Landscape Management, March 2010

continued from page 28 LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT NET MARCH 2010 30 PHOTO COURTESY WHEELER LANDSCAPING COVER STORY Wheeler counts on vendors for vehicle and equipment maintenance and major repairs but experienced personnel handle minor fi xes different route with its truck and equipment maintenance and repair program Its partnering with local vendors and depending on their help and expertise for service and major equipment repairs We are relying a lot more on local vendors now and they want our business says Rick Kerens Wheelers Landscape Construction Project Manager Kerens handles installation crews during the growing season and all snow operations in the winter Putting this into action was a little bit scary at fi rst Kerens says To even consider this new process it required trust with the vendors to be able to turn over our 23 trucks and equipment and know that the repairs will be done in a timely fashion repaired properly and at a fair price Like most companies Wheeler Landscaping does its truck preventative maintenance PM strictly by the numbers Every truck gets a full PM including oil changes and lubrication every 3000 miles Our supervisors and crew leaders log the mileage of their trucks when they do their pre trips Kerens says When its time to do an oil change we call the dealerships where we purchased the trucks They pick it up and take it to their facilities They change the oil and inspect all of the basic components for wear and damage When fi nished they return the trucks to us Kerens says the vendor keeps a complete maintenance record for each vehicle and has been very good about informing him if it fi nds any unusual wear damage or any indication of operator misuse of the truck We used to do everything in house and we found it very cumbersome tracking when maintenance and repair were being done to trucks he says PM partners Kerens equates the process to the nursery stock Wheeler Landscaping used to carry at its site but no longer does We used to spent a lot of time and money caring for it but now we let the local nurseries do that They have the expertise to do it better and its more convenient and cost effective for us We look to our truck vendors the same way The company will do minor fi xes on its trucks inhouse those that can easily be done through its 25 point pre trip vehicle inspections Everything else is done by the vendor The key to making this work is fi nding go to vendors and building the right relationships Kerens says That vendor has to understand what were trying to achieve as a company and that in the end were both on the same team There are great vendors out there that will become your right hand and really come through because they care about your business This results in a win win for both Kerens says the vendor must realize Wheeler Landscapings need to keep its trucks safe and operable Every supervisor we hire every crew leader we hire every employee we hire is needed to be on the jobs working safely effi ciently and producing billable hours for the company If we have a problem with a truck we cant make money with it he says Wheeler has made similar arrangements with its snowplow and other equipment vendors LM WEB EXTRA Visit www landscapemanagement net brand to read about Brand Landscapings maintenance strategies and successes THE KEY TO MAKING THIS WORK IS FINDING GO TO VENDORS AND BUILDING THE RIGHT RELATIONSHIPS Rich Kerens Wheeler