? for owner/operators

[AppleExpress]

I have a question to all the owners/operators. If your an owner, do you keep a fulltime or parttime maintenance tech on payroll, or do you do the maintenance yourself? and in either case do you have a manager on staff? I ask this because the tunnel i am managing wants me handling all preventative maintenance for the tunnel, which isnt a problem, however they want me in the tunnel at all times, actually prepping cars.... this doesnt make sense to me. It feels as though they want me to be a glorified attendant, rather than a manager, which is what my job title is. any thoughts?

 

[JeffM]

I can't speak as an O/O, but as a Manager I wouldn't want to have it any other way. I do most of the major repairs/overhauls myself and use them as training opportunities for supervisors so that they can take on smaller jobs so that I don't always need to come in. Even if there was a maintenance guy on staff, you need to be able to fix something quickly instead of being down.

As for being in the tunnel 100% of the time... that does seem excessive as it wouldn't allow you to actually manage the business properly. You still should be spending a good portion of your of time out there so you know what is actually going on.

 

[AppleExpress]

Thanks for the input Jeff. Out of curiosity about how many hours are you putting into your tunnel per week? When i first took over as a manager, i was doing exactly as you stated. I was working about 50-55hrs per week, and spending roughly 1/2-2/3 of that time performing maintenance. anything from basic pm's to fixing problems when we went down. There are alot of maintenance issues in my tunnel, mostly small, but time consuming. However my hours were then reduced to 40 and im being expected to be in the tunnel the entire time. alot of my pm has gone down over the past month because of this. unfortunately i do not have any other supervisors. it is myself and 3 p/t attendants. it just seems like im being pulled in all directions currently. the company wants me doing everything, however they arent willing to accept that i have to be away from the tunnel so much to do it. All of our equipment- powerpacks, chemicals, ect. are housed in bays next to our tunnel.

 

[JeffM]

You need to be properly staffed so that you can focus on other things. I have a staff of 80+ so it makes it much easier. I only do maybe 2 hours a week for the most part we have newer equipment so that cuts down on the time. I also don't do anything in regards to chemicals; our rep does all that.

 

[Earl Weiss]

>>>I was working about 50-55hrs per week, and spending roughly 1/2-2/3 of that time performing maintenance. anything from basic pm's to fixing problems when we went down.<<<

1. I am at a loss to understand why any tunnel would need 25-35 hours per week of pm and maintenance.
2. The basic issue is the owner / boss sets the job title hours and tasks. Either the expectations are reasoneable or not. If you think they are unreasoneable I suggest you start a log by day of what tasks you perform, when you performed them and how long it takes. Example: 1/28/13 greased all bearings - 7:00 t0 8:00 am - 1 Hour. 1/29/12 7:00 to 8:45 Changed cloth on Wrap around Brushes. etc.
Then use that to explain to the bosses why their expectations vis a vis your duties is not realistic.

 

[robert roman]

“If your an owner, do you keep a fulltime or parttime maintenance tech on payroll, or do you do the maintenance yourself?

A maintenance technician “position” is usually associated with the operation of a network of carwash sites.

“and in either case do you have a manager on staff?”

Every carwash business needs a good manager. Typically, tunnels have a manager on-site.

“…..preventative maintenance ……isnt a problem, however they want me in the tunnel at all times, actually prepping cars.... any thoughts?”

Problems can be solved by identifying the root cause.

“When i first took over as a manager…... I was working about 50-55hrs per week”

“However my hours were then reduced to 40 and im being expected to be in the tunnel the entire time.”

“it is myself and 3 p/t attendants.” “it just seems like im being pulled in all direction”

When hours are slashed like you described, business usually sucks.

The “need” or “requirement” for staff to always be in the tunnel hand prepping every car may suggest the tunnel is not producing the best product.

This may be why business sucks.

You mentioned nothing of the owners.

Are they absentee or semi-absentee?

Is this a small chain operation or single business?

 

[Waxman]

I run a 2/1 with a touchfree machine (plus detail and used car sales) but i'll answer anyway.

we do our repairs in-house and sub out the things that we aren't capable of doing: welding, electric motor repairs, making hp hoses etc.

the business has several aspects; operations, marketing, sales, etc.

as the manager, i'd say your talents are best utilized when split between many areas of the business and i agree that you cannot be expected to perform many other tasks well or at all if you are prepping cars yourself all day. when time allows and you are busy and the wash is running fine and needs no repairs then why not prep cars? the problem woud exist when you need to repair or maintain or speak to a customer or owner and those things must take a back seat to prepping cars.

not sure if that helps, but if it were me, and i wanted hours and i was a go-getter, i'd manage the prep help as best i could so they knew that if i had a repair or maintenance or customer service to do, then prep the cars and don't bug me. if the owner doesn't get that, it's up to you to make him/her understand. you want to be indispensable but not because you are always doing every single task yourself. a good manager can delegate effectively (and in doing so keep things humming along even with breakdowns, snafus and slammed busy days) and be indispensable for that reason plus others.