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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  05:08:07 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
For those of you who work in a shop with more than one mechanic, do you split your fleet up equally/evenly amongst the mechanics, or is it a free for all?

We don't do this, but I'm starting to think it may be a good idea. Seems like it would bring accountability and more responsibility to each mechanic. It would also show who is doing what, how long it's taking, and may help to narrow down a problematic employee. Please share your thoughts and opinions. Thanks!!!

dsalinas1939
Top Member

USA
1316 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  05:56:13 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
in my shop there are three mechanics but every morning we go threw what needs to be done and deside who is gonna do what that why the work is distributed evenly and we no who is doing what it works well for use but may not work for everyone
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  06:00:13 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
We do that as well right now. Our fleet manager decides who's getting what based on work load and other things, but it seems as if some of us get stuck with redo work from someone else. I realize we're all human and we're gonna make mistakes sometimes, but it's like an all the time thing.
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dsalinas1939
Top Member

USA
1316 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  06:02:51 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
well when we have a problem with a bus it goes back the the original guy that worked on it but usually i go over it really quick to see what happened and then it goes to the original guy that worked on it and i will let him no if he made a mistake or missed something so we can try to avoid it happening again
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  06:38:25 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
That's typically what we try to do, but it doesn't always work like that. If I'm already halfway thru an inspection and I see something that I think was "fixed" before, I verify that it was indeed "fixed" and then usually have to do the repair myself because it makes more sense for one guy to finish the entire job, rather than giving it back to the guy that screwed it up the first time, than having me finish my portion of the job.
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dsalinas1939
Top Member

USA
1316 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  07:38:09 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
what i meant was if someone does a job and it comes back for the same problem the guy who worked on it gets it back as far as finding something someone did while doing another job yes in that cause i would just take care of it and let that person no what happened
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  07:46:09 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
I got what you meant, and that's what we try to do for the most part. I think we as mechanics can agree that it's frustrating to clean up someone elses mess. I'm not perfect by any means, but I would much rather take care of my own comebacks and learn my lesson from it.
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dsalinas1939
Top Member

USA
1316 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  07:50:53 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
yeah i hear that its very frustrating sometimes but i guess i look at it like sometimes i make mistakes or miss something and the other guess have to take care of it so i cant complain when its the other way around unless it happens alot but yes it very frustrating some times
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  08:14:20 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
The whole happening a lot thing is the biggest problem.
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40ngone
Senior Member

USA
166 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  10:04:20 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
I have it equally broken down between mechanics. Mechanic's have different strengths but I find it helps everybody get up to speed and cross trained better. I equally divide by gas, diesel, CNG, transit, van, wheelchair, old, new, ...
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second.flood
Top Member

USA
640 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  11:29:48 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
I am by myself in my shop. (33 buses and 14 white including a backhoe.)

For those who split the fleet among mechanics, how is this accomplished? A draft? Assigned arbitrarily?

I hope to have another mechanic soon.
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krmvcs
Advanced Member

362 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  12:48:52 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
and i thought i had it bad. 13 buses and a whole bunch of misc equipment. one assistant.

-Ken-
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Kodie
Top Member

United States
2028 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  2:15:47 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
45 buses here, 5 medical vans and 1 full time mechanic, with an occasional helper. Majority of the fleet is brand new so it helps. If we were in a position I think dividing it up would work well really. Maybe do it by every other bus so they get an even mix of old and new, big small, etc. Example being, John gets buses 1,3,5,7,9 etc, Joe gets 2,4,6,8,10.
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Crown
Senior Member

89 Posts

Posted - 02/27/2015 :  5:49:29 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote

quote:
Originally posted by aaronwilmoth80911

The whole happening a lot thing is the biggest problem.


That right there is not an issue of handing out work or fairness. It sounds like you have someone who does not know what he (or she) is doing. It also may point to a supervisor in the same condition. If a mechanic has a lot of come backs, especially on a variety of jobs, immediate attention is needed. The mechanic may very well be doing unsafe repairs.


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dsalinas1939
Top Member

USA
1316 Posts

Posted - 03/01/2015 :  10:03:26 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
we have two guys that do the normal service and inspections fluid changes brakes and suspension checks lighting and interior checks and they take care of all that if they find a check engine light on or a run ability problem they will finish there part and pass it off to me it works very well for us we have over 150 buses split between 54 passengers to 16 and 24 we have very few problems or comeback doing this way I am sure there are better or different ways to handle but this way works very well for us
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Bassman
Top Member

USA
558 Posts

Posted - 03/02/2015 :  03:08:01 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
115 buses 4 mechanics. We split our buses 4 ways so the guys are doing the PM's and Inspections on their own buses. We hire in outside mechanics to perform our 3 times a year bus inspections but our guys must get them ready first. Ours go through the same inspections all the contractor buses do (we are mostly special needs). Has worked well for 30 years.
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 03/02/2015 :  05:49:32 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
@Crown: Yes, there seems to be a bit of a problem with one person in particular. My thoughts on this are since it seems that the supervisors are either blind to the problem, or if not blind, they are not seeing the full ramifications of it. My thoughts are that if we can implement a system in which everyone has their "own" buses and other fleet vehicles to take care of, the problems will become apparent, and then maybe something will be done.

Thanks for your thoughts everyone, this really helps to see how others have it. I appreciate what we have here, as it is not a terrible situation, but I think it could be much better. Responsibility and accountability are the things I'm looking at.
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Bassman
Top Member

USA
558 Posts

Posted - 03/03/2015 :  02:31:20 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
A good supervisor can't make all things equal, but must strive to get each mechanic performing to the best of their potential.
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aaronwilmoth80911
Top Member

538 Posts

Posted - 03/03/2015 :  10:44:27 AM  Show Profile  Visit aaronwilmoth80911's Homepage  Reply with Quote
True. But when the immediate supervisor is being over-ridden by his supervisor, it's an uphill battle.
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40ngone
Senior Member

USA
166 Posts

Posted - 03/03/2015 :  12:31:06 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Even though we have our fleet broken down between mechanics, which works well for us, that does not stop other issues. A poor mechanic that needs more training or a new attitude will still be a problem. A supervisor that does not treat all staff equally and fairly will always have problems with his/her staff and that will show in how they back up the supervisor, and the overall operation will suffer.
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mhernandez73
Senior Member

124 Posts

Posted - 03/04/2015 :  06:31:37 AM  Show Profile  Visit mhernandez73's Homepage  Reply with Quote
we have over 200buses 6 techs 3 morning and 3 evenin. we all share the load. we all have different strong points.foreman assigns most of the time with bigger jobs.we diag and start repair . afternoon shows up we comunicate with them. basically we diag start and they pick up where we leave off. they comunicate back so the morning comes we have the heads up on what needs to be finished or diag..doesnt always line up but were a team and make it work. fyi we have separate tire,pm,wash,fabric depts so we can focus solely on diag and repair
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