Special Report - Finning Canada

WON'T HURT A BIT: Aljo Hamzagic, anotherFinning tech, takes a routine sample of oil foranalysis at the labAnd operating on the premise that imitation is a sincere form offlattery, Heir notes the competition, which never had a dedicatedsalesperson for servicing backup generators before, quickly changedits tune when Finning came on the scene.But the most important response to the Genguard system comesfrom the customers it serves. The growing Township of Langley,in B.C.’s Fraser Valley, is a Finning customer. It has in excess of 30standby generators with four added in the last year to accommodategrowth, says John McQueen, Langley’s equipment maintenancemanager. The units provide backup electrical power services to avariety of vital municipal buildings and services, such as the RCMPdetachment, the operations building, municipal hall, water andsewer utilities and eight fire halls.The Township of Langley has a five-year agreement with Finning,which involves a dedicated maintenance schedule for each gen-set.McQueen explains that Langley took the Finning service optionrather than handling the work in-house for three reasons. “One,Finning looks after our service scheduling for us,” he says. “Two,because of rapid growth in the Township, we had to look closely atour liability risk, and three, we do not have the technical backgroundor equipment required.” Finning does.The agreement with Finning works well, he reports. “There’s goodcommunication with Finning and there’s consistency, often with thesame service technician, who gets to know our systems well.”CHECK OUT A CHECKUPEnsuring that backup power generating systems are always primed todeliver on demand is what Richmond Power Systems is all about. On eachprescribed visit to a customer by an experienced Finning technician, eachstandby generator unit is subject to a rigorous list of checks and testingprocedures.“There is a mandated annual service and more frequent options customerscan choose from,” summarizes Gord Carleton, a service technician in thepreventive maintenance department of Richmond Power Systems.The annual full service procedure is a comprehensive exercise. It includesensuring each customer’s standby unit meets all fire code standards foremergency generators. Oil, filters and safety features are checked on a testlist comprising more than 50 items. Another requirement is load level testing.“We crank up the generator to 100 per cent load and run it for two hours,”explains Carleton. It’s the same principle as test driving a vehicle at highwayspeeds before deciding to buy it.Customers can opt for further levels of service with Finning every sixmonths or on a monthly basis, he continues. Each service category requiresa thorough check of each unit and running it with or without load to ensureit’s in good shape.“We look after 10 or 15 different types of unit, not just Caterpillar, andthat takes a bit of experience,” he says. The same level of experience helpsprevent problems before they develop.Block heaters on the backup units, for example, run 24/7 and hoses needupgrading. And about 90 per cent of service calls received by Finning withthis work are connected to dead and dying batteries, adds Carleton, a heavyduty mechanic by trade who has been doing this type of work for more than10 years. Updating or replacing these items before they fail is sound preventivemaintenance practice and can save the customer much grief and money.www.finning.ca tracks & treads Summer 2009 32 15 23