June 2016 Volume 36, Issue 6
TRUCK NEWS Under siege
Surprise!
Ontario enforcement agencies teamed up for a surprise blitz at Canada’s Wonderland.
A better oil?
Delivering daily news at trucknews.com
A new category of heavy-duty engine oils is coming. Will it benefit your fleet? We have the answers.
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Newfoundland-based carriers were hit hard by the provincial budget. Find out why they’re so upset.
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Not in the budget
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Canada’s Trucking Newspaper Since 1981
Keeping it cool
Expert advice on how to buy and maintain trailer refrigeration units.
RE T ADVERTAIL ISIN G PAGES 4
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Trucking industry from coast to coast rallies to help Ft. Mac fire victims
FORT MCMURRAY, ALBERTA The people of Fort McMurray, Alta. who have been displaced, lost homes and much more at the hands of a destructive wildfire have been in the hearts and minds of Canadians since the Northern Alberta inferno put its crosshairs on the city in early May. Around 2,400 structures were lost due to the fire. Tragic occurrences like the Fort Mac wildfire more often than not bring out the best in people, and that’s certainly no different when it comes to the trucking industry. Members of the trucking industry from as far away as the East Coast lent their support in Fort McMurray’s time of need. A-OK Trucking
Based out of Woodstock, N.B., A-OK Trucking driver Dana Crisp spoke with Truck News about the effort his company, along with that of Sheila Kelley, office manager Sheila Sparks and owner Jeff McMullen, have made to get supplies from the East Coast all the way out to Alberta. Kelley, who Crisp said has been employed in Fort Mac in the past, worked to fill a trailer with donations in Woodstock and needed a truck and a driver to Continued on page 9
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Armour Transportation maintenance manager Mike Gaudet.
It’s all about respect
Like his father before him, Mike Gaudet has been named Canada’s top fleet maintenance manager. But he took a decidedly different path in getting there. By James Menzies MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK
B
eing named Canadian Fleet Maintenance Manager of the Year is always special, but it was made even more so this year as Mike Gaudet became the first winner to have his name etched into the same trophy that bears that of his father. Mike, vice-president, fleet maintenance and equipment purchasing with Armour Transportation Systems, won the award 19 years after his father Alban was named Canada’s top fleet maintenance manager. Gaudet said it’s especially meaningful since both represented Armour Transportation when they won the prestigious national award. “To have one award, one winner per year and to get it the same as my dad, especially with the same company, was very special,” Gaudet said in an interview with Truck News. “To win it within the same company makes it even more meaningful.” Alban Gaudet still works at Armour Transportation, serving as vice-president, building maintenance and accident control. Son Mike joined the company six years ago with an eye towards filling his father’s shoes as fleet maintenance manager when he moved on. While Mike Gaudet would, as planned, take over from his father as fleet maintenance manager in 2015, the two took different paths in getting there.
Alban’s career took a more traditional trajectory, starting in the shop as a mechanic. Mike Gaudet, however, studied business in university, cut his teeth in the industry selling parts and then managed several branches before taking control of maintenance. He isn’t, and has never been, a technician. This has allowed him to bring a different perspective to the shop, but was it difficult to establish credibility with the mechanics on the shop floor? “At first it was,” Gaudet admitted. “I can’t go and say to a technician, ‘You should do it like this, do it like that.’ I’m not a mechanic and I never pretended to be a mechanic. I have a different style than my dad, who was a mechanic. But you gain peoples’ trust.” Gaining the trust of his staff meant respecting them, first and foremost, Gaudet added. “It all comes down to respect,” he explained. “We have young people who start at 17, 18, 19 years old out of college and I treat them as well as someone who has been here 30 years. I think that’s what has helped me as I’ve been through this job.” At Armour, Gaudet oversees more than 100 technicians and apprentices and about 4,000 pieces of equipment across an expansive, 25-terminal network. The key to managing such a diverse, scattered fleet is to lean heavContinued on page 25
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