Peter Pelling
Caterpillar Dealer Trained Technical Interviewer, Skilled Migration Group
- 40 years and 9 months with Hastings Deering the Australian Caterpillar dealer
- Managed the Cat Certified Engine Rebuild Facility, Rockhampton
- Managed the Cat Certified Component Rebuild Center, Mackay
- 10 years Group Maintenance Manager, Mackellar Mining Group
Over fifty years around large surface mining and heavy earthmoving equipment, and the people who keep it running.
In his own words
I worked for the Australian Caterpillar dealer Hastings Deering for over 40 + years, including managing their Cat Certified rebuild facilities for over 9 years. I then spent ten years as Group Maintenance Manager for Mackellar Mining Group.
Over fifty years around large surface mining and heavy earthmoving equipment, and the people who keep it running.
I worked alongside Brent Diflo at Hastings Deering for more than thirty years. We now interview together.
The Rebuild Facilities
At Hastings Deering I was the Group CRG Manager for my last 9 years with them, working from Rockhampton because I would not move to Brisbane.
I was the first group manager to do this not based in Brisbane.
This position managed all component rebuild centres for the HD Group, with Rockhampton and Mackay being the 2 main facilities.
Rockhampton at Port Curtis Road was the Cat Certified Engine Rebuild Facility, and at Mackay was the Transmission Centre.
Before taking on this role I was Rockhampton Area Service Manager for 10 years.
The Cat Certified Rebuild program exists to create a global standard, and under my management you could get a 3500-series engine through the full program (arrival, strip down, assess, rebuild, test and dyno) in a six-week turnaround, backed by a 10,000-hour, 24-month warranty.
I worked extensively across Caterpillar engines: 3600 series, C27s, C32s and the 3500s.
The 3500 series is being phased out, but that will take years, and Caterpillar engine specialists for 3500-series rebuilds will be needed for many years yet.
I also managed the Cat Certified Component Rebuild Center in Mackay, Queensland.
After the Dealership
After 40 + years with the Caterpillar dealer I went on to work as Group Maintenance Manager for Mackellar Mining Group for ten years.
When North American Construction Group purchased Mackellar in 2023, I helped transition the business through the takeover.
Interviewing Internationally
I travelled extensively during my years with the dealer, from the Philippines to touring the Caterpillar dealer Finning’s operations in Santiago, Chile.
It would be difficult to put a figure on the number of heavy equipment mechanics and technicians I have interviewed and hired internationally.
Safe to say: more than enough to know what I am doing when it comes to selecting the right technical skills, and the right attitude, for a Caterpillar dealer’s operation.
When I sit across from a technician and ask how he would approach a 3500 strip-down, I am not reading the question off a sheet.
I ran the facility the answer comes from.
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If you are an employer wanting technical interviewing from someone who ran the rebuild facilities, book a consultation.