Mentor Graphics Appoints New Director of PADS Engineering

WILSONVILLE, Ore., July 9, 2004 – Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT) the market leader in printed circuit board (PCB) design software, today announced the appointment of Michael Griesbach as the new director of engineering for the PADS? business unit.

As director of engineering, Michael will be responsible for the breadth of PADS product offerings through development initiatives as well as global technology acquisitions. With more than 20 years of experience in the EDA industry Mike will focus on the PCB design and hardware verification product areas in software development, management processes and engineering operations.

Griesbach has held various positions in executive management throughout his extensive career in EDA. He has managed engineering departments in the United States and Japan and expanded the Russian development team while he was vice president of development and support at PADS Software, Inc. Most recently he led a team of engineers that helped support early customer adoption at Cadence Design Systems. His new role further strengthens Mentor's commitment to strategic expansion into emerging worldwide PCB markets.

Griesbach holds a BCS from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and a Leadership for Senior Executives Certificate from Harvard University.

"We are very happy to welcome back Michael to the PADS team," said Syed Gilani, general manager, systems design division, Mentor Graphics. "We look forward to Mike driving the global engineering efforts for PADS."

About Mentor Graphics
Mentor Graphics Corporation (Nasdaq: MENT) is a world leader in electronic hardware and software design solutions, providing products, consulting services and award-winning support for the world's most successful electronics and semiconductor companies. Established in 1981, the company reported revenues over the last 12 months of about $675 million and employs approximately 3,700 people worldwide. Corporate headquarters are located at 8005 S.W. Boeckman Road, Wilsonville, Oregon 97070-7777; Silicon Valley headquarters are located at 1001 Ridder Park Drive, San Jose, California 95131-2314. World Wide Web site: http://www.mentor.com/.

Mentor Graphics and PADS are a registered trademark of Mentor Graphics Corporation. All other company or product names are the registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners.

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