Peach State Freightliner tech wins competition

Cary Durden, from Peach State Freightliner’s McDonough, Ga. location, has won the company’s first technician challenge.

Held at Peach State Freightliner in Austell, Ga. earlier this month, the competition included 14 participants who qualified through a written test in August.

“I really enjoyed being a part of this and getting to meet all the other techs from other Peach State locations,” Durden said. “I’m proud that I get to be the winner of the first Peach State Freightliner/Birmingham Freightliner Tech Competition.”

The three-day onsite competition featured five stations, each with a different truck showing a fault code: HVAC, steering, electrical, brakes and suspension. The techs were given one hour to diagnose the problem and go through all the proper steps to assess and fix it, just as they would any given day on the job.

Peach State service managers scored techs based on how well they followed the steps and documented their work.

“We are pleased that we can use an opportunity like the tech competition to recognize and reward our professional technicians,” said Rick Reynolds, Chief Executive Officer of Peach State Truck Centers, LLC. “Events such as this help us as an organization to continue moving in the direction to become the employer of choice.”

Along with bragging rights, Durden received $5000. Willian “Bo” Geiger from Norcross, Ga. and Justin Seamunds from Jefferson, Ga. came in second and third respectively.

Geiger was awarded $3000 and Seamunds $1500.

All three technicians and their service managers will soon head to Detroit for a tour of the Detroit Diesel assembly plant.

Nine of the 14 contestants who earned top scores on the written test received $1000. The remaining wildcard participants got $500.