Thomas FehnThomas Fehn has been named CEO of SPI Lasers UK Ltd., a developer of fiber lasers used in manufacturing and materials processing.

He succeeds Christian Schmitz, who has returned to parent company Trumpf GmbH & Co. KG of Ditzingen, Germany, after a year as SPI's CEO.

For the last nine years, Fehn has been executive vice president of Jenoptik AG of Germany. He also served in a number of senior positions with Linos Photo nics Inc. from 1998 to 2005.

In April, Trumpf acquired JK Lasers Ltd. of Rugby, U.K., from GSI Group Inc. of Bedford, Mass., for $31.5 million. SPI said the acquisition signaled an increased focus on R&D and allowed the company to grow its product portfolio to include a number of high-power CW lasers and systems.

"SPI Lasers manufactures high-quality fiber laser solutions for a variety of manufacturing challenges across the globe," Fehn said. "We will co ntinue to build on this foundation as we sharpen our focus on the products and services we offer in this dynamic marketplace."