September 3, 2023
From left to right are Doug Shaw, Jorge Rocha and Monte Stemwedel
Terex Equipment Services, Watertown, S.D., has named Jorge Rocha, from the Terex Service Center, Burleson, Texas, as the champion of its national technician competition. Rocha has been with Terex for 19 years.
Of the 12 technicians that competed at the regional level, four advanced to the finals held in August at Terex Utilities headquarters in Watertown. Their experience in the industry ranged from six to 31 years. They each got their start in a variety of ways — working with backhoes, car haulers and concrete mixers with skills in electronics and hydraulics.
Doug Shaw, representing the Waukesha, Wis., branch, placed second in the competition, and Monte Stemwedel from the Phoenix service center finished third. Morgan Harris, a field service technician from Castle Rock, Wash., was the fourth finalist but was unable to compete in the champion round.
In addition to his skills as a technician, Rocha enjoys fabricating non-structural items that are needed for a current job but that may not be available in a timely fashion.
“As a mechanic, you don’t have all the answers to solve daily tasks, but as a technician, we have to be willing to acquire knowledge from different sources and people to work through the problems,” Rocha said.
The regional contest involved conducting an annual inspection of a Genie scissor lift. During the final competition, each service technician performed an annual inspection and function testing of a digger derrick and chassis. Rodeo officials planted nine defects. In all, there were 119 inspection items.
Technicians were scored on finding defects that relate to the manufacturer specifications and the accuracy of their report, with clear notations referenced.
