HOUSTON - Aug. 19, 2003 - NextiraOne, LLC, a Platinum Equity company, has announced the completion of the WAN/LAN network installation for Baltimore's award winning St. Joseph Medical Center. By implementing a fast, reliable data network, NextiraOne is helping St. Joseph to improve communications for staff, patients and their loved ones.

Because a healthcare setting requires uninterrupted communications, NextiraOne paid particular attention to St. Joseph's needs and conducted an extremely smooth implementation. NextiraOne's high level of customer care brought value and made possible the efficient implementation of the new network.

"With our previous system, it took us several months before we felt we knew how everything worked and that we truly 'owned' the system," said Jose deBorja, manager, Technical Support, Information Services (IT) for St. Joseph. "But NextiraOne made it possible for us to work very closely with them, which helped us to optimize our use of the new system's capabilities. Allowing us to fully test the system at their off-site staging facility was very beneficial, and the entire process went so smoothly that we felt like we owned it even before they handed us the proverbial keys."

Throughout the process, NextiraOne personnel worked hand-in-hand with St. Joseph IT staff to ensure an installation that was quick, efficient and made everyone comfortable. Prior to the actual installation, NextiraOne engineers conducted a full system setup and test of the new network at NextiraOne's staging facility in Sunrise, Fla., enabling St. Joseph staff to thoroughly test all parameters of the system, including its failover and recovery. This preparation led to an efficient system installation and problem-free operation.

"In order to ensure a smooth transition to the new network, we made teamwork and staging our top priorities, because no network can be considered more mission-critical than that of a top-ranked medical center," said Michael Ruley, president and CEO of NextiraOne. "Because NextiraOne personnel listened closely to St. Joseph's concerns in order to identify the best solutions, every aspect of the design and implementation was focused on meeting the communications needs of the staff, patients, families and others who rely on St. Joseph."

NextiraOne, which had been supplying voice communications services to St. Joseph, completed the design and implementation process in less than three months, with no difficulties during the data cutover. With the addition of the WAN/LAN network, data service is faster and more reliable, and NextiraOne designed the system so that when the medical center is ready to upgrade to IP at any point in the future, migration capabilities are built-in.

About NextiraOne
Headquartered in Houston and Paris, NextiraOne is a leading provider of network solutions and services. NextiraOne delivers world-class solutions and LifeCycle^SM services from planning and design, through the implementation, support, and management of voice, data, and converged communications networks. As a global service organization that carries an extensive portfolio of certifications and product expertise, NextiraOne provides best-in-class technologies from leading partners, such as Nortel Networks, Cisco Systems, and Alcatel. NextiraOne offers consultation and solutions development ranging from contact center applications to network infrastructure outsourcing. NextiraOne is owned by Platinum Equity (www.platinumequity.com), a global organization specializing in the acquisition and strategic management of mission-critical companies. For more information, please visit www.NextiraOne.com.

About Platinum Equity
Platinum Equity (www.platinumequity.com) is a global acquisition firm specializing in the strategic operation of mission-critical services and solutions businesses according to a unique M&A&O^SM model of value creation. Since its founding in 1995, Platinum has completed over 40 privately funded transactions, leveraging a multi-billion dollar revenue base derived from the continued growth of its portfolio. With an established global infrastructure, Platinum employs a workforce of more than 18,000 serving over 600,000 customer sites worldwide.

Contact:

Melissa Yarbrough
M/C/C for NextiraOne
972-480-8383 x224
Melissa_Yarbrough@mccom.com

For NextiraOne:
Shannon DeYoung
Director, Marketing
713-307-4743
Shannon.DeYoung@NextiraOne.com