Graeme Ferguson, currently head of legal and an operations board director at London Stansted Airport, has been appointed as the new cargo director for the Manchester Airports Group (MAG), the owner and operator of the airports of London-Stansted, Manchester, East Midlands and Bournemouth.

Graeme already holds a number of key airline relationships and has extensive experience in commercial deals, legal, regulatory and property services. In his new role, he will focus on developing the cargo side of the business across four airports which handle in excess of 600,000 tonnes annually.

He replaces John Froggatt, who after 30 years with the business retired from his role as cargo and commercial bid director for MAG in November.

Graeme said: “MAG has a proven track record in developing successful cargo operations and the acquisition of London-Stansted, one of the largest freight hubs in the UK that transports around 240,000 tonnes annually, has brought about a renewed focus for the group and I’m looking forward to driving this area of the business.

“My first priority will be to meet and engage with both existing and new freight operators, to better understand their business needs and identify ways in which we can work with them to grow and expand their UK operations across MAG’s airports.”

Ipswich-based commercial mower manufacturer Ransomes Jacobsen has instigated several management changes at its European head office in Ipswich.

They affect the company’s sales and customer care departments and reflect parent company Textron’s ethos of recognising talent from within the business.

John Quinton, former sales manager, UK and Ireland, has been promoted to the new position of after sales manager, reporting to customer care director, Jason King. He will be responsible for the parts warehouse, order help desk, parts help desk and product support.

Jason King said: “John has an excellent understanding of our business, especially in the area of dealer management and end-user interaction, having previously worked for a large municipal contractor and has experience of being the customer. He brings a wealth product, system and process knowledge to the department and will, undoubtedly, strengthen the team.”

Nick Brown, former UK corporate accounts manager, has been promoted to sales manager, UK and Ireland, to replace John Quinton. He joined Ransomes Jacobsen in 1998 as a sales planning co-ordinator after gaining a BSc Hons degree at Brunel University. He subsequently joined the E-Z-GO sales team responsible for various territories across the UK before moving to the European sales team with a focus on our full range of turf maintenance products. He was promoted to the new role of business development manager for Eastern Europe, before returning to the UK as corporate accounts manager.

Matt Codd, a former production manager in the Ipswich manufacturing plant, has been promoted to the new position of sales office manager. Matt is a Textron Six Sigma Black Belt and gained a BSc Hons degree in environmental risk management at the University of Wales. He will be responsible for the sales office operation, including all commercial activities, demonstrations, sales planning and logistics.

Will Carr’s sales management role within the UK and Ireland has been enhanced with the addition of the MEGA light commercial vehicle brand as well as his existing Iseki tractor and mower sales responsibilities.

Nick Brown, Matt Codd and Will Carr report to sales director Rupert Price.

“These management changes reflect the Textron ethos of recognising the potential of our staff within the business. Each and every one of these guys has earned their respective promotions and I am confident that they will not only strengthen our business, but allow us to delight our customers as well,” he said.

Ipswich-based engineering consultancy RVA Group has appointed three new project managers as it continues to expand its operations both in the UK and across the globe.

RVA Group specialises in safe and environmentally secure decommissioning, decontamination, dismantling and demolition projects. Its growing client portfolio includes major blue chip companies including Total, ConocoPhillips, INVISTA, GSK, Bayer, INEOS, Huntsman and BASF.

Rashid Shauq, James Armstrong and Keith Kirby are all highly skilled professional engineers with many years’ experience of working in high hazard sectors, including the oil and gas, chemical, pharmaceutical and manufacturing industries.

Richard Vann, RVA’s managing director, said: “The nature of our work means we hand-pick the very best and most talented individuals in our sector. All of our three new project managers have considerable knowledge of the markets we serve and they will be a great addition to the RVA team as it continues to expand, winning new international projects as well as ensuring it maintains the No.1 position in the UK, which is equally important to us.”

Cambridge University law graduate Julie McDonald, who specialises in family law, has decided to open her own law practice.

“With legal aid generally no longer available to provide that extra financial support in family law, people dealing with difficult situations are often struggling to get the important advice they need,“ said Julie, who is based in Newmarket.

“Deciding to make the move and open my own law practice was the logical next step for me, and I’m really looking forward to providing professional legal advice at prices clients just aren’t able to find at the usual high street firms.”

Her firm specialises in all aspects of family law, including divorce, wills and lasting powers of attorney and offers flexible meeting arrangements in Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Cambridge and the surrounding area.

Brantham-based property investment firm Asset Enterprise Partnership is enjoying early success as expansion plans get under way.

It has moved into its own dedicated office and taken on its first new employee.

Alex Westcott, 20, who has a background in the health, fitness and leisure sector, has joined the company as a trainee sales consultant on a sales and telesales apprenticeship.

Managing partner, Aaron Foster said: “It was clear to us that Alex has really good people skills, which will be a great asset to our company as he starts to network and meet our clients and prospective clients. He is also enthusiastic and eager to learn and we are delighted he has joined our team.”

Carol Johnson, managing director of HealthCV Ltd, has relocated her workplacce health and wellbeing business from Yorkshire to Woodbridge fulfilling an ambition to return to the area.

Carol lived in Woodbridge throughout her early life and attended Farlingaye High School. She developed her interest in workplace Wellness Programmes while living in the USA and on returning to the UK in 1991 she established HealthCV in Yorkshire working with a range of major companies and councils including Barclays, HML, Leeds City Council and Bradford Council.

Carol, who has a master’s degree in workplace occupational health & fitness, has also recently been appointed to the board of the International Stress Management Association (ISMA UK).

HealthCV works across the whole of the UK but is expanding in this region.

Two members of staff at Haverhill-based pecialist seating and sensory equipment firm Kirton Healthcare are celebrating a collective 50 years of working for Kirton and A J Way & Co Ltd.

Gill Clifford and Debbie Gander have been working for the Kirton Group for 25 years each. Debbie Gander, sales office manager at the High Wycombe-based A J Way office, and is delighted to mark her 25 year anniversary as an A J Way employee. Debbie said: “I have always thoroughly enjoyed working at A J Way and love that my role is so busy and varied. It is a really nice, friendly company and our retailers are fantastic to work with too. Being involved in the High Wycombe furniture industry is great, especially since my father and grandfather were a part of it before me.”

Gill Clifford, marketing assistant at Kirton Healthcare, joined the company in January 1988 as a temp for two weeks. Four weeks later, she was offered a full time position as an administrator in the company’s customer services department, rising in the ranks to PA to chairman and founder, Martin Battye, who announced his retirement this year.

She is now assistant to marketing managers Vanessa Hands and Monique Jones.

“It is wonderful to have been here through the years to watch Kirton grow and develop into a market leader for specialist seating and sensory equipment,” said Gill. “There is a real sense of team spirit at Kirton that Martin implemented in his time here, and all the managers work closely together to ensure that we maintain a happy and informed team. Life with Kirton is very busy and hectic but extremely rewarding,”