Fleet managers are not the only professionals who can benefit from completing the IPWEA Fleet Management Certificate, according to Gerrard Milham, the Procurement Adviser at Greater Shepparton City Council in Victoria.
Milham recently completed the course and says many aspects of the course material can be easily applied in other public works departments.
“Working out lifecycle costing and net-present values are processes that can be used in a number of different areas,” he says. “The data is different, but the process of looking at fixed and variable costs is applicable to many different areas. So the course material was very interesting and useful for my role.
“I sit on the council’s fleet and plant management committee. I now have a much better understanding of how to calculate life cycle costs for different items of plant. It means we can have a more in depth look at plant costs and put together a proper business case before we purchase replacement items.
“It’s also really useful to be able to talk the talk with our fleet management people!”
Milham has been working in procurement for the past 19 years, but has maintained an interest in fleet management thanks to his previous life as a motor mechanic. During his 13 years in the trade, he says he worked in various light fleet operations.
“I went to the IPWEA Fleet Management Seminar in October last year,” he adds. “Going along and talking with other people in the field was what prompted me to do the course.
“Fortunately, the council was willing to finance the course on the proviso that I paid for it first and then passed, I would be refunded. I was quite pleased with the result.”
However, he also had to overcome some challenges to complete the course. Needing to access some council information in order to complete some if the units, Milham was unable to call on the assistance of Shepparton’s fleet coordinator, who was on leave.
“We don’t really have a fleet management system where everything is recorded,” he says. “The information is there, but its not in a central location that is readily accessible to people who don’t work in fleet.
“Fortunately, I was able to find the records – with the help of the acting fleet coordinator – and get the information I needed.
“I would recommend the course to anyone who is interested, not only those working in fleet. It’s a really good course. It’s particularly interesting because
it is a combination of many different areas, such as procurement, management and data analysis.”