WHEN Lachlan Corridan made the move to a new role as a service technician in the broadacre business with Haeusler’s John Deere dealership in Sea Lake, he first had to go on a harvest crash course – without any crashes.
He managed to pull that off, and now he finds himself a finalist in the 2023 John Deere Technician of the Year Awards in the agriculture and turf section, going up against technicians from NSW, South Australia and Queensland.
The Swan Hill born and bred technician had started in his hometown with Emmett’s but once he had completed his apprenticeship, he had his eye on the big machinery only found in the big, open country.
Turns out he knew someone at Sea Lake, and someone there knew him and in a roundabout way, the job offer came and he was there with bells on.
But not before, he confesses, Haeusler’s got him a gig driving a header for an entire harvest so he knew what he would be dealing with in his new role.
“I didn’t come from a farming background, although I have a couple of uncles who are on the land, and being in Swan Hill, I knew plenty of others who did come from farming, so I always had a bit of an interest in general and in machinery in particular,” Lachlan says.
“After completing some work experience locally, I was hooked on a future as a service technician, and started my apprenticeship in 2016,” he says.
“It’s been a great decision, it’s a great job and industry and I love it all.”
He is also trying to have the best of both his worlds – he makes the 90-minute round trip to Sea Lake from Swan Hill every day but says as he mostly is always heading straight for a paddock, the travel is no big deal.
And that travel time, and workload, is no longer cutting into things such as playing footy for Swan Hill – a hamstring injury that’s not going away, and three broken fingers (two on one hand and one of the other) convinced him it was time to hang up the boots.
Not least because it’s very tricky to be a good service technician with broken fingers.
“I leave the footy up to my brother now, he’s really good at it and he gets paid, I just got injuries,” Lachlan laughs.
Working in the heart of Victoria’s Mallee wheatbelt region, and with his one harvest in the cab, Lachlan has become a specialist on combine harvesters and self-propelled sprayers.
And because of their size, working on them is almost always out on the road and in the paddock or machine shed at the farm.
Which he loves, meeting all the different people, working on a range of machinery and not being stuck in an office, or indoors in general, all day.
Things tick over all year round, but of course harvest is when it goes bonkers, because once the headers are in action, no farmer wants any kind of delay.
If something does go wrong, Lachlan needs to be there – yesterday.
“I got to Sea Lake in 2020, right at the start of COVID, which could have been a shocker in my new job, but as it turned out, it didn’t cause us too many headaches at all,” he said.
“We were largely exempt as a vital industry, and nearly all our work is out in the open, so in the end there were no great challenges,” he says.
Also a bonus, because Lachlan doesn’t mind admitting there are plenty of other challenges keeping ahead of the rapidly evolving technology and equipment being installed in the modern tractor.
He reckons a good half of his job is being on top of the latest technology if there are any issues for farmers.
“In the past 10 years, the whole industry has gone ahead in leaps and bounds and you’ve got to keep up, so it does have its challenges – but the John Deere support network really delivers whenever you need it and that support makes life so much easier when the pressure is on,” Lachlan says.
“At Sea Lake, there’s three of us as qualified technicians, along with two apprentices, and we often have one of those with us because the work means there isn’t a lot of time for them to be sitting around making coffees for the staff,” he laughs.
“I came here to get more experience with big machinery, and that’s exactly what I got and the clients I work with have been incredibly friendly and supportive, which makes the whole job that more enjoyable.
“And my basic training didn’t end with my one season as a harvester, Haeusler’s have also chucked me on a range of the John Deere tractors we sell, because it is important to know what the farmer client is expecting when you come to work on something for them, and unless you know exactly what the machine can do in the real sense, theory only goes so far, so that has been a real plus.”
Lachlan says he heads for Brisbane on Monday, when all the finalists in the national competition will go to John Deere headquarters for final testing and judging, before the gala awards dinner on Thursday.
The awards, now in their third year, were established to acknowledge the contribution John Deere technicians make to the Australian agriculture, construction and forestry industries and to applaud excellence in the provision of service and support to John Deere customers.
Once settled into John Deere HQ, the second round of judging will include testing on their ability to perform hands-on tasks and troubleshoot technical issues.
John Deere Australia and New Zealand managing director Luke Chandler congratulated the finalists, recognising the enormous value they bring to their industries and the communities in which they live and work.
“We received more than 100 award nominations from 62 John Deere dealerships across Australia and New Zealand, which showcases the depth of the talent we are proud to have supporting our customers,” Mr Chandler said.
“Technicians require a unique combination of mechanical knowledge, proficiency in digital technology and advanced problem-solving skills, and becoming a finalist in the annual awards is a testament to the hard work and dedication our technicians inject into their roles.
“Each finalist has a proven track record of helping farmers and businesses unlock greater productivity and sustainability achievements through technology, and they should be very proud of rising to the top of a very competitive field.”
