I'll bet the owner of your dealership considers you a trouble maker!

NB: This post below should be in COMEDY section :)


Oh well....we got round 2 of "perfect Maintenance" training.
Looks like I missed a bunch of steps in my retraining!!!
A pencil pusher giving the latest course pointed out that I missed these important steps in doing a perfect maintenance.
This all to be done in 1.2 hours, work order made and signed....
This is for a reach truck...
Remove battery, lube all rollers, clean acid mess, wipe compartment,water battery, then....torque all mast to frame bolts at 250 lbs. then witness mark all bolts.
re- install battery, test for shorts to frame, 10 k ohms at static strap standoff.
If no stand is available to remove a battery, STOP...call service manager for instructions!
Lube entire truck, raise mast and secure, lube mast,Blow all motors, then...my favorite...wipe down inside of motor compartments, cab, transmission. it should be clean and dry.
Remove all motor cables, re-torque bottom nuts and install all cables, add witness marks.
Torque drive units bolts, add witness marks.
re-torque steer bolts
Test drive and test all functions, wipe down entire truck, paint bottom. Advise customer on possible repairs, clean work area
Are you asleep yet?
Pencil pushers will go on site to inspect your work after your gone...probably to the bar...and scrutinize your work. The truck should be clean enough to eat off of.
I'm still laughing!

The company i work for has a checklist of things depending on lift type. The check list is great for the newbies as they will usually follow protocol. But i have been behind other techs from companies and some look as though they just dropped the oil and spun on a new filter. Of course there is not money to be made in OM services but that is not reason to skimp on a proper OM service either as it can generate more service work. Just me 2 cents worth. BTW the unit gets air hosed first when i do an OM.

For paying customers:
I grease first to ensure it's not forgotten, inspect as you grease tie rods for play. Then clean with air, ensuring low air pressure on electric drive motors. 100 PSI shop air takes out bearings!
With all dust and grime gone, you can see the truck better. Also, any excess grease hanging out from fresh application will be be blown off. Batteries are to be removed, and bottom cleaned, rollers lubed, water level checked. Most companies do not touch water, even if it's their responsibility. We charge extra. Corroded cables and cells must be cleaned. Drive motor power cables are to be re-torqued, brakes are to be adjusted and truck driven to test all features.
Now a good look is given and any anything that may fail is recorded. Depending on the agreement with customer, small stuff is fixed right away. Major jobs quoted. We paint bottom black, touch up top and clean the truck.

Now for fixed maintenance contract:
Grease, inspect, If allowable to customer, blow electric motors only. Ensure battery rollers are lubed.
No cleaning at all. But anything broken must be fixed right away and manager gives approval if more than $200 or 2 hours labor. No upsell, no preventative repairs allowed. If it rolls, brakes work, it's good to go.
Basically were on the hook for most repairs with these fixed cost contracts, so it's a different level of service to the customer. The factory training on PM's goes out the window

your trainer is just following the proceedures out of the factory manual more than likely.
He's just got a job assigned to him and you shouldn't hold that against him. Your all in this together to help keep your customers happy. Yes they train you so they can tell the customers you are trained, a selling point of course but what customer would want a reputable company sending out tech's that were not trained? I don't know of any really. :o)

As long as you follow the guidelines set forth by the factory it should be enough.
Here is what i do when i do a PM on a gas/lpg truck, or any machine for that matter.

1 - if the unit is very dirty use the compressed air and blow it off. (if extremely dirty and takes too much time it's extra cost for the time) (Also do not water batteries on electric trucks, that is customers responsibility unless it is very low, then fluid is added and there is extra cost for that too). Make sure the customer is aware of this (no suprises)
2 - inspect the unit
3 - do the normal lube maintenance required, oil and filter changes, grease it where required, and if any small adjustments are needed if any (ones that do not take up alot of time), make them.
4 - take notes of any bigger problems found and advise the customer, if safety related make sure they know this. When i run across safety related repairs i usually stress the importance of making sure this is repaired to stay in osha and ansi compliance, that usually gets it done :o)
5 - then i clean up after myself, you leave a messy work area that looks bad on you, customers like it when tech's leave the area as they found it. And the more information you can get across to the customer when advising on repairs the better they like it, no suprises ;o)

I would be wondering how you can inspect the unit until you get it clean enough to see what you are looking at.
In our industry, I DO know that no one knows it all, but I am so often reminded of the thought that "people who can not or will not do the job should refrain from telling those who are doing the job, how to do the job".

I also like the one about:
"Do you know who makes 'people who think they know it all' crazy?
People who do know it all.

Who makes both of those groups the -most- crazy?

People who can tell the difference.

The company you work for wants to show potential customers they have trained techs to perform maintenance. It's a selling feature.
Also, you are shown how to work more efficiently and prevent repetitive motions thus reducing injuries......or so the "brochure" claims. In practice, we do an SM any way we feel like. You can lead a horse to water but you cannot make him drink!
This training may work on new mechanics right from the start but older techs habits can't be broken
There are certain things expected from our company for a mechanic to do during a paid maintenance
Getting them to do those procedures is the big challenge. Not in what order. I'm so ticked at seeing a customers truck that we maintained every 3 months, in poor condition with a battery so corroded and poorly maintained that the cables fall off in my hand. Batteries are supposed to be removed and rollers cleaned, but you find your fellow tech didn't bother
Now, the customer is looking at a huge bill to replace main hoses as they are buried in acid corrosion. You can't teach teach good work ethic
I'm disgusted

I always test the truck functions first, then remove the inspections covers while also having a quick visual inspection & then attack it with the compressed air.

I can grease the truck up as I inspect the unit in more detail while putting the covers back on.