Celtic SMR Celebrates Alan Clarkson’s 40 Years of Service

Celtic SMR is proud to announce that our Technical Director Alan Clarkson has reached an incredible milestone – 40 years of service with the company.

Alan joined SMR at just 17 years old as an apprentice engineer, progressing through technical roles supporting x-ray systems within the medical and veterinary sectors. He holds a first class honours degree in electronic engineering from Manchester Metropolitan University and an MPhil from the University of Bradford.

Over the following four decades, he played a central role in the technical, commercial, and cultural development of the business, ultimately becoming Technical Director in 2000. His career reflects not only his remarkable longevity, but also sustained excellence, adaptability, and commitment to the company and the wider profession.

Today, Alan is widely regarded as one of the most experienced and trusted technical specialists in the UK veterinary imaging equipment market. Alongside his love of amateur radio, fishing, cycling and the great outdoors he is highly respected by our customers for his depth of knowledge and integrity, and is very well liked across the wider industry.

Commenting on the milestone, Alan said:

“Starting as a junior engineer at just 17 and growing with SMR over the past 40 years has been an incredible and rewarding journey. In those early days, my work focused mainly on servicing and installing General X-ray equipment across the NHS and veterinary sectors, which gave me a strong foundation and a real appreciation for the importance of what we do. Around 2000, while out on a site visit, I first met Mike Howe, then Managing Director and owner of Celtic Vet, a supplier of X-ray film and accessories. The following year, in 2001, Celtic merged with SMR, marking the start of an exciting new chapter that helped shape the business we know today.

Looking back, I feel very proud to have played a part in the company’s evolution and continued success. What stands out most over the years is the commitment of the people I’ve worked alongside and the way we’ve continually adapted to new technology and changing customer needs while still delivering year-on-year growth. The support from colleagues, past and present, has been tremendous and has made the journey all the more meaningful.

Celtic SMR has always felt like more than just a workplace to me—it’s been a team effort built on experience, trust, and shared ambition. I’m grateful for the opportunities I’ve been given and I still genuinely enjoy being part of the team today. After four decades, I remain proud of what we’ve achieved together and look forward to contributing for a few more years yet as we continue to grow our market presence and build on the strong foundations already in place.”

Peter McGilloway, Managing Director of Celtic SMR, added:

“It’s a true honour to know and work alongside Alan. From day 1 of my time with the company he has always shown his passion, deep knowledge and talent for working with our customers to solve technical issues or introduce new technology to them. He will always help his colleagues with anything and has built up fantastic relationships with all he has worked with over the years. 

You only need to spend an hour with Alan at a customer event or trade show to see just how widely he is known and respected by vets and nurses across the UK and Ireland. Alan really does represent the very best of what Celtic SMR stands for – genuine care for our customers. We all hope that Alan spends many more years with us yet.”