Any smart employer knows that his or her largest investment is tied up in the hiring and retention of quality employees. And in an industry like this, which depends so heavily on the consistent performance of large, specialized vehicles, it’s a no-brainer where the other big bucks get spent.
So what do we do to protect these major investments in our businesses? The answer appears to lie in training, the kind that goes above and beyond the simple mechanics of the job. It’s about building up and maintaining the safety and viability of both types of assets — human and mechanical — over the long haul.
With 25 employees and 26 years in the business, Jerry Lemanski has a significant investment in his staff and the fleet that provides industrial pumping to factories across Tampa Bay from St. Petersburg on Florida’s western coast.
“New hires don’t get on the truck right away,” he says. “They work as a helper, learning to operate everything. They start at the bottom and work their way up. They learn the vehicle backward and forward,” coming to respect the heavy equipment and to be able to drive the truck responsibly.
Lemanski says how fast a person moves up through the ranks “is all up to the individual. Each individual is different. You can tell within a week whether someone’s got the capabilities or not (to become a driver). If not, they remain a laborer.”
Specifically, Bay Area laborers are groomed in proper mechanical operation of all facets of the industrial vacuum trucks, including how to keep themselves and others around them safe when in proximity to high pressure waterblasting and vacuum tools. Lemanski stresses the development of enough comfort with the equipment to foster confidence without allowing the operator to slide into dangerous complacency.
“They learn every aspect from the mechanics to the operation to the maintenance, from the back end all the way to the front, before they ever get in that cab,” he says. This includes servicing, greasing, changing bearing packings, setting and cleaning the inspection cameras daily. Then, once a technician has gained driver status, each one goes through a daily pre-route vehicle routine that includes checking oil, water, air in the tires, “anything that has to do with good performance and safe operation of that truck,” according to Lemanski.
“It’s hands on,” says Terry McManus, describing the type of training his drivers receive. “You come out with me, and you don’t solo at all until you know the ins and outs of how the pump works. There’s a learning curve. I show them what the pump’s capable of, the proper lubrication method, how to set things. I tell them if it’s not right, don’t use it, call me or get somebody in there so we can make sure (it’s running properly). I stress daily maintenance, the importance of keeping everything cleaned out.”
It’s a training method he’s perfected, McManus says. But he learned the hard way how important it is to provide thorough, one-on-one, “with-the-boss” training that creates employee appreciation for the kind of investment he makes in them and the vehicles. “I had some who didn’t, and they’re not here anymore. They blew up one pump, and that was enough for me. It was just absolute neglect.”
Another lesson learned the hard way was to make sure that smaller equipment also represents a real investment. “Unfortunately, when we were first in the business, we bought cheap hoses, and had a lot of kinking issues,” recalls McManus. He says it’s hard to impress upon employees the need to treat equipment with respect when it’s clearly substandard to begin with. “We’ve since replaced all those, and it’s working out much better,” he says.
Ace’s other main training effort is around safety. “All my drivers are safety trained, for themselves and for the truck,” McManus says. “We cover brake safety — I’m a stickler on brakes — making sure you’ve got all the fluid levels up, that the tire pressures are good, light systems. Make sure all your valves are capped and closed, otherwise you’re going to spray the car behind you and they’re not going to be a happy camper. This stuff is also covered in driver mechanical training, so by the time I get them for safety, it’s more review and they’ve got it all down.”
McManus plans to train future drivers first as “swampers” — riding shotgun with an experienced driver — since that’s how he trained his latest driver, and it has worked out well. “He was doing the labor, running the hoses and the pump. He got a really good mix of how the job is done, how to keep the customer happy, and the safety. I told him, ‘I want you to learn all this now, because when you get to be a driver, this will be your responsibility.’”
“Our portable restroom drivers first view safety videos, then we put them on a route with another driver as an assistant for two to four weeks,” says Frank King, whose firm does septic pumping, line jetting and inspection and portable restrooms. “Usually that’s an entry level position that doesn’t require a commercial driver’s license. As we watch (the new hire) and find they’re a keeper, we want them to get their CDL. Let’s say they’ve got one day a week that’s not on a route, they go and work with the septic pumpers or the jetting crew. We encourage them to get out the registry books then go down and get their permit. If they do, it’s an automatic pay increase. We encourage them from that point to ride with other drivers and get their full CDL. Once they do that, when a vacancy occurs, they’re the one to move into that position.”
King says it’s difficult to get drivers to pay attention to the kind of regular maintenance that needs to be done to take care of the truck. Basic fluid checks, tire pressure and general road safety checks are part of the pre-route daily inspection, which is also for the driver’s safety. Major vehicle inspections are done during regular quarterly lubrication and other scheduled work that’s done by an outside mechanic.
