He will be responsible for sales of the company's Cincom sliding-head and Miyano fixed-head lathes and related automation solutions.
The company has also announced an increase in the number of sales territories around the UK from five to six.
While working at a subcontract machining firm and studying at South Tyneside College and Newcastle University, Eric completed a five-year apprenticeship in machine tool maintenance, during which time he gained an ONC, HNC and HND in the subject.
He then joined a machine tool distributor in the Midlands where he worked as a service engineer for 10 years, subsequently moving into sales roles for three well-known machine tool firms before starting his current position with Citizen Machinery UK.
On his new role, he said: "I regard this as a great opportunity to work for a premier Japanese lathe manufacturer with a strong reputation for producing high-end machines and for providing fully integrated production solutions."