Efficiency is key to what we do

Steve Edson, 59, is our Service and Parts Desk Coordinator at KWL Fleet.

He previously worked as a Senior Stores Supervisor at Hull City Council Fleet from 2005. His current role was created in September 2012 when Fleet Factors won the tender and KWL Fleet was born, he explains:

“Initially, I ran the parts department for a short while. There are four Fleet Supervisors here and it became increasingly hard for them to be able to do their main role – they had to coordinate the mechanics on the workshop floor and the services for our extensive list of vehicles, all of which have a tight turnaround. We didn’t originally have a reception, so when the public came in for tests, it was left to the Fleet Supervisors to see to them. My role as a Service and Parts Desk Coordinator was created specially to solve this problem and improve their workload, making it more efficient for the team as a whole.”

Working in our reception, Steve is responsible for welcoming customers upon arrival and seeing jobs through from start to finish. A typical day involves calling clients, booking MOTs and services – for both the public and our assets (plant and fleet).

“Everything has a process here.”, he explains, “We have a team of 2 MOT testers and around 21 mechanics that work on a large turnover of vehicles. I create a job card for the works that are required and pass these onto the mechanics, keeping the process very simple. It’s imperative that everything gets tested, whether it’s refuse trucks on the roads or buses picking up the vulnerable, we’re responsible for an array of vehicles. We took around 4000 taxi tests last year and 350 tests in September alone, so being productive is key to what we do.”

“I was given training for our new in-house bespoke IT systems, where all of our data gets uploaded via our Fleet Number database. KWL Fleet brought all of our technology up to the modern day and now I’d say we have the same equipment as the main dealers. The systems we have in place are easily accessible and organised incase VOSA (the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency) requests to see our records.”

During the first lockdown in Spring, he thought KWL Fleet was “really proactive”. “They’d thought of everything – notices, sanitisers, perspex screens, one-way systems, masks, new office space –

I couldn’t believe it! They couldn’t have done any more.”

Steve has been happily married to his wife Karen, who he met during his time at school, since 1983. They have two children together – Sarah, 31, and Matthew, 29 – along with two grandchildren and another on the way!

Football had always been a passion for Steve, but unfortunately he had to stop playing as time went on. However, his hobby lived on through his son who then took up football – now Steve gets to watch him from the sidelines and coaches the team. Born and bred in Hull, he is also a proud member of the Hull & District Football Club for over 35s, formed in 2001.

“I find my job really fulfilling – I enjoy being able to aid the mechanics and greet customers. It keeps me on my toes and allows me to provide the public with a service that they need. Ultimately, I hope to retire here. In previous roles I’ve usually had the ‘seven-year itch’ shifting between jobs, but I‘m really happy here.”