After four years of strong development of the UK business, Mr Smith has been promoted to deputy group managing director Europe (operations). Mr Smith will continue to be based at Mazak’s European headquarters in Worcester, reporting to European group managing director, Marcus Burton.
Mr Mucklow has nearly two decades of engineering experience, having first joined Mazak in 2010 as a product manager, following roles at Cincinnati Machine and MAG. He was promoted to group product manager Europe in 2012, and was the driving force behind the further development of the European product group, a specialist team dedicated to market-led innovation.
During his time leading the European product group, Mazak introduced a number of machine innovations, including its hybrid full 5-axis additive and subtractive machine tool, the Integrex i-400AM, as well as Smooth Technology.
He will be responsible for overseeing UK sales and service support strategy, and maintaining a strong presence across key market sectors throughout the region.
European group managing director Marcus Burton, commented: “Alan has been instrumental in the development of Mazak’s position in the European market. His leadership of the product group has ensured that our R&D and new product development in both Japan and the UK has been in line with the needs of our customers in Europe.
“This new role will enable Alan to take on an even more customer-focused role with direct sales responsibilities. His experience and knowledge of Mazak’s machine range and different applications will enable him to provide invaluable support to our UK customer base.”
Yamazaki Mazak www.mazakeu.co.uk