Craig Stephens officially celebrated 40 years with Roland Machinery Company in 2024, but technically you could say he's been around longer than that.
"My dad worked for Roland as a mechanic for 30-some years, and I got to hang around with him a bit, so I feel like I've been a part of the family for as long as I can remember," said Stephens, a field service technician based out of Roland Machinery's Springfield, Ill., branch. "That, along with helping him out around the house and tinkering with things like mini-bikes and lawnmowers, got me interested in being a technician."
Stephens worked his way into a technician role after being hired as a steamer to clean and prep rental equipment. Whenever possible, he helped in the shop, which led to him moving into a shop technician role and eventually field service.
"We were fortunate to have Craig's dad, Short, with us for many years, and Craig continued that legacy after starting in our wash bay and working his way up to a lead technician," said Chris Ingram, Roland's Springfield division manager and vice president of the Road Material Solutions Group. "One thing that stands out to me is that Craig learned on the job. He never went to school to be a technician, and yet he was the top tech at a Komatsu competition. But he can also work on anything we carry: Komatsu, WIRTGEN and other brands. He's phenomenal about passing his knowledge on to our younger technicians. He's a great resource for them, and like his dad, Craig's a tremendous asset to Roland. We appreciate everything he does for us."
"I learned on the job because there weren't really diesel tech school programs back when I started," said Stephens. "The equipment has changed a lot during the past 30-some years. I never would have dreamed that I'd use a computer so much. Now, it's all electronic, so it's a lot different today. Fortunately, Roland has always been committed to training and giving us the tools and technology that we need to stay updated, as well as a service truck that basically allows me to do anything in the field that can be done in the shop."
Stephens emphasized the service truck's importance because it helps limit customers' downtime as he's working to diagnose and fix an issue. He's had to do that at all hours of the day and in all types of conditions.
"A big reason I enjoy what I do is that there is not a typical day," said Stephens. "Some days, I come into the shop to start the day, and sometimes, I just go straight to the job site. Some jobs are as easy as replacing a sensor, and some get really complex. Occasionally, there is an emergency response that has to be done in the middle of the night. Whatever the situation, I treat it the same and look at it from my own standpoint. If it was my machine, I would want it up and running as fast as possible and fixed right."
He added that the variety of jobs makes a service technician career an attractive one.
"I definitely encourage people to look at it, and it's good to see that more younger people are coming in and are excited about it like I was," Stephens said.
(This article is reprinted from Roland Machinery Industry Scoop with permission of Roland Machinery.)
