Meet the new GM for Bulk Food
Peter Shearer brings valuable experience from both overseas and within McColl’s to the role of General Manager – Bulk Food Grade Division.
Peter has a long history with McColl’s. He started as a subcontractor in 1999. After a couple of years living and working in the US and Ireland, Peter returned to McColl’s as a truck driver in 2002.
He progressed as Operations Supervisor and National Operations Manager Bulk Food.
A Geelong boy through and through, Peter is happy to be back in his hometown and is looking forward to the challenges of his new role.
Go west
This spring, McColl’s began collecting milk from the south west of Western Australia for a new customer, Parmalat Harvey Fresh.
McColl’s is now the producer’s primary carrier, responsible for collecting approximately 150 million litres of milk a year and transporting it to the Harvey Fresh factory.
Five new prime movers were put into service for the first day of collections, supplementing the existing Harvey Fresh fleet that was purchased as part of the contract.
McColl’s welcomed nine former Harvey Fresh drivers into our team, as well as a number of newly hired drivers who will be based out of Harvey.
The WA farm pickup operations will be led by Mark Dominish, who has done an excellent job managing the transition and is keen to expand McColl’s footprint in the west.
South Australian growth
McColl’s is on a roll in South Australia, taking on additional farm pickups in the state’s south east.
We have been collecting milk off farm for Warrnambool Cheese & Butter since taking over from a local carrier on 1 July.
Depot manager Dale Robinson and his team managed the transition, which included taking on six new drivers from the previous carrier to service a collection network spanning the Fleurieu Peninsula, Meningie and the mid-north.
McColl’s SA operation now collects around 140 million litres per annum for Warrnambool Cheese & Butter, Parmalat, La Casa, Milk2Market and Beston Pure Foods.
Dedicated safety team nets results
McColl’s Safety Improvement Team is continually working to improve our safety performance.
Comprising executives and selected drivers from McColl’s Bulk Food Grade Division, the team meets every two months to identify possible safety issues and come up with practical solutions.
Some of the many safety improvements made over the past two years include:
- Installing ceiling-mounted high pressure hoses to eliminate the need to carry cleaning equipment.
- Minimising slips, trips and falls on tankers by eliminating or engineering access steps, cables and removing obsolete hazards.
- Reducing working at heights by improving the operation of air valves on tankers.
But we aren’t resting on our laurels. We continue to strengthen our better-than-industry safety record and we’re always keen to work with customers on safety improvements.
