Ben Gray Email & Phone Number

Newcastle Upon Tyne, Gb

Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, United Kingdom

Birtley, Tyne And Wear, United Kingdom

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

My main responsibility in my current position is to support the Caterpillar product and my local customers, promoting machine rebuilds and preventative maintenance. I drive the Caterpillar remanufactured parts sales for engines, transmissions, pumps, motors etc. and working closely with the service department, set up service and maintenance agreements with customers to ensure we are ‘hands on’ with a customer’s product from the point of sale to the point of disposal. I am involved in a number of projects within the business having completed a Prince 2 Registered Practitioner course, which include systems improvements and product offerings to customers, looking at new ways of sourcing and developing solutions for customers.

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

My main role was to ensure that the Parts department was organised and achieving all of its targets. I managed a direct team of 4 but also assisted in the management of the service team of 16. I worked with a number of business systems including DBSi, FST, SIS, Cognos and SAP Business Warehouse to control the supply chain and stock holding of the depot, manage the depot and department budgets, place orders and produce regular reports to review our current status. I ensured that safe systems are in place to guarantee efficient operation of the depot, including all site safety, chairing a monthly depot meeting (LAT) to discuss outstanding issues across the business, environmental matters and training requirements. I led a number of projects within the business including a review of site security, resulting in a saving of £58,000 per year, transporting and storage review across the business and a contamination control review that improved the depot procedures and increased the Caterpillar scoring from 1 to 4 star. I worked with a team to review our ERP parts ordering system to introduce ‘smart sourcing’. This saved the business thousands of pounds in charges associated with parts ordering and movement across the UK. At the same time, I managed one of the largest customer accounts across the UK (The Banks Group) to ensure efficient communication, problem resolution and business development.I was heavily involved in the businesses continuous improvement system holding fortnightly meetings and driving the improvement culture through all departments of the depot as well as sharing good practice around the UK.

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

This position was offered to me with a view to developing a Supply Chain consultancy service. There was no support from the company for this industry sector. I carried out a SWOT analysis and wrote a business plan to show how I would achieve the targets that were set at Director level. The position was very successful. I gained a lot of knowledge of various manufacturing operations and built some very strong relationships, producing some very strong fees for the business but this was not an industry that I felt suited my strengths and when offered a role within Finning I left, but I left a very strong new department for the business that was operating at a profit.

Wallsend

With 50 direct reports, my key role was to manage the daily running of Holystone’s Plant Hire business. Running 10 wagons and 75 pieces of large plant, which I had to ensure were utilised fully, it was essential that I had operators with the appropriate skill level that ensured they were safe but also a financially viable option for the hirer. I regularly visited on sites to address any issues that may have been raise by the hirer, speaking with customers to ensure all operators are meeting their expectations. I assisted with the running of the businesses waste recycling sites and the concrete plant, ensuring sites were operating efficiently and that material was available when required. In addition to the hire side of the business, I was also responsible for the maintenance and repair of the plant. Due to staff shortages, this was very often a ‘hands on’ duty, but I enjoyed this, and was a welcome break from record keeping and operational planning. While doing this, I undertook a project to introduce methods of recording information and costs, ensuring codes were used for all cost allocation to allow accurate reporting and budgeting. I also managed the production of new Health and Safety and Procedures manuals for both Quality and Safety purposes. I brought the maintenance of the company’s plant, machinery, cars and vans up to date ensuring accurate records were kept. I put in place hire rate agreements with plant and equipment suppliers as well as purchasing agreements for materials improving product quality and service while reducing costs. Planning work for the equipment and operators as well as looking after the plant maintenance, the health and safety aspects of plant operation and financial reporting, ensured every day was extremely busy, working to tight timescales and to budgets in a very busy office.

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Duties included daily organizing, planning & allocating workloads for plant, wagons and work vans, ensuring that they were maintained to the highest standard, along with cars and lifting equipment, and that accurate records were kept. I ensured compliance with our operator license, that our hire rates are profitable and competitive and that the customer service was impeccable. I spoke with hirers and potential hirers daily, always looking for more work for any equipment that may become available, keeping utilisation high. I kept all aspects of the company insurance updated and negotiated insurance renewals annually. I also negotiated hire rates and terms with suppliers and explored new areas for investment and growth, actively selling the companies additional services.I was responsible for ensuring Invoicing was done accurately and on time, Health and Safety training and records were up to date and that risk assessments and method statements were carried out where required. I also managed projects and was responsible for 40 members of staff, motivating and disciplining when necessary.

Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Ba Hons, Leadership And Management

Accountancy

Engineering

Education record

Education record