A Day In The Life Of A Power Electrics Driver
The best part of any department is the people and this is especially true of our drivers – some of whom have been working here for years. So we sent marketing assistant Phoebe out with driver Dave to bring you 'a day in the life of a Power Electrics driver'. Here’s what happened…
5.30am. Coffee required!
Our day begins at 5.30am. We’re sat in the break room at Power Electrics’ HQ, drinking coffee and discussing the day ahead. Whilst the guys read the paper and fill up their flasks, I sneak out my camera and update twitter.
6am. We hit the road
I'm travelling with Power Electrics’ driver Dave and lucky enough to be riding shotgun in one of our new DAF CF460 Wagons. We’re part of a 3 lorry convoy to Totnes where Dave, along with fellow drivers Steve and Rich, will be delivering 7 generators to WPD.
When the 7am news plays over the radio, we’re cruising along the M5. You might think being a driver is a solitary job but there’s a real sense of team here. All morning, the guys radio back and forth with traffic tips “accident in the near lane”, “stay in the middle lane” and the usual banter “is it bring your granddaughter to work day!” (That one’s because of me, sorry Dave!)
9am. Job 1: generator delivery for WPD
Our convoy arrives and Dave, Steve and Rich get to work offloading the generators. This involves extending the lorry’s outrigger legs and using the rear-mounted crane to carefully offload alongside the vehicles. The generators are trailer-mounted so they are easily hooked up to WPD’s Land Rovers and towed away.
By 10.35am we’re done, the paperwork is signed and our convoy parts ways. Dave and I stop for a well-deserved cuppa and some sandwiches and then we head off to a Plymouth construction site to collect a 40kVA generator and a 2000L fuel tank.
12pm. Job 2: generator collection in Plymouth
We arrive in Plymouth just after midday. It doesn't take long to find the site but it turns out that’s the easy part; getting onto site poses a bit more of a challenge. Dave heads off to work out an action plan and five minutes later he’s back: a temporary fence panel is being taken down and we’re going to reverse across a trench and around a corner – no problem.
2pm. Homeward bound
Second job complete, we’re back on the road and making the return journey to Bristol. We stop at Exeter to phone our Assistant Transport Manager Ricky for tomorrow’s schedule and we stop again at Sedgemoor Services for a quick nap. I try to get a sneaky picture of Dave snoring but as soon as I turn on the camera, he wakes up.
A combination of driver skill and vehicle manoeuvrability gets us onto site and I can’t fail to be impressed. I'm even more impressed when we locate our generator and I realise that Dave is going to have to crane lift it across a pretty sizeable distance avoiding the building equipment stacked in the way. I needn't have worried; Dave has been a Power Electrics driver for 19 years, he knows what he’s doing!
We arrive back at Power Electrics HQ at 6.20pm, nearly 13 hours after we set off. It’s been a long shift, but it’s not over yet. Now reunited with the other drivers, it’s all hands on deck to offload and refuel ready for tomorrow.
