Tadano has continued to invest in its aftersales support, bringing on board three Iveco 50C vans and one 50C cab chassis to service customers in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane while the cab chassis will head to regional Western Australia.
The new service vans are a departure from the norm for Tadano which has previously used a range of utes to service cranes Australia-wide as Tadano Oceania Project Manager – Customer service, Michael Kobilke explains.
“One of the main reasons we opted for the Iveco Daily was for the additional space and carrying capacity the models provided, it gave us far more scope than the standard ute which was something we had identified” he says.
“The vans are 12m³ in volume and have a lot of room for storage and racking as well as for a work bench – the dimensions of the Daily allow technicians up to about a height of 188cm, to stand-up straight in the back to do any work they may need to, and a GVM of 4,495kg in both van and the cab chassis provides significantly more payload than standard utility vehicles,” he said.
The Ivecos come with a braked towing capacity of 3,500kg which also provides the scope to tow a service trailer containing oils and lubricants, compressors, oil pumps and waste oil tanks – everything needed to conduct a full on-site service.
Michael has worked in the industry for over 35 years both in Australia and abroad; he also has experience as both a crane equipment OEM and as a user of cranes in private companies. Additionally, he began in the industry as a field service technician, so has a thorough idea of what works best in terms of support vehicles for all parts of the crane industry.
“We are of the view that these service vans will be great in the metropolitan and regional areas across each of the cities they are to be deployed in,” he said
“The technician can carry tools, consumables, and emergency parts on board in order to speed up the repairs onsite allowing for shorter downtimes for users which at the end of the day is what our jobs are all about.
“The additional cab chassis will be deployed regional WA in order to support our customers in the Northwest WA region as the initial primary focus; however we continue to invest and look at ways to expand our coverage and offer utmost convenience to our customers,”
he says.
The decision to bring the Iveco’s into the fold was not a simple one for Tadano, with many facets considered to ensure they would suit its functional and practical needs but also consider the safety element for their technicians and most importantly the ability to efficiently execute the service projects that their customers need. Tadano is confident in its decision to switch to these Iveco vans and is looking forward to the growth opportunities within this area of business.
The three vans are fitted out with Wurth ORS mobile custom shelving and extra lighting and power inverters to run all required tools and test equipment – making them effectively a moveable workshop giving them the optimised agility and capacity to service our customers offsite
The new service van for the Melbourne depot is one of numerous developments for the Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia regions by Tadano and will provide greater servicing capabilities for the team.
Michael delves into the recent additions to the team at the Tadano Melbourne branch that has improved the capabilities and experience on site.
“We have brought a new service manager into our team, who has come to us with great experience in the material handling industry,” Michael says.
“We have also brought on board an additional senior field service technician who came to us from Tadano Canada with 10 years experience in the Tadano product range and is going to be a great asset to the team.
“For our After Sales Support team in Melbourne; this brings us to a total of 1 service manager, 3 highly skilled and experienced technicians along with a recently added parts interpreter who will cover our Victorian, South Australian and Tasmanian customers,” Michael says.
“We have a full setup service workshop in all our four branches and have also invested in a custom-made service trailer in Melbourne that allows us to carry out a full onsite service and comply with all the relevant environmental requirements so we can be flexible for our clients.”
The Tadano Parts department is also an integral pillar to the after sales service ecosystem within Tadano and they recognise the need to improve stock levels and delivery time so that customers have limited downtime.
Victoria is a focus region for Tadano, along with New South Wales, due to the growth opportunities within these regions and therefore it is important to Tadano that they build strong foundations that will enable them to service and keep up with demand of the current and future market.
Tadano services many of the leading companies in the industry and hope to improve the overall customer experience and journey. Offering high quality products and reliable after sales service support is a priority for the Tadano Group.
The Tadano branches and people across Australia along with these new service vehicles will only help increase their presence in the field.
The additional investment in headcount, facility and equipment upgrades at Tadano are a part of a bigger picture strategy for them moving forward.
As part of this strategy, Tadano is also investing in the upskilling and development of their team members so that they are keeping on top of safety requirements and adhering to industry standards and compliance requirements so that they are able to give consistent best in class service and support to all their customers.
Technology is also a focus in terms of evaluating and discovering new ways to create efficiencies within the team and their dealings with customers. Continuous improvement and innovation are part of the Tadano company philosophies.
Every department within Tadano is working to provide their customers with the best-in-class experience by simply evaluating what their customers need and how they are able to deliver on those needs and expectations.