Philippe Brak, the new vice president and general manager of GSI Group Inc’s Laser Division, has outlined plans to expand the company’s sales presence in China and the EU.
Fluent in four languages, Brak joined GSI in January from NP Photonics, a fibre laser company where he served for five years, most recently as CEO and president. Brak has years of experience in the Asian markets, both selling directly and through distribution networks, and had been charged with strengthening the company’s sales and customer support efforts in both China and the EU. Brak said: ‘China already represents over 50 per cent of GSI’s laser division customer base. Our new customer focus is a natural outgrowth following completion of GSI’s top-tier manufacturing facility in Suzhou, China, and we will be devoting significant effort to expanding our existing China customer base by offering industry-leading lasers directly from our Suzhou plant.’
Brak also announced a strategic relationship with Chutian Laser Group, a laser manufacturer in Wuhan, China. Chutian will act as GSI’s China distributor, adding over 30 sales and service people to GSI’s existing China sales team.
In addition to GSI’s plans for targeting Asia, Brak announced an expansion of GSI’s sales force in Germany. With the majority of the EU industrial process laser market located in Germany, Brak aims to make the most of his European background to aggressively target this growing market. He said: ‘We are currently under represented in Germany and see the EU as a key to future growth. As a result we now have a team of direct sales and service people to work closely with our German customers.’
Meanwhile, the US remains an important market for GSI. The core GSI sales team based in North America will continue to serve GSI’s customers while seeking partnerships with materials processing manufacturers, where fibre lasers play an important part.
