Equipment East has added Richard Simmons as a parts specialist at its Brockton, Mass., location.
He brings previous parts experience and a strong customer-service background to the dealership's growing parts operation, according to the company.
Simmons joined Equipment East in July and works primarily from the Brockton branch, where he assists customers with parts requests by phone, email, text and at the parts counter. Although based in Brockton, Simmons also works closely with the parts departments at Equipment East's other locations.
“We have an email chain that is connected to all four locations,” Simmons said. “Wherever necessary, we jump in on emails from the other locations.”
That ability to work across branches helps Equipment East locate needed parts and respond quickly when a customer's machine is down. The company's parts management system allows personnel to see inventory throughout the dealership's locations and determine whether a needed component may already be available at another branch.
Simmons said one of the things that impressed him after joining Equipment East was the dealership's emphasis on getting customers answers quickly.
“They pride themselves on getting back to customers and trying to get the right information to them as quickly as possible,” he said.
His day can include everything from identifying components and preparing quotes to helping walk-in customers who arrive with a damaged hydraulic hose. The Brockton location can fabricate a variety of hydraulic hoses in-house, providing another option for customers trying to get equipment back into service.
Simmons supports parts needs for the manufacturers represented by Equipment East, including DEVELON, Yanmar, Vacall, Ammann, Wacker Neuson and more. Because Equipment East also services the equipment it sells, the parts department supports both customers purchasing parts over the counter and the dealership's own service technicians.
Before joining Equipment East, Simmons worked in parts for Metropolitan Truck Center, where he handled parts for snowplows, truck repairs and service-body installations on vehicles ranging from pickups to heavy trucks.
While that experience gave him a solid background in parts and customer service, moving into construction equipment has presented a new learning opportunity.
“The equipment is definitely different,” Simmons said.
Today's manufacturer resources, however, provide parts specialists with sophisticated tools for identifying exactly what a customer needs. Simmons can use serial numbers and model numbers to access online parts catalogs, schematics and diagrams.
Those resources are particularly useful when a customer knows what part of the machine has failed but may not know its exact name or part number. Simmons can provide a diagram, allow the customer to identify the component and then develop the appropriate parts quote.
Customer communication also has changed considerably from the traditional parts-counter model. Simmons estimated that approximately half of the requests he handles now arrive electronically through email or text, with the balance coming through phone calls and walk-in customers.
One of the biggest positives Simmons has found at Equipment East is the structure of the organization and the consistency with which the company handles customer requests.
“There is a definite path to take,” he said. “As long as you stay on that path, you get good results. Everybody can look at the chain and know exactly what was done because everyone is following the same process.”
He also has been impressed by the teamwork within the company and the willingness of employees to help one another find answers.
“If I have a question and the person I ask doesn't have the answer, they tell me who to ask,” Simmons said. “There is always somebody who can help.”
That cooperation extends beyond the Brockton location. With Equipment East's four branches connected through its parts system, employees can determine where a part is located and work together to get it where it needs to go.
When a needed component isn't in Equipment East's inventory, Simmons said the manufacturers generally have strong domestic parts support. Although several of the company's equipment manufacturers are headquartered overseas, many maintain parts inventories and distribution facilities in the United States, helping reduce lead times.
Simmons wasn't actively looking for a new position when he learned about the opportunity at Equipment East. After considering the position and the chance to move into the construction equipment industry, he decided it was a good opportunity.
“The opportunity presented itself and it sounded interesting,” he said.
Now several months into the position, Simmons said he has enjoyed learning the construction equipment business and becoming part of Equipment East's team-oriented environment.
For Simmons, his new position combines his previous parts experience with the opportunity to learn a new segment of the industry while working directly with Equipment East customers.
Whether a request comes across the counter, over the phone, by email or even by text, Simmons said the objective remains straightforward: identify what the customer needs, get an answer quickly and help keep the customer's equipment working.
