John Deere Technician Awards: Jaymee Ireland, Sarah Lewis take out national titles

A 22-year-old harvester mechanic from South Australia has taken out a top honour at the 2022 John Deere Technician Awards. Meet all the winners.

Camille Smith

6 min read

August 8, 2022 - 1:14PM

The Weekly Times

Australia’s best farm machinery technicians

A 22-year-old female farm machinery mechanic has been named Australia’s best, out of a field of more than 100 experienced technicians from across the nation.

Crowned with a top honour at a gala ceremony in Brisbane on Friday night, South Australia’s Jaymee Ireland is the winner of the Agriculture Service Technician of the Year category in the second annual John Deere Technician Awards.

John Deere Agriculture Service Technician of the Year Jaymee Ireland with John Deere director aftermarket and customer support Emma Ford.

John Deere Technician Awards Agriculture Service Technician of the Year winner Jaymee Ireland.

Ms Ireland impressed judges with her work ethic, attention to detail and problem-solving skills to beat stiff competition including finalists Vincent Powditch from Taree South NSW, Karl Moschella of Ayr, Queensland, and William Lawless from Sunshine in Victoria.

Ms Ireland works for Emmetts at the dealership’s Roseworthy branch in South Australia.

“It is a huge honour,” Ms Ireland said about winning the title.

“I love my job, so it means a lot to me that I have achieved this.

“Also, being a female in this industry, it is so hard, so just to show that us girls can do it is great.”

She trained in aircraft maintenance before moving into the ag industry, but working with farm machinery had always been on her agenda

“I’ve always loved John Deere; I’ve grown up around it,” she said.

Ms Ireland grew up near cane farms at Mossman in Far North Queensland, where her grandfather, Charlie Brischetto, showed her the ropes of John Deere harvesters.

While she had always been confident about her own skills, and the judges were also suitably impressed by her knowledge, proving herself to new customers was still a challenge, she said.

“It is hard. Rocking up to new people’s farms, just the initial look of a female getting out of the ute,” she said. “(Sometimes) they will make little comments like, ‘Do you want to ask somebody else what they think?’. Or they’ll ring the branch and say, ‘Do you want to send someone else?’.

“I try to ignore it. But I have to put in the extra effort, just to make sure (my work) is the best.”

John Deere director aftermarket and customer support Emma Ford said Ms Ireland was an inspiration, and an ambassador for young people wanting to enter the mechanical and agricultural industry.

“She has drive, determination and a real desire to learn new things,” she said.

The customer who provided a reference for Ms Ireland said she had visited their farm to diagnose multiple equipment issues that were often electrical and “very complex”.

“She is straight into it as soon as she gets here with laptop out and tools in hand. Even when she’s working on equipment she’s not worked on before, she’s very confident in her skills and gets the issues rectified very quickly,” the farmer said.

She was nominated by Emmetts service manager Aleksandar Glavas, who said: “No task is ever too difficult and she’s always trying to do her best for the customers, Emmetts and John Deere. She loves the agricultural community and thrives in the fast-paced industry that is agriculture.”

This was the second year Ms Ireland had taken part in the competition, after being a finalist last year in the inaugural event.

She was one of three women who took out awards on Friday, with eight females among the 35 finalists from Australia and New Zealand.

John Deere Technician Awards Parts Service Technician winner Sarah Lewis.

Brandt technician Sarah Lewis, of Victoria, was named Parts Service Technician of the Year.

Originally from the La Trobe Valley in Gippsland, Ms Lewis studied commerce at Deakin University in Warrnambool and worked in hospitality before taking up a role at a Terang dealership.

She said being recognised for her work was humbling.

“I don’t know if I could put into words what it does mean,” she said. “I’m so passionate about what I do, and I really love it. To be in an industry with so many like-minded people, I think that awareness has shown by attending things like this.”

She said female representation in the industry was increasing.

“I think we’re probably still in a slight minority, but it is in a transition over the last couple of years that has brought it up to a more level playing field in terms of gender equality,” Ms Lewis said.

“It is incredible to see that what traditionally was a male-dominated industry has a few more females coming through who are passionate about it and just as talented.”

To be considered in the John Deere awards, technicians had to be nominated and provide a reference from a manager, a customer and their own statement about their achievements. From the nominees, 35 candidates were chosen as regional finalists – 24 from Australia and 11 from New Zealand.

Finalists were put through their paces at John Deere’s Queensland training centre, where they completed 105 assessments that tested their practical diagnostic skills, ability to use specialist technical tools and customer service.

John Deere Australia and New Zealand managing director Luke Chandler said the winners really were the best in the industry, and the awards showcased the career opportunities in the sector.

“Our customers are increasingly doing more with less. That makes up-time and technician support even more critical than it has ever been before,” he said.

“The last few years have been challenging, there is no doubt about that. A key driver for the reason behind these awards is for all of us to collectively address the challenge of technician labour shortages across our industries.”

Agriculture machinery dealerships across the nation have reported critical shortages of technicians and mechanics over the past two years, made worse by the dramatic up-tick in machinery sales and the shortage of labour, particularly in regional and rural areas.

“By us putting a spotlight on their talent and all the fantastic work that they do across the Australia-New Zealand region to help our customers, that can only go to support their connection to John Deere, to the customer and to their dealer,” Mr Chandler said.

JOHN DEERE TECHNICIAN AWARDS 2022 WINNERS

AGRICULTURE SERVICE TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, AUSTRALIA:
Jaymee Ireland, Emmetts, Roseworthy, South Australia

AGRICULTURE SERVICE TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, NEW ZEALAND:
Greg Bishop, Mosgiel, South Island, NZ

PARTS TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, AUSTRALIA:
Sarah Lewis, Brandt, Terang, Victoria

PARTS TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, NEW ZEALAND:
Megan Tree, Southland Farm Machinery, NZ

CONSTRUCTION AND FORESTRY SERVICE TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND:
Max O’Brien, RDO Equipment, Wingfield, South Australia

TURF SERVICE TECHNICIAN OF THE YEAR, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND:
Adam Kent, Knoxfield, Victoria

SERVICE APPRENTICE OF THE YEAR:
Logan Robertson, Invercargill, South Island, NZ

PARTS APPRENTICE OF THE YEAR:
Mitchell Channer, AFGRI Equipment, South Guildford, Western Australia

The agriculture service award is one of six categories, which also include Construction and Forestry Service Technician of the Year, Turf Service Technician of the Year, Service Apprentice of the Year, Parts Technician of the Year and Parts Apprentice of the Year.

John Deere Australia and New Zealand managing director Luke Chandler said all the finalists should be proud of their achievements.

“Technicians deliver services integral to the agriculture industry by not only providing vital backup support and remote diagnostics, but by empowering operators to get the most out of their machinery and technology,” he said. “Australia is fortunate to have an enormous pool of talented technicians working across the country, so these finalists deserve to be very proud for being named among the best in their field.”

The awards are also a way to boost awareness about the importance of the industry, and excite more young people about pursuing a technical career related to agriculture and heavy machinery.