Job Summary

• The Transport Manager is the head of transport department at unit level. The transport manager is the custodian of all mobile assets in the unit and his/her primary role is to deliver targeted sugarcane volumes to the factory according to daily milling requirements/plans and ensure efficient and effective utilization of cane haulage fleets in the unit.
• The role is fully accountable for all mobile assets inventory verification, fleet preventive maintenance, fleet compliance to statutory and regulatory requirements and utilization of the fleet.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

• Be custodian of all fleets i.e. keep an accurate inventory of all fleets allocated to the unit showing individual location and status of each unit in the fleet at any given time.
• Organize and implement fleet utilization strategies that ensure maximization of fleet productivity while ensuring the highest efficiencies and safety in the entire unit.
• Develop and implement systems and procedures to ensure compliance to statutory and regulatory requirements at driver level and at fleet level.
• Formulate and implement standard fleet management policies and practices. This includes daily preventative maintenance vehicle checks across the unit.
• Formulate and implement systems and procedures to ensure timely identification of all mechanical defects on vehicles/tractors in all fleets in the unit and liaise with a workshop for timely repairs.
• Recruit and deploy competent drivers to all units in the assigned fleets in liaison with the labor providers and the Unit Human Resource Manager.
• To plan for the effective and efficient lifting of sugarcane from farmers’ fields to the respective weighbridge/factory. This planning should be done one day in advance to the lifting date and
• To ensure effective supervision and coordination of sugarcane loading and transportation operations from farmers’ fields to the respective weighbridge/factory.
• To plan and oversee efficient and timely recovery of all breakdowns of fleets that occur in the fields and on the roads, and liaise with respective garages for support in recovering those with complicated breakdowns.
• Arrange for safe custody of all fleets in the unit all the time, even for the units that end up spending out of the designated parking yards/stations due to any reason.
• Keep accurate inventory of all fleets in the unit and ensure the same inventory is updated always to reflect accurate status all the time.
• To ensure all drivers in the unit adhere to the laid down company guidelines such as not carrying passengers (such as “makara” and others), no speeding, not driving dangerously or carelessly, and generally driving safely to eliminate or minimize occurrence of accidents.
• To report all accidents that occur involving any fleet in the unit and ensure the same is handled in accordance to company guidelines (inform all internal offices concerned and ensure compliance to police guidelines for handling of all traffic accidents).
• Liaise with insurance office to arrange for insurance of all fleets in the unit as per statutory & company requirements in order to ensure zero operation of fleets with expired insurance covers.
• Develop and implement systems and procedures to monitor individual driver performance in productivity terms and in fuel usage (trips, bundle weight and km/L) while taking corrective measures against those discovered to perform poorly in these parameters. The target is to ensure achievement of two trips per unit every day, loading of 10 tons per trip for flat bed trailers (18 tons per trip for double baskets), and 2.0 km/L for all tractor models except Mahindra 9200 whose fuel efficiency is 2.5 km/L.
• To ensure the assigned fleet meets the daily tonnage targets on sugarcane delivery to the respective weighbridge/factory.
• Train drivers and assign them specific units to drive/operate on a continuous basis. The allocation of units/vehicles/tractors to drivers to take into account their individual performance, commitment to work, tractor care and competencies so as to keep the most dedicated drivers motivated by assigning them the best tractors/vehicles all the time.
• Identify the best drivers (in terms of performance and tractor/vehicle care) and liaise with the Group Logistics Manager aand Unit GM for recognition and reward of such drivers on a monthly basis according to the incentive scheme in place.
• To ensure all operational fleets in the unit are dispatched for cane haulage between 4.00 am – 6.00 am every day.
• To ensure assigned and deployed winches are supervised and coordinated closely and ensure all stuck tractors are pulled out without any delays (maximum within one hour) and ensure efficient utilization of all winches.
• Develop systems and procedures to minimize major breakdowns in the fleets in the unit.

Minimum, Qualifications and Skills

• Diploma in Transport Management or Degree in Agricultural Engineering, Automotive Engineering, Business Management (or any other related field).
• Masters degree in strategic management shall be an added advantage.
• Ten years hands on experience in fleet or transport management roles preferably in sugar industry at senior management levels.
• Proven experience in planning, organizing and implementing strategies towards achievement of desired goals through large teams
• Flexibility to work in a dynamic work environment that constantly requires swift adaptation to operational changes
• Able to work long hours on a daily basis in a highly pressurized work environment
• Must be goal driven, highly efficient in planning, organizing and implementing strategies towards achievement of desired goals through a large group of workers
• Ability to work in a dynamic work environment and swiftly adopt to operational changes.
• Possess resilience to work long hours on a daily basis in a highly pressurized work environment.