Steve Haddrell, Key Account Manager at Unison Ltd – the inventors of all-electric tube manipulation – has been appointed as Sales Director of sister company, Nukon Lasers UK. In addition to fulfilling his new role, Steve will continue to support Unison’s tube bending machinery customers in the Midlands and South. Nukon Lasers UK became the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor for Nukon’s European-made fibre laser flat sheet metal and tube cutting machines in autumn 2021.
Beginning his career in laser as Supervisor with Nuneaton-based Subcon Laser Cutting Ltd in the late 1980s, Steve moved to 600 Group’s laser division in 1998, where he worked in machine tool sales & applications. He joined Yamazaki Mazak UK’s optonics division as General Manager in 2004 and moved to Unison Ltd as Key Account Manager in 2009.
“It’s probably fair to say that I’ve accrued more than my fair share of laser-cutting expertise over the years,” he says. “I remember seeing laser-cut parts from some of the first commercial fibre laser machines in the late 1980s, when I was a foreman-fabricator in Birmingham. I was awestruck by what those machines could achieve. Obviously, since then, laser cutting has advanced in leaps and bounds, with developments such as high-power fibre laser technology – like the 20 kW nLIGHT model we showcased at EuroBLECH 2022.”
Talking about Unison’s desire to expand into laser cutting technologies, Steve Haddrell adds: “For quite some time we had been looking to extend the Unison product range to include high quality fibre lasers, as we believed they would be a natural fit with our all-electric Unison Breeze tube bending machines. Short of building our own fibre laser machines in-house, however, the challenge was to find an established fibre laser product range that matched the uncompromising levels of reliability and build quality that Unison tube benders are renowned for.
“That wasn’t easy,” he continues. “But after considerable research and frequent reservations about machine quality or support, we finally met with European fibre laser manufacturer, Nukon. Quite apart from offering exceptionally well-made and price-accessible fibre laser machines – and having a fantastic manufacturing facility – the thing that impressed us most about the people at Nukon was their attitude to business. Just like Unison, they’re committed to building superb machines that exceed customer expectations, and to providing outstanding levels of service and support. Since partnering with Nukon, we’ve sold their fibre laser machines to manufacturing companies across the UK. The quality of the Nukon product is exceptional and customers have the added reassurance of support from our own Nukon-trained service teams. What more can I say? Apart from: if you’re one of my Unison tube bending customers, don’t worry – I’m still here to support you.”
About Nukon Lasers UK
Nukon Lasers UK is the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor of Nukon’s European-built 2D, 3D and tube fibre laser cutting machines and loading & unloading solutions. Equipped with American-made nLIGHT fibre lasers and advanced Lantek CAD/CAM nesting software, Nukon fibre lasers combine high speed and high precision with exceptional value and build quality, as well as incredibly low running costs. The Nukon Lasers UK team offers first-class machine tool service, training, maintenance and technical support, in addition to service contracts and service level agreements that can be tailored to specific requirements.
