Ward Hi-Tech is joining forces with Hwacheon, South Korea’s largest independent machine tool manufacturer, to become the sole UK and Ireland distributor of Hwacheon turning centres, vertical lathes and vertical and horizontal machining centres.

Hwacheon plants in Kwangju and Changwon produce over 2000 machines per year, manufacturing a complete range of chucks and related products which are supplied to many leading machine tool manufacturers at home and abroad. There is also a modern foundry business providing high quality castings for machine tool builders worldwide.

Alan Hill, MD of Ward Hi-Tech describes Hwacheon as, “the best kept secret in Korean machine tools!” He comments, “They were one of the first Korean brands to be exported to the UK way back in 1982 and have sold steadily but not spectacularly over here ever since.

“There's a substantial Hwacheon machine tool user base in the country and by teaming up with Ward Hi-Tech, Hwacheon see the opportunity to really expand their UK sales quickly by combining the marketing and sales strengths of my own company with the wide ranging product portfolio Hwacheon can offer.

“Certainly with over 60 turning centre models in the range, including two-axis, multi-axis, driven tool and vertical turning lathe options, we can provide a much broader spread of turning products than ever before. We're really excited about the opportunity to build additional market share with Hwacheon."

Ward Hi-Tech intend to ramp up their sales activities even further by opening an additional showroom in the South of England where the Hwacheon products can be showcased.

Alan Hill continues: “We have a large number of customers in this part of the UK, many with multiple machine installations and by bringing our new impressive turning centre range to their doorstep, I am confident we will quickly see sales of Hwacheon products take off in the region."

Ward Hi-Tech

www.wardhitech.co.uk