The sky’s the limit for Northam’s newest tech Declan Bell

AFGRI Equipment – Northam’s Declan Bell is eager to keep adding to his knowledge, having completed his apprenticeship last year and now working as a qualified John Deere service technician.

Growing up in Toodyay, Declan completed work experience at the Northam branch whilst still in high school. Soon after, he knew this was the career for him, leading him to later start an apprenticeship at the dealership. After completing the four-year course, Declan said qualifying as a service technician was a great feeling. “It felt great to become qualified and a good weight of my shoulders knowing I had got through all my TAFE studies,” he said. “I really enjoyed my time as an apprentice – you were well-supported by the technicians who helped train you and you don’t have the same level of responsibility yet so you can really learn. “It’s a great mix of on-the-job training at the branch plus John Deere University courses they enrol you in as well. “It’s a lot to learn but you have to soak up as much as you can.” Declan said there was a lot of things he enjoyed about his new role in the workshop. “I find it very rewarding now as a mechanic – you are still learning every day which is great, and every problem is different which keeps your brain ticking and your mind going. “I love that every day is different, and we have such a broad range of equipment to work on, especially in Northam with everything from lawn mowers all the way up to headers and sprayers. “I also love working at the Northam branch, we have a good morale here and I couldn’t really see myself working somewhere else.” Declan said the new technology available in Precision Ag was also something that excited him. “Every time your turn the corner, there is always something new to learn - technology-wise,” he said. “Once you get your head around it and see how it all works, you can definitely see the benefits for the customer.” AFGRI Equipment – Northam branch manager Luke Siddons said Declan has thrived under the high workload the branch’s workshop gets through. “He has received a lot of experience at such a young age on a wide range of machines and you can see how much he has grown from it,” Luke said. “Over the last harvest as an example, we received a lot of great feedback from our customers praising Declan for his hard work and ability to problem solve, to keep them going on farm.” Declan said the idea of being a service manager one day was something he’d like but wanted to concentrate on getting a few more years under his belt first, honing his skills and adding more to his knowledge. Congratulations to Declan on receiving his qualification. For more information on our apprentice program, please contact our HR team at hrsupport@afgri.com.au or visit afgri.com.au today.