UP TO 40 jobs are set to be created when a firm opens its national sales centre on Crewe Business Park.

James Walker and Co, which specialises in high performance fluid sealing technology, is amalgamating 10 regional offices and centralising its UK sales operation in the town.

A small management team has been located at Crewe for seven years which convinced national sales manager Alan Wootton that the town was ideal for the new operation.

The £35 million per year turnover company will recruit and train 30 people this year with more staff needed early next year.

"Crewe is central to our UK-wide customer base and has excellent motorway and rail links," said Alan Wootton.

"Our 5,000 sq ft office is currently being fitted out with the state-of-the-art computer systems and telecommunications equipment needed to run a highly efficient sales and customer contact centre.

"We will incorporate fully equipped conference and training facilities to keep customers up-to-date with the latest developments in fluid sealing technology."

The sales centre is part of a £22 million investment which includes increasing its field sales organisation.

The British-based company has been supplying and developing products for more than 100 years and its head office is in Surrey.

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