Staff Profiles

Ian Wilson

“worked his way up”

As transport manager of the 100 trucks that make up the J Swap fleet, Ian knows first hand what it is like driving one. 10 years ago Ian was employed as a driver of one of the smallest trucks, gradually working up to bigger trucks and trailers and has now made the transition from being behind the wheel to being behind the desk. For the last 4 years Ian has been transport manager based at the Matamata bulk store.

Responsible for overseeing the fleet Ian believes that many of J Swaps customers are unaware of the fact that they are probably one of the biggest firms in their industry of bulk transport, contracting, stock foods and quarrying, in the country.

“Many of our stock food customers do not know that we have these other aspects to our business. We truly are the ‘one stop shop’ for bulk cartage of commodities”.

A typical day starts at 6am for Ian and his team at the dispatch. This is when the phone starts ringing and trucks arrive for loading, ready to get orders to farms before they start milking. The trucks are running 24/7 and at 6pm the office phone is diverted to Ian’s cell phone for after hour’s calls. At times this can be equally as busy and Ian recalls a time when he was rung on Easter Sunday at 8am. Yet Ian is realistic and understands that farmers businesses do not close and when they need feed, they need feed.

Going that extra mile seems a common theme among the team, which is particularly the case when a boat arrives at port with a load of PKE. Then its all hands to the deck with the trucks running as long as it takes (a continuous 45-50 hours) to get the boat unloaded.

Ian believes J Swaps are a great family company. “I know them all on a personal level and feel I can ring them whenever I need to. I am left to my own devices which show that they trust me and have the confidence in me to do my job”.

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