On call in the oil sandsA John Deere service dealer keeps the petroleum industry running day and night

22 PowerSource

A call rings in the early morning hours. Ryan Mackenzie heads out in bitter subzero temperatures in the dark, starts up his service truck, and heads out into the remote bush country in northern Alberta.

It doesn’t matter when or where the call leads him. His customer needs fast service, and Ryan is bound and determined to be there for them. Ryan and the rest of the crew at New Ground Contracting understand the drilling industry, and they respond to most calls as if they are an emergency, which is often the case.

Welcome to the nightlife of a John Deere service dealer working in the Canadian oil sands.

Ryan and his business partner, Darin Dolling, both serve as principal owners and service technicians for New Ground Contracting Ltd., in Ft. McMurray, Alberta. The dealership serves the Wood Buffalo Region in northern Alberta, where most of his clients are connected in some way to the oil sands.

“There’s no difference in the production of oil between day and night,” explains Ryan. “Time is money, and equipment must be up and running around the clock.”

Ryan and Darin make sure customers can reach them 24 hours a day for John Deere service and parts. In the middle of the night, service calls come to Ryan. Part requests ring to Darin. Also on call are six trained field technicians who have quick access to the company’s fleet of service trucks.

They waste no time. When a large oil processing company placed an urgent order for a new John Deere PowerTech 6135H engine at 4 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon, New Ground Contracting had it delivered and ready for installation by 6 a.m. the following morning.

“This customer uses six PowerTech 6135H engines to provide process water to their extraction facility,” explains Ryan. “The extraction facility relies on water from any combination of four of

Ryan Mackenzie (left) and Darin Dolling serve as principal owners and service technicians for New Ground Contracting Ltd. in Ft. McMurray, Alberta. John Deere engine customers can reach them 24 hours a day for John Deere service and parts.

23PowerSource

these six engines, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In an effort to support the engines and the customer, we provide around-the-clock service and a customized parts inventory. We also added a complete PowerTech 6135H engine to our inventory in a further effort to support this customer.”

New Ground Contracting works closely with its John Deere engine distributor to enhance their customer support. “Frontier Power Products plays a pinnacle role in our success as a service dealer,” says Ryan. “Having a strong relationship with them has given us access to their decades of experience with John Deere engines. Everything from parts, to engine troubleshooting, to warranty claims, to training, Frontier has been there to answer our questions.”

That’s especially important to New Ground Contracting, which has been in business for five years and came onboard as a John Deere service dealer in 2010. Frontier Power Products trains their field technicians to work on John Deere engines. “All of our technicians are enrolled in John Deere University so that they can complete all of the training requirements outlined by John Deere,” says Ryan. “This training, along with our experience in the power systems market, is of great value to our customers, whether they require an engine repower, engine overhaul, custom controls, or routine engine maintenance. As a result, we can function as an extension to Frontier’s service department,” says Ryan. “We are always eager to provide parts and service support to John Deere-powered products in our area.”

Ryan believes a strong relationship with customers is key to long-term success. “A strong customer relationship results in repeat business, and for us, new business opportunities have presented themselves, as a result,” he explains. “We have had the opportunity to bid on some different repower projects that involve replacing a competitor’s engine with a John Deere.”

He sees value in getting to know his customers well. “It is important for John Deere engine customers and their local dealer to get to know each other. For us, knowing what engine models are in our trade area helps us to develop our parts inventory. An effective parts inventory means better service, which in turn means reduced downtime for the customer.”

Well stocked with parts, Ryan says New Ground Contracting is prepared for the winter and early spring months — when the Alberta muskeg is frozen and oil exploration runs full bore.

“This winter, we are really anticipating getting out of bed at least once a week,” says Ryan. “There’s no saying to customers ‘we’ll get to you tomorrow.’ It’s just not in the vocabulary.”

Ryan Mackenzie conducts routine service on a John Deere-powered Hertz gen-set.

Look for John Deere engines at these upcoming tradeshows, conventions, and exhibits.

C alenDaR

JANUARY 24 - 27, 2012WORLD OF CONCRETE

Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

FEBRUARY 14 - 16, 2012WORLD AG EXPO

Tulare, California, USA

FEBRUARY 14 - 18, 2012FIMA

Zaragoza, Spain

APRIL 16 - 21, 2012INTERMAT

Paris, France

APRIL 30 - MAY 3, 2012OFFSHORE TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE

Houston, Texas, USA

MAY 8 - 11, 2012AUTOSTRADA

Kielce, Poland

JUNE 12 - 14, 2012GLOBAL PETROLEUM SHOW

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

JUNE 19 - 21, 2012HILLHEAD

Buxton (Manchester), UK

SEPTEMBER 11 - 13, 2012HUSKER HARVEST

Grand Island, Nebraska, USA

NOVEMBER 7 - 11, 2012EIMA

Bologna, Italy

DECEMBER 11 - 13, 2012POWER-GEN INTERNATIONAL

Orlando, Florida, USA