Everything is straight in the Northern Stevedoring Service (NSS) Workshops – except the footy tipping competition.
Coming into the finals and the hardened, welded-on National Rugby League tragics on the shop floor can’t win a trick from front office.
Workshop Supervisor Jerome Ford said it was part of a trend.
“I think (Maintenance Officer) Amy Harris is winning. It was (Maintenance Manager) Jarrod Sawyer for the past two years, he got the wins. I reckon there’s something funny going on.”
Jerome has been with NSS for nine years and heads up a staff of around a dozen high voltage electricians, auto electricians, diesel fitters, mechanics, boiler makers, fitters and turners and trades assistants.
The combined efforts help keep the wheels rolling, the power turned on and the ships operating on the NSS leases.
The team looks after a fleet of more than 350 pieces of equipment at any one time, ranging from cars to forklifts to 144-tonne cranes.
The work suits Jerome, who has an active family life with a partner who’s a teacher’s aid and two children aged six and eight. The seven to 3:30pm shift allowed him time with the family most afternoons, he said.
It also allows him the opportunity to occasionally get back on the tools and Jerome said the variety was part of the attraction.
“It’s a good range of work. You’re not just doing the one thing over and over again. So it’s not like you’re just stuck doing the one routine job. You’re not stuck in a garage somewhere either. You’re on the site where the work’s being done.
“I find that interesting, especially when you need to climb in the ship because you’ve got a breakdown. It’s eye opening to see how deep they are. You can go down a ladder five storeys deep into the ship.”
NSS was always upgrading the fleet, which presented opportunities for staff, Jerome said.
“Especially when they buy new gear which is similar but it has a slightly different set up.
“The staff are trained in both the servicing and the breakdown maintenance to be able to use the Original Equipment Manufacturer schematics and hydraulics schematics to work it out and to do all the basic checks.”
Meanwhile back at the maintenance office, Amy said there was no secret in why she was leading the footy tipping comp. She’s just a better judge of the game.
“I’m a Cowboys supporter but I pick on form,” Amy said. “My top four finals picks are Penrith, Canberra, Bulldogs and Storm with the premiership win by the Raiders.”