Everyday Heroes: Meet Finning's service ... - Finning Canada

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WORKHORSES: This 793D haul truck and D10tractor are key to KMC’s efforts in the oil sandsIn fact, with the price of oil hovering atrecord highs, KMC is set for unprecedentedgrowth. The Edmonton-based company expectsto increase its number of employees bymore than 250% from its 2006 levels. It alsoexpects to make some significant increases toits infrastructure, as well.“If you look at our growth based on thesize of our fleet, we expect to double our sizein 2008 compared to our 2005 numbers, andthen redouble in 2012 from what we’ll havein 2008,” says Dermot McArdle, general managerof KMC’s fleet.“Our growth comes from the fact thatwe’ve earned our stripes. The major companiesin the oil sands industry recognize thatoverburden and ore removal is our corecompetency, so more and more they’re comingto us to provide that service, and in orderto do that we need to supply a reliable fleet,”McArdle adds.KMC buys a large part of its fleet fromFinning, and the two companies have enjoyeda business relationship going back more than50 years. Currently, Finning provides KMCwith assistance and product support for approximately80 pieces of heavy equipment,mainly large haul trucks, which it has sold toKMC over the years.Paul Bechard, Finning’s major accountmanager for KMC, says KMC deserves a lot ofcredit for positioning itself so well.“There is a lot of pressure on the contractorsto develop and use innovative and moreeconomical methods to do business in theoil sands, and that’s just what KMC has done.The company has streamlined its operationsand built up a strong reputation over theyears,” Bechard says.“Another reason KMC does so well is thatit works hand-in-hand with its suppliers, suchas ourselves, and to a certain extent it relies onour ability to provide dependable service,”Bechard adds.McArdle agrees the relationship betweenKMC and Finning is mutually beneficial.“When we buy and when we maintain ourequipment, we use the latest technologies and44 tracks & treads • Spring 2008 www.finning.ca
operating methods. It’s helpful in attractingnew employees to be able to share the fact thatthey’ll be working with the latest and best technologyavailable globally, and in a large partthat comes from Finning,” McArdle says. KMChas, for example, invested in Finning’s S.O.S.fluid analysis services, sending oil and otherfluid samples from its machines to Finning’slab to check that its fleet is running optimally.Serving KMC is not a job Finning can takelightly; it’s a challenge to keep up with KMC’sgrowth. “We have a dedicated service groupconsisting of technicians, service billers,a service supervisor and a manager focusingon KMC’s fleet maintenance,” Bechard says.“And we’re looking to increase our dedicatedworkforce in order to match KMC’s growth.”McArdle, who has been working at KMC,and working with Finning, for more than 20years, including 18 years at the managementlevel, believes the real key to the success ofKMC and Finning’s business dealings hasbeen the personal relationships and trustthat have grown between the people workingfor both companies.“I have worked with many people fromFinning over the years, and there have beennumerous occasions when the account managershave made themselves available onweekends or late at night in order to addressone emergency or another,” McArdle says.“We’ve come to trust that personal level ofservice, and that’s part of what makes everythingwork so well,” he adds.“One of our tenets at KMC is that we willadhere to the highest level of business ethics,and this is something which is recognizedby Finning. So the people atFinning and Caterpillar know that ourword is our bond, and that’s something that’sbeen threaded through the relationship goingback to the beginning.“There has always been that understandingof integrity between both groups andit continues today,” McArdle adds.Remember When…A good time was had by allThe key to successof KMC and Finning’sbusiness dealings hasbeen the personalrelationships and trustthat have grown betweenthe people working forboth companies.It keeps on truckingSomewhere, up in Fort McMurray, there’sa 200-ton haul truck with more than100,000 hours of use behind it. The 789Caterpillar truck is likely hauling earth atthis moment.“That truck certainly has seen the testof time,” says Dermot McArdle, generalmanager, fleet, for KMC Mining (KMC),the company that owns the truck.“We purchased it back in 1988, and it’sseen continuous use in Fort McMurray thatwhole time,” he says. “We’re still using it.”KMC bought the truck from Finning, andFinning has, in part, played a role for itslong life over the last 20 years.“When KMC Mining purchases Catmining equipment from Finning (Canada),we do our very best to assist them withits maintenance, and also provide thenecessary support to ensure maximumavailability for KMC’s fleet,” says PaulBechard, Finning’s major account managerfor KMC.Bechard estimates that the 789 truckin question has accumulated roughly theequivalent of a million miles over the lasttwo decades.“The idea of the 789, with such highhours of use on it, is a kind of testimonialto the longstanding relationship betweenFinning and KMC,” Bechard says, “andit’s a clear demonstration of how cooperationprovides longevity and strengththrough the test of time.”www.finning.ca Spring 2008 • tracks & treads 45
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Page 6: News & ReviewsBY DAVID DICENZOPaint
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Page 11: GROUNDBREAKERBy the NumbersHeight i
Page 14 and 15: We service what we sellIn 1928, Ear
Page 17 and 18: CAT POWER: A Cat 3406 engine powers
Page 19 and 20: SIXTIES SERVICE: Finning’s Jerry
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Page 24 and 25: Giant spruce near Port Renfrew, B.C
Page 28 and 29: Lines Acrossthe NorthKenn and Rosel
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Page 43: Partners inProgressAn Edmonton comp
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Page 54 and 55: TEAM SPARWOOD: Clockwise from botto
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Everyday Heroes: Meet Finning's service ... - Finning Canada

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