• LEEDS-based Vision Alert, which produces and supplies beacons, lightbars and commercial vehicle lighting, has appointed a new sales and marketing director. Chris Marshall has been given responsibility for the company's growth in market share in the UK and in mainland Europe.
    Marshall spent nine years as executive divisional manager at Hella and also worked at Lucas Aerospace and Lucas Braking, after a spell with the Royal Navy as a helicopter pilot.

  • Lyn Peperell, managing director of independent fleet service and maintenance company Acorn Fleet Services, has been elected as vice-president of the Retail Motor Industry Federation.
    She said: 'I am delighted to take up this position in order to raise the profile of small business across the industry and beyond. My principal efforts will focus on quality and accountability at all levels.'

  • LEX Vehicle Leasing has promoted Robert Wastell to be its new sales director. He will replace Gary Jennison, who leaves the company in July to assume the role of sales director for the medium business banking division of Barclays Bank. The internal promotion of Wastell brings the company's three sales disciplines on to one platform. Lex Vehicle Partners, Lex's small fleet division; Lex Defence; and the company's business-to-business programme will all be brought under the one board member.

  • TELEMATICS and fleet management solutions provider Cybit has appointed a new finance director. Kevin Lawrence is to manage finance implications of strategic partnerships, acquisitions and sales growth, and will develop and deliver finance strategy for the business.
    Lawrence was previously group finance director for Lighthouse Group plc. Before that, he was senior manager at Grant Thornton.
    Richard Horsman, chief executive officer of Cybit, said: 'He will play a key role in helping to steer Cybit through its continued growth and development as we focus on our clear business goal of becoming the UK's number one provider of telematics and fleet management solutions.'

  • MALCOLM Wade, former managing director of Rolls Royce-Bentley for the UK and Middle East Operations, has joined automotive consultancy Mitac as managing director.
    Before joining Rolls Royce-Bentley in 1999, Wade worked for 12 years with Volvo, later becoming UK sales and marketing director.
    A trained accountant and Fellow of the Professional Institute of Sales, Institute of Sales and Marketing Management and Royal Society of Arts, Wade succeeds Mitac's retiring joint managing directors Graham Samways and John Thompson.

  • The seventh and final regional manager has been appointed by bodyshop network ABS, completing a year-long process. Rod Maher will cover the ABS north west region, including Manchester, Liver-pool and North Wales. Maher spent 17 years with Southport-based independent assessors Stag-Blackman and has a wide range of experience in the vehicle repair industry. His most recent employment was with the CIS in Liverpool as a staff motor engineer.