The fleet management industry has such a diverse range of people and roles, and everyone has a unique story of their journey in our industry. This month we talk to Dan Hutton, Fleet & Plant Coordinator – City of Karratha, Western Australia.
FI: How did you get started in fleet and plant, and what was your first job in the industry?
DH: Like several colleagues, it was almost by accident.
My first job out of school (way back!) was as a Yardman in the panel beating industry; a roustabout, cleaning cars and running cars around from site to site. This progressed through the years into the Car Rental arena. However, my first fleet management role was on a BHP rail construction project in Port Hedland, starting in 2010.
FI: Tell us about your role and the kind of fleet and plant you manage.
DH: Currently at the City of Karratha, we hold a very diverse range of plant & equipment.
The services we offer across a broad range of functions such as; recreation facilities, a waste transfer station, landfill and the usual parks, gardens and roads operations, mean that our fleet is forever evolving with the services that we provide, in line with the growth of the town.
We run approx. 80 light vehicles (combination of passenger vehicles and utilities), a diverse range of yellow plant (skid steer loaders, mini loaders, 12 – 36 tonne excavators, backhoes, front end loaders), and ride on mowers, and as part of our ever-expanding waste / resource recovery efforts, we’ve recently procured a 45 tonne Hammel VB950 Shredder for our 7 Mile Waste Facility to go with our D155 Komatsu dozer and our Bomag 35 tonne refuse compactor.
As I say, very diverse and interesting stuff. My team is crucial to what I do, and without them, I’m up the creek. I have a fantastic Fleet Support Officer, an experienced Workshop Supervisor and dynamic team of five (5) mechanics that includes a first-year apprentice and our workshop Leading Hand who also took home City of Karratha 2019 Employee of the Year.
FI: What’s the favourite part of your job?
DH: Working in the Fleet space enables us to deal with all types of people, trades and disciplines, using a combination of skills.
One day I may be researching plant specifications for a recreation facility, the next working with an operations Supervisor to evaluate a 30-tonne excavator tender. The following week might be budget review time and the week after reviewing a procurement policy. It really is a role unlike any other in my opinion, with the combination of skills required to do the job successfully.
FI: What are some of the biggest challenges you see facing fleet professionals this year and beyond?
DH: Environmental requirements and expectations for Local Governments to lead the way in this space. Unfortunately, Australia is a little way behind the rest of the world when it comes to alternative powered vehicles and plant. We need to be forward thinking in how we plan our infrastructure going forward – and our Fleet Managers need to be a big part of this conversation.
FI: How do you think the fleet department can make sure it has buy-in and support from the rest of the organisation?
DH: Reports! Reports! Reports! We need to show them what we do.
Too often we rely on the ‘no news is good news’ principle when it comes to Fleet Management, in the sense that we all tend to put our heads down and get on with our jobs with little fanfare. We need to SHOW our executives the good work we are doing to help our organisations. Quarterly reports at a minimum that highlight maintenance patterns and KPIs should be on our agendas moving forward. Make them listen!
FI: If you weren’t in the fleet industry, what would you be doing?
DH: I honestly couldn’t imagine not working in this industry. It’s the happiest accident I’ve ever made.
Side Note: Last December, Dan sent a photo to IPWEA FLEET as part of his Christmas wishes. His Hilux internal temp reading at 5pm was 47. Wow! 