GAITHERSBURG, Maryland, January 16 /PRNewswire/ --

- With 2008 underway, Patton enters 25th year of communications equipment manufacturing

Patton Electronics -- the leader in business and carrier-class network access, connectivity, and Voice-over-IP equipment -- has entered their 25th year of designing, manufacturing, and marketing datacom and telecom equipment.

Having incorporated on 1 January 1984, Patton will mark their silver anniversary on 1 January 2009.

"We are here for the long haul," said Bobby Patton, President. "While our silver anniversary is a significant milestone for us, it sends a message of stability to our customers and business partners. They have made us what we are today. We insist on continuously innovating in every aspect of our operations -- from next-generation VoIP and video technologies to lean manufacturing best-practices. We expect the next 25 years to be our best ever."

In the wake of the 2001 telecom meltdown, hundreds of companies went out of business, were acquired by larger corporations, or shrank to a fraction of their former size. Loyal customers were betrayed as mission-critical products were discontinued. In stark contrast, Patton not only weathered the economic storm, but continued growing and turned a profit in 2001.

Such stability stems in part from Patton's highly diversified business model. Engaging a worldwide customer base in over 117 countries, Patton publishes a catalog of over 1000 products. Today, Patton remains a stable, bricks-and-mortar operation with design, development and manufacturing in their USA headquarters.

Founding brothers Bruce, Bobby and Burt Patton started the family-owned and operated business in 1984, building small devices in their father's basement. During the 1990's Patton brought the first Ethernet Extender to market. In 2002, Patton acquired the industry-leading SmartNode(tm) VoIP technology through a strategic partnership with Inalp Networks (Berne, Switzerland) that further expanded sales and support operations in European, African and Middle Eastern markets. From 2005 through 2007, Patton SmartNode has won the Product of the Year from Internet Telephony Magazine. Next month, Patton-Inalp will celebrate their 10th anniversary.

During 16 - 21 March, Patton will showcase their latest innovations at CeBIT 2008, Hall 13 Booth A58.

About Patton

Patton manufactures voice and data-communications equipment for carrier, enterprise, and industrial networks worldwide.

For more information or a free catalog, contact sales@patton.com.

Web site: http://www.patton.com

Chris Christner of Patton Electronics, +1-301-975-1000, ext. 109, or Fax +1-301-869-9293, marketing@patton.com