Having left school at 16, Martin Hulbert (left) began working for his father’s haulage firm in Blaby for 12 months, before joining Ford & Slater as an HGV technician apprentice nine years ago. Today Hulbert is a fully qualified member of the workshop team.
Lee Sursham (right) arrived at Ford & Slater as an experienced HGV Technician in 2013. After working for a small haulier fleet for eight years he wanted the opportunity to progress his career, continue learning and develop an in-depth understanding of Daf vehicles.
Laurie Dealer found out what being an HGV technician means to the pair of them.
What is a typical week for you as a HGV technician?
Martin: It can be quite busy and it can be very varied. You start and finish at the same time but between those hours all sorts can happen!
Lee: The job involves a variety of things; it’s always going to be fixing a lorry in some form or other but you walk in the door and never really know what’s going to be there. Servicing is definitely a huge part of the job. I work more in diagnostics, but the role scopes out even as far as welding. For a week of each month I am on call where I can be doing just about anything.
And what does being on call involve?
Lee: We cover the entirety of Leicestershire from as far north as East Midlands Airport and as south as Lutterworth. We are on hand 24 hours a day in case of a breakdown.
What’s the strangest thing you have come across when repairing a truck?
Martin: There’s certainly been some interesting incidents over the years. I remember one being a Dutch man that I went out on call to. He had a left hand lorry so all the pipes were made to fit the opposite way to what we had in stock. Instead I made a pipe from what we had in the van. His lorry transported flowers, so after I made this thing up he opened up the back of the truck and just kept giving me bunches of flowers to say thanks!”
What do you like best about working for Ford & Slater?
Lee: Your hard work is rewarded, that’s the best part. I’d not been here very long before I was offered the call-out position. I continued to work hard and now I’ve got a standing foreman’s job. In the space of two and a half years I’ve gone from walking in the door to a semi-management position - that’s a good level of progression which you don’t always get at other places. That and of course the camaraderie, our shift gets on really well which makes it easier to come in in the morning.
Martin: I’ve been here quite a while now and it’s a company where people tend to stay. A lot of the staff have earned their positions, progressing from the same place as myself. You build that bond and it’s that which I quite like; the friendship and unity is the sticking point for me.
What advice would you give to anyone looking to become a HGV Technician?
Lee: I think you’ve got to go in with an open attitude and be willing to learn and show interest in what’s going on. You’ve got to be willing to knuckle down, work hard, but also take on board what other people are trying to tell you and learn from the experience of those around you. The way technology moves in the industry there is always something new to learn!
Martin: Work hard definitely and take it seriously. In my nine years here things have moved on a lot technologically, so for you to keep up it takes a lot of effort to keep evolving yourself and to keep with the times. It’s not what it used to be anymore, it does take a lot of hard work.
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