AGM Statement

Acal PLC
18 July 2001

Press Release
                                                                                
  Acal plc, 2 Chancellor Court, Occam Road, Surrey Research Park, Guildford,
  GU2 7AH, England
  Telephone: [phone]    Fax :[phone]



                    Annual General Meeting of the Company

                                     and

                        Appointment of Chief Executive



At its Annual General Meeting today, the Board of Acal plc announced that
since Acal has grown turnover from £170 million to £325 million in the last
two years, it has become appropriate to separate the roles of Chairman and
Chief Executive.  With effect from 1st August 2001 Tony Laughton is appointed
Chief Executive while John Curry will retain the role of Chairman.


Commenting on this news, John Curry, the Chairman of Acal said:-


'Acal has grown rapidly over the last few years and this appointment is a
natural step in the evolution of Acal's management structure to reflect the
development and growth of its business.'


As an update to the current business environment and outlook, the Chairman
said:-


'The global economic slowdown continues, particularly in the technology
markets.  As we reported at the time of the announcement of our preliminary
results for the year to 31st March 2001, this has led to a slowing order
pattern for a number of months.  At present there appear to be no signs of a
reversal of this trend. In the last six weeks since the preliminary
announcement we have seen some delivery deferrals and limited cancellation of
orders, though only in our Electronic Components Division.  We remain
confident of the experience of our team in managing this phase of the economic
cycle, and intend to continue our strategy to put ourselves in a strong
position to benefit when growth returns.'




                                 --- Ends ---



Contact:     1     John Curry - Chairman
                   Tel:       [phone]

             2     Jim Virdee - Finance Director
                   Tel:       [phone]

             3     Fergus Wylie/Serra Balls - Cubitt Consulting
                   Tel:       [phone]



Notes to Editors:--


1.         The Acal Group is a leading European, value-added distributor
providing specialist design-in, sales and marketing services for international
suppliers in the fields of Electronic Components, Information Technology
Products, IT Parts Services and Industrial Controls.  Its value-added
philosophy and geographic coverage enables Acal to provide specialist
knowledge and support to customers on a pan-European basis.


2.         Design-in is the process by which Acal's sales engineers work with
customers and suppliers to procure components which meet the specific
technical and performance needs of the customers.


3.         Acal has operating companies in the UK, Netherlands, Belgium,
Germany, France, Italy, Scandinavia and the USA.