In this interview, Sergej Becker talks about his work in an area that remains hidden from customers, but which is essential to enable fast assistance when it is required: the back office of the Rapid Hydraulic Service.

I started in 2013 as a dispatcher in Bremen Arsten, and have been working in the back office of the scheduling department of the Rapid Hydraulic Service as a specialist in fleet management since 2014.

After graduating from high school, I spent eight years in the German army. There I trained as a heavy-goods vehicle driver and in logistics, and also worked in these fields. HANSA‑FLEX gave me the opportunity to take the examination for the additional qualification of transport operations specialist. I took advantage of the opportunity and have been with HANSA‑FLEX ever since.

Well, there are plenty of them. There is a lot for me to organise and document when it comes to our fleet of service vehicles and the Rapid Hydraulic Service technicians. For example, as a team we always have to keep track of how many service technicians are in operation throughout Germany so that we have a sufficient number of service vehicles. I also make sure that the vehicles are equipped with machinery and tools, and organise the handover of the vehicles to the technicians and their return.

I do the vehicle planning several times a year together with our department head Peter Düring, in order to be able to cover the fluctuating demand for vehicles. With our vehicle outfitter Eggers in Stuhr I coordinate the intervals at which the vehicles are handed over to us, and for the outfitting of the vehicles I organise crimping, cutting and peeling equipment in consultation with our Wilhelmshaven branch.

You have to be good at communicating and highly focused on developing solutions. It also helps to acquire as much background knowledge as possible, or at least to know how to get the relevant information if, for example, a crimping machine is defective.

First of all, I ask questions in order to diagnose the fault. What exactly isn't working? Then I try to find out whether it's an electronic or a mechanical defect. After all, sometimes it's just a blown fuse. The technician can replace this relatively quickly with my instructions and continue working. However, if oil leaks out the machine has to go for repairs. This takes a few days, and in such cases I immediately check whether there is a hose crimper in the warehouse that the technician can work with in the meantime.

For example, I make sure to order the best possible tools, provided that they aren’t completely out of the question in terms of price. We also attach great importance to this as a company. Our technicians simply have to be able to work well with their equipment. On the one hand this keeps our technicians happy, while on the other hand their tools also last longer. At the same time our technicians also show their appreciation now and then, which is of course nice. 

Although you don't really see much of what we do from the outside, here in the back office we bear a great deal of responsibility for ensuring that the Rapid Hydraulic Service can be available to customers around the clock every single day.

There’s actually no such thing as a typical day. Although I always work the same hours from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., no two days are the same. When I come in the morning, I first have to see what needs to be done, then I prioritise the tasks at hand and get started on them. If something unexpected comes up, I just have to react accordingly and maybe postpone something else.

The wide range of people and tasks I deal with every day makes my job very varied. I enjoy the close working relationship with our vehicle outfitters, who have been equipping our vehicles for over 20 years. In addition I like the team spirit here at HANSA‑FLEX, and the way we all pull together to make everyday work easier for our customers.