competitive
products and pricing, product development and patent protection,
commercialization and technological difficulties, capacity and supply
constraints or difficulties, actual purchases under agreements, the effect of
the company's accounting policies, and other risks which may be detailed in
the company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.