Citizen Machinery UK Ltd (www.citizenmachinery.co.uk) has appointed Owen Gibbons as its European sales manager.

Based at the firm’s Bushey headquarters, showroom and technical centre, he is responsible for supporting the dealer network that markets and sells the Japanese parent company’s Cincom sliding-head and Miyano fixed-head turn-mill centres in countries around Europe.

In addition to the UK and Ireland, Citizen Machinery UK is currently responsible for sales in France, Spain, Portugal, Scandinavia, the Middle East and Africa.

A further remit of Mr Gibbons is to expand the network into other European countries.

Mr Gibbons said: “I am delighted to join Citizen at a time when its patented LFV — low-frequency vibration — chip-breaking technology has helped propel it to market leader in Europe for sales of sliding-head lathes, with deliveries well in excess of a thousand units per year.

“The company is also highly innovative in seeking ways to introduce different features into its machines.

A good example is the current development of laser cutting technology for integration into Cincom lathes, which will find application in the medical sector.”

Mr Gibbons has spent almost his entire career in the machine tool industry, both in sales and sales management.