Sheffield-based TW Ward CNC Machinery (Ward CNC) has agreed a major strategic partnership with a UKbroker of asset finance.The deal will allow Ward CNC to offer its customers a range of flexible machinery financing options, with Affinity Asset Finance acting as its own FCA-authorised finance provider. Ward CNC is the sole UK distributor for machine tools manufactured by Hyundai-Wia, Hartford, Soraluce, Takisawa and Hankook.

Simon Whitworth, managing director at Ward CNC, says: “This new partnership will help us to develop our service offering and means that we are not tied to any one lender or bank. Customers can therefore access the broadest range of funding packages and deals available on the market, with extremely flexible terms and attractive finance arrangements.”
For further information www.wardcnc.com

Mills CNC, the exclusive distributor of DN Solutions’ and Zayer machine tools in the UK and Ireland, has taken its first Zayer order just a few short weeks after signing the distributor deal with the Spain-based milling machine manufacturer.The machine, a Zayer XIOS G large-capacity horizontal CNC bed mill equipped with a built-in rotary table (1500x 1500 mm) and a five-axis, 45° milling head, will take its place at the UK-based customer’s facility this spring.

Says Tony Dale, Mills CNC’s CEO:“The XIOS G represents our first Zayer machine tool order, but it will, most definitely, not be our last.To assist future sales, we’ve ordered a new Zayer Zero CNC horizontal bed mill for our showroom, which will be available for customers to see in the not-too-distant future.Described by Zayer as ‘its most precise and dynamic bed mill ever’, we’re confident that the Zayer Zero will prove popular with UK and Irish manufacturers.”
For further information www.millscnc.co.uk

Like much of Europe, the UK is in the midst of a fuel crisis that is pushing the UK government to source more fuel from the North Sea, as well as driving investment in the renewables industry. To capitalise upon this, machine tool supplier Dugard has employed Steven McBride as its new area sales manager in Scotland and northeast England.Joining the company in February, McBride is relishing the challenge of introducing the range of Ibarmia, SMEC, Kitamura and Hanwha machine tools that are available in the UK from Dugard.

Commenting upon the addition of McBride to the Dugard team, sales director Colin Thomson says: “Steven has an excellent track record in technical sales, which will put him in good stead for his future at Dugard. Additionally, as a highly-skilled maintenance and sales engineer, Steven’s fundamental knowledge and understanding will be extremely beneficial to customers of Dugard in Scotland.”
For further information www.dugard.com

With support from central government funds, EKC group is investing significantly to develop engineering centres of excellence across three of its six community colleges in East Kent. This investment includes 25 machines valued at around £500,000 from XYZ Machine Tools, covering CNC machining and turning centres, as well as an array of manual machines located at Dover Technical College, Canterbury College and Ashford College.

XYZ Machine Tools has a long history of working with the education sector through its ‘XYZ for Education’ initiative, which provides special pricing on the full range of XYZ machine tools, with ongoing training programmes. “We see it as vital to educate and inspire tomorrow’s engineers in order to maintain the UK’s position as a leader in engineering development and manufacturing,” states Nigel Atherton, managing director at XYZ Machine Tools.
For further information www.xyzmachinetools.com