Harvester heading from Marlborough to Nelson

Harvester donation from TRS upgrades NMIT apprenticeship programme.

Adrian Orchard has seen his fair share of harvests – and harvesters. He completed an apprenticeship servicing farming equipment in 1986, and 10 years later, he opened Tractor Repairs & Spares. TRS now has five locations providing growers with advanced technology.

As Adrian knows first-hand, from hands-on experience, machinery requires maintenance and repair. That requires trained technicians. As manufacturers upgrade models, necessary knowledge also changes.

So, when one of his employees asked about donating a harvester to the apprenticeship programme at NMIT, Adrian did not hesitate. He green-lit sending a Gregoire Machines G8 from TRS Harvest in Blenheim to NMIT’s campus in Nelson, where techs-in-training learn the latest in automotive mechanics.

Last Wednesday, two coordinators of NMIT’s programme, Paul Corbett and Barry Paterson, popped into the Burleigh workshop to admire the G8. Adrian greeted them, along with Daniel Rosie – catalyst of the donation on the TRS side – and Andrew Higgins of the sales team.

Adrian holds a humble view of his role: “All I did was say yes! Daniel and Pete [Kristofski at NMIT] organised the whole lot.”

Even so, TRS does not give away a harvester every day – and NMIT rarely gets a donation of this magnitude. Adrian has strong reasons for doing so.

“We can get apprentices in Nelson and Marlborough up to speed on new technology, hydraulics, all that sort of thing,” he explained. “If someone doesn’t do it, how do they get it? Because the government doesn’t have a lot funding available for this stuff.”

“It’s very difficult to access in the current economic climate,” Barry agreed.

“So, someone needs to help the training industry,” Adrian continued. “If we don’t help, then there’s no mechanics, no apprentices – then what happens?”

Mutual benefit

When Pete at NMIT first approached Daniel at TRS, the request was for a motor. After they met, though, both sides realised that the real need is a harvester newer than the outdated one in use by the programme.

A week later, the agreement was struck.

“They needed more training tools for our staff who go to polytech,” Daniel recapped, “so why not TRS Harvest donating to gain bigger skill sets across the region?”

The partnership with TRS meshes with NMIT’s expansion of technician education to deliver the National Certificate in Heavy Automotive (Agricultural Strand).

“As New Zealand’s agricultural sector has continued to expand and become more tech-focused,” Paul noted, “demand has grown for specialised training tailored to the industry. … We believe access to current machinery is essential to understanding the increasingly complex systems found in today’s agricultural vehicles.”

Andrew, TRS’ nationwide sales manager for Gregoire equipment, said manufacturers typically update models in 10-year cycles. The G8 rolled off assembly lines from 2006 to 2016; since 2017, Gregoire has released the GL series.

Machines since 2009 “streamline” harvest by processing grapes they pick. Andrew explained that while Gregoire has features specific to its equipment, 90 per cent of the inner workings correspond to other companies’ brands.

As such, the donation will have a significant impact.

“It’s not very common for people to be so generous,” Paul said. “But I think we’ve become such a hub for training, well-known throughout the industry for what we do and how we do it, that people want to encourage us to do even more.”

Regional boost

NMIT presents a Top of the South opportunity for trainees and firms who otherwise might look farther afield. TRS is a prime example.

“At some point,” Paul said, “they may want to put apprentices through us, and if they know we have the equipment, especially brands that they specifically work with, some of the practical training load will be shared between us.”

Indeed, NMIT provides a practical approach with all their apprentice trainers having real-world industry experience. Other providers teach theory, Paul continued, but leave it to the apprentice – or employer, or both – to provide the practical elements of apprentice training.

“It is much more effective to have a mix of on-job and off-job training,” he said.

Marlburian firms could have a spot even closer than Nelson for this training. Paul said NMIT is considering a site in Marlborough which would be dedicated to agricultural equipment apprenticeships. That planning is preliminary but promising.

In the meantime, the apprenticeship programme continues progressing in Nelson. Trainees will get their hands on late-model electronics, hydraulics and emissions systems.

Thinking back to the latest-and-greatest during his apprentice days, Adrian had a good chuckle.

“Computers weren’t a thing in those days! Hence, why polytechs and institutes all need the new equipment,” he said. “If you have an engine that’s 50 years old, that doesn’t relate to anything here, does it? The technology now is so much greater.”

Visit www.tractorrepairs.co.nz for more about TRS and www.nmit.ac.nz for more about NMIT apprenticeships.