Page 96 - Australian Paint & Panel Nov-Dec 2020

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BEST PRACTICE AWARDS
BEST HEAVY VEHICLE REPAIRER
PAINT&PANEL NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2020
WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
ROYAN TRUCK & TRAILER REPAIRS BAYSWATER
R OYANS GROUP IS A THIRD generation business that went into partnership with private equity company. The Growth Fund which has cer- tainly lived up to its name. Since the deal was made back in February the group has acquired four businesses in- cluding branching out across the Tasman. The company started out in an old wood and coal yard in Parramatta all the way back in 1944 and was founded by Bede Royan. In the intervening years it grew to eight sites on the east coast
and garnered a stellar reputation.
CEO David Church was our guide for the zoom visit. He’s extremely happy with how the partnership is going. “They’ve done everything they said they would, they’ve come in and supported us and left
us to run the business.”
All of the site managers have a weekly
zoom meeting to discuss a range of issues such as numbers, safety and keep every- one informed of company developments. They also regularly discuss mental health as lockdown took its toll with the ‘ground- hog day’ feeling.
The Bayswater site was purpose built 11 years ago and is, as you would ex- pect, given its clientele - enormous. The main building is sharp and modern and weighs in at around 3500 square metres.
There’s a number of sheds. One is used for storage, quoting and minor repairs, one at the back of the site is used for fibreglass. The customer area is comfortable and welcoming with a separate office for customers to work quietly if they need to. There’s also a long service board, it’s always a good sign when staff retention levels are high. The estimators have very smart offices. Upstairs there’s a swish board- room which overlooks the main work- shop. There are photos and mementos of the company’s history scattered around the building.
Downstairs again and there’s a sizeable workshop manager’s office where all the foreman gather to have regular production meetings - there’s an incredible amount of co-ordination needed to get trucks back on the road.
The workshop itself is clean and well or- ganised with overhead cranes every-
LEFT: Excellent facility, clean, modern and welcoming.
where. The enormous floor racks are Josam and there’s a large fabrication area and equipment storage area.
The vast ovens are Lowbake where gravity-fed guns spray PPG Deltron paint. The paint mixing room is clean and tidy. The larger oven is 19x6x6 and is both a drive-through and side loader - with a de- tailing bay nearby. There’s a an impres- sive solar installation atop the roof.
The company undertakes everything in house including mechanical and auto electric. Royans offers a 24 accident management service and has good rela- tionships with the industry’s insurers.
As well as offering flexible working hours, Royans has its own social club and throws regular barbecues. There’s plenty of training from PPG and the company organises in-house training at other branches. The company employs many apprentices who work alongside the experienced technicians.
Royans has strict repair procedures and a robust quality inspection process. Word of mouth is extremely important in the trucking industry and a quality reputation, which Royans enjoys, is vital to sustaina- bility. To survive and thrive over 76 years and three generations in a challenging field such as heavy vehicle repair is an out- standing achievement. Regular customer communication is undertaken to manage expectations and ensure the repair process is as seamless as possible.
The Bayswater branch is a credit to the group, well organised and very much the face of today’s and tomorrow’s heavy vehicle repair.
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