OREANDA-NEWS. April 06, 2012. Tata Steel is pleased to announce that Mr Hans Fischer  will be joining its European operations as Chief Technical Officer from July 1,  2012.

Born in Nijmegen in the Netherlands, Mr Fischer  brings a wealth of experience of European steelmaking to the company. After  graduating in engineering from Eindhoven University he joined Hoogovens - now  part of Tata Steel - in 1985. He has held very senior positions within German  steelmakers Salzgitter and ThyssenKrupp, as well as at Hoogovens.

In his new role he will be responsible for Tata  Steel's significant European capital expenditure programme, as well as for  Operational Excellence, Engineering, Research & Development, and Environment.

Dr Karl-Ulrich Kohler, MD & CEO of Tata Steel in  Europe, said: "I am delighted to be able to welcome Hans back to IJmuiden where  he started his career. His technical and operational expertise will be  invaluable to us in delivering our strategy of optimising product quality in  the service of improved customer focus."

Mr Fischer said: "I am thrilled at the prospect of  returning to my steelmaking roots and of playing a significant part in the  exciting operational changes that Tata Steel has embarked on in the UK and  Netherlands. Modern steelmaking, especially in mature markets, is about  extracting the best from operating assets in ways that bring most benefit to  customers, and I look forward to helping realise that ambition for Tata Steel."