A COUNTY machine tool manufacturer is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

Yamazaki Mazak UK, whose European headquarters has been in Worcester since 1987, celebrated with a day of fun activities at Drayton Manor Theme Park for employees and their families.

The company celebrated its centenary by treating more than 1,000 people to a day at the theme park.

Adults and kids alike enjoyed themselves on the rollercoasters and rides and helped themselves to an organised buffet as a thank you for all their efforts helping Mazak reach this major milestone.

Richard Smith, European group managing director for Yamazaki Mazak, said: "Despite its size and global manufacturing capability, Mazak remains a family business both in terms of its ownership and its culture.

"A family day out at Drayton Manor Theme Park was the perfect way for us to celebrate our centenary together.

“I’m thrilled that so many turned out for this wonderful event at Drayton Manor Park to celebrate our centenary.

"This was our way of saying thank you for everyone’s hard work, both in terms of manufacturing our machines and also their contribution to making Mazak a great place to work."

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Mazak was established in 1919 in Nagoya, Japan by Sadakichi Yamazaki making machines for mat weaving and has since grown into one of the world’s largest manufacturers of machine tools with 10 manufacturing sites across the world.

The company, with sites in the UK, Japan, Russia and the United States, currently employs 8,429 people.

The company’s European headquarters and manufacturing site, based in Badgeworth Drive, Worcester, employs more than 600 workers.

The Worcester facility produces more than 1,000 machine tools every year for use by UK machine tool users and also for export to Europe.

Last year, Yamazaki Mazak raised vital cash for Cancer Research UK, following a series of dedicated charity events held in the summer.

Mazak’s senior marketing executive, Milko Hadzhigenov, also climbed Mount Snowdon in just 4.5 hours to support the fundraising efforts.