Dyllon Browne is the MTA Institute Apprentice of the Month for June 2023.
The 20-year-old is in the third year of his Light Vehicle Mechanical apprenticeship and since 2021 has worked at Hervey Bay Rent A Car in the coastal tourism hotspot of Hervey Bay, three hours north of Brisbane.
While the name might suggest a car hire enterprise, part of the Hervey Bay Rent A Car business is also a full-service workshop, with owner David Taylor and his team offering mechanical repair and maintenance services to the general public on all vehicle makes and models, including scooters, caravans and trailers, small-engine machinery, and even bicycles.
It’s a workshop that offers the wide variety of jobs that instantly appealed to Dyllon, who has been fixing and repairing things since he was old enough to walk. And while he was not exactly certain about a career in automotive when he finished high school, his longtime interest in things mechanical ensured it was always on the list.
“I was always good at the hands-on stuff. From when I was about 11, every afternoon I’d help my dad work on his cars – he had a few projects – and I was also making a bit of money working on pushbikes, motorbikes, doing them up and selling them,” said Dyllon. “When I finished school, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do but I did sign up to do an automotive course at TAFE.”
However, before attending that introductory auto program, Dyllon was made aware of an opportunity at Hervey Bay Rent A Car.
“My mum actually saw an advert on Facebook about the apprenticeship and I came down to the workshop here and had an interview straight away,” said Dyllon. “I was already enrolled at TAFE, but I thought if I got this job, I wouldn’t do the course. I went for the interview and David said “Do you want to start now?” because I had rocked up in my boots and everything and was ready to go! So, I started a week’s trial there and then and David was more than happy with me and that was it.”
Dyllon said that the Hervey Bay Rent A Car shop was currently expanding, had added a fourth hoist, and that he and the other staff members – including another apprentice, plus David and another qualified tradesperson – were always busy with a variety of work. And those jobs are a really interesting mix which extends beyond the norm of a regular independent workshop.
“We work on all cars, motorbikes and bicycles, but we do jobs out at the airport as well,” said Dyllon. “That includes working on things like the Trepel Champ [a machine that is used to load cargo onto planes], loading belts, and big Ground Power Units that supply power to the planes when they’ve landed. We do all sorts of stuff.
“That’s what I love about working here. There’s always something to do, and there are so many different things to learn it’s not funny!”
Now at the stage of his apprenticeship that he can confidently do all manner of jobs, Dyllon said that that the one-on-one, in-the-workshop training he receives from the MTA Institute and trainer Ross Wilson has been excellent and enjoyable, and that more training, particularly as electric vehicles become more common, was on the cards.
“I wouldn’t mind doing that training,” he said. “We don’t see electric vehicles really, but we do see hybrids and we don’t do anything electrical to them, just the straight mechanical things. So, I would like to do some training, I am always up for learning something new!”
The MTA Institute Apprentice of the Month is proudly sponsored by Spirit Super
Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (July 2023)
19 July 2023
