A key figure in the optical world has been appointed as general manager of Norville, the Gloucestershire-based manufacturer of spectacle lenses.

Nevil 'Nev' Trotter was a partner and director of group manufacturing & distribution technologies at Specsavers. He worked at Specsavers for the last 13 years, most recently responsible for the manufacturing and supply chain excellence, as well as the global project delivery and system integration. Nev was instrumental in delivering supply chain fulfilment for the Specsavers' global move into eCommerce, as well as a successful market expansion.

Norville, which has been operating in Gloucestershire since 1898, was acquired from administration in July by Bath-based Inspecs. The deal included the £1.2million freehold property for the Gloucester laboratory, stock, plant, intellectual property and contracts.

As soon as it acquired Norville , Inspecs launched a search for a new general manager to run operations and a number of high calibre candidates were considered for the job.

Robin Totterman, chief executive of Inspecs, said: "I am delighted that Nev has agreed to join Inspecs to run Norville. He brings a significant array of experience, expertise and knowledge of the optical industry and we look forward to leveraging this to build on Norville's heritage and transform its future."

Nev Trotter said: "I am thrilled to be joining the Inspecs Group to help Robin and the team develop and grow the Norville offering. This is an exciting opportunity to work with one of the industry's oldest manufacturing brands and I have no doubt that being part of Inspecs will help me to accelerate and release Norville's true potential."