Name: Andrew Loughlin-Smith
Job title: Night Operations Manager
Company name: Palletline
Time with current company: 25 Years
Time in current role: 18 months
Tell us a little about your career journey and what made you choose to work in logistics:
25 years ago, Palletline was a fairly new name but had already established a good reputation in the logistics industry. I approached the company in relation to the open position of Shift Supervisor, was offered the job and, as they say, the rest is history.
Since then I have worked my way up through the ranks to Night Operations Manager, a role I find interesting and fulfilling.
What does an average day at work look like for you?
My night shift starts at 18:30 and can often run until 06:30.
I begin each evening by checking our staffing levels and input volume to ensure we have the adequate resources to achieve a smooth operation.
Throughout the night I am amongst our team of over 90 warehouse operatives, forklift drivers, quality control operatives, and supervisors and team leaders ensuring the sort runs smoothly and dealing with issues as quickly as possible. On average the operation tips and loads over 220 vehicles with approximately 20,000 pallets of freight per night.
Which departments do you work closely with?
I work closely with IT to ensure our systems are fully operational at all times and due to the high number of employees in operations, I am in touch with HR on a regular basis.
What are the challenges of your role?
As with any managerial role, ensuring your team is working effectively is always a challenge and our operation is no different. With a more than 90 people working in a variety of roles across the business, supporting them to achieve their best requires a different approach from person to person.
Additionally, unforeseen weather conditions or traffic issues can cause delays in vehicles arriving to site and may have a knock on effect on our operation.
What do you like / enjoy about your role?
I know it’s a cliché, but every shift is different, bringing a new challenge when compared to the previous day. That’s fairly typical when working in a role with lots of ‘moving parts’ but it makes the job interesting and keeps me on my toes.
What are your future career plans?
I really enjoy my role, it offers a wide range of responsibilities and I feel that I do make a difference. I’m looking forward to continuing to work with Palletline for many years to come.
What would you say to someone that is considering starting a career in the logistics industry?
If it’s variety in your work that you’re looking for, then the transport and logistics sector is a good place to start. I would encourage people to seriously consider roles in this sector as they can be incredibly rewarding, interesting and often offer options for progression.