I would simply like to give more of the picture for the vendors out there who use Pirtek.
Pirtek technician pay is 18$/hour. Technician monthly bonuses depend on gross sales, which goals are between $15,000 and $20,000. Maximum hourly bonus for a month is $5/ hour. Each of the technicians' gross sales to gross income ratio is under 10:1.
Technicians get "time and a half" if they are in fact into overtime territory but regardless, customers are billed at "overtime rate" after 4 pm and on weekends.
Just one of four mobile technicians meeting the maximum gross sales goal pays for all of a branch's operating costs for that month.
The hoses and fittings are by Aeroquip, printed with Pirtek branding. Fuel costs per van is $300/month.
Replacement hose used is usually 1 tier higher than what is needed, and almost always the braided stuff. OEM psi stuff isn't stocked. You overpaid for something you didn't need and potentially overpressured the rest of your equipment's hydraulic system. On aged equipment, replacing one bad hose on a system full of old hoses usually results in this overpressure chain reaction. Link Belts especially, non-american equipment in general.
If you have equipment down for a leak, unless you really truly "have a whole project waiting on ONE piece of equipment", remove the line and send someone down to a trusted, local hose vendor.
Invoices are marked up or down at the office depending on the job size and contractor, backup equipment there, workers on-site... Technicians are trained to find out from foremen what the billing limits are like.
If you feel gouged, you were. They are ripping off their employees, too.
I still don't know where the profits go. Management and corporate will say times are tight and try to keep their hourly workers in the dark but similar insight by someone on the accounting side would be interesting for sure.
Some big contract foremen and rental equipment customers would give us work just to have someone to talk to and the free hats/tee shirts "for their kids". If you are a contract company owner or rental company manager you may want to consider which of your foremen or customers are the type.
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