Close Brothers Asset Finance’s Finance for Industry (FFI) business has announced the appointment of a dedicated Scotland area sales manager, Grant Fairley, to help drive ambitious growth plans. Acquired in 2016, FFI is a leading specialist finance broker for the engineering, plastics and woodworking machinery sectors.

Mr Fairley is a qualified and experienced engineer, having previously worked as a production engineer, responsible for the design, planning and production of aircraft. His most recent roles have focused on machine tool sales to the engineering and manufacturing sectors.

He said: “Scotland has a strong mix of aerospace, automotive, oil and gas industries and I am looking forward to seeing an increase in activity and investment from companies over the coming months as we begin to come out of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I am confident my engineering background in machine tool sales will stand me in good stead and I am excited about the prospect of going out to see and meet customers to introduce myself in person over the coming months.”

Chris Lillico, sales director, Finance for Industry, said: “Getting someone of Grant’s calibre on board further endorses our plans to grow our business in Scotland, a market we are fully committed to and where we are expanding our presence.

“I am delighted that Grant already has a strong grounding in the business and has had the opportunity to form a detailed understanding of our lending appetite and ability to help equipment suppliers and their clients to thrive through all economic cycles.”