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We had a puff in our chests at the 2024 John Deere Awards recently when four dedicated members of the Hutcheon and Pearce team were named among the best and brightest in Australia and New Zealand as finalists for the Technician of the Year award.
MEET
Andrew Keller, Hutcheon & Pearce, Lavington
Finalist, 2024 John Deere Parts Technician of the year, Australia/NZ
Spending time on his grandparents’ farms in Western Victoria was the catalyst for Andrew Keller’s passion to pursue a career in agriculture. After finishing school via a traineeship on a farm in Henty, Andrew worked at the local abattoir in Wodonga for more than 18 years, before the desire for a
career change led him to the Hutcheon & Pearce (H&P) John Deere dealership in 2022.
Hesitant at first to leave a job he was comfortable in, Andrew said he now often wonders why he didn’t do it sooner. Despite having no mechanical background, he says the team at H&P helped him find his feet in the role of Parts Interpreter, where he enjoys working alongside technicians in the workshop, helping to diagnose repairs, sourcing parts, and allocating all parts for pre-deliveries. He looks forward to continuing his journey with John Deere and pursuing the great opportunities for growth.
Andrew is a familiar face in the Henty community, having played more than 300 games for the ‘Swampies’ in the Hume
Australian Football League, and is a regular volunteer at the annual Henty Machinery Field Days as part of the footy club
MEET
Brady Gunter, Hutcheon & Pearce, Wagga Wagga
Finalist, 2024 John Deere Agriculture & Turf Service Technician of the year, Australia/NZ
Working on John Deere equipment was a dream job for Brady Gunter, who says his fascination with the brand started from a young age. After completing a trade as a mobile plant technician in Port Macquarie on the New South Wales
east coast, he moved west to apply his mechanical skills on a livestock farm. A newfound interest in agriculture led him to a position at the Hutcheon & Pearce (H&P) John Deere dealership in Finley, where he completed a Certificate
III in Agricultural Mechanical Technology through TAFE.
Now a familiar face at the Wagga Wagga H&P dealership, Brady takes pride in building the trust of customers by
understanding their needs and providing exceptional service. He appreciates the opportunities for continuous learning that
come with the role, both from formal training and exposure to a wide range of equipment and technology, as well as the
positive feedback he receives from customers and colleagues.
MEET
Owen Armstrong, Hutcheon & Pearce, Wagga Wagga
Finalist, 2024 John Deere Service Apprentice of the year, Australia/NZ
Growing up on a mixed farming operation taught Owen Armstrong valuable lessons he still uses to this day. From playing with John Deere toys to helping around the farm, restoring old cars and even learning to drive his first tractor
(a John Deere 6930), his love of agriculture and machinery was fostered early. Owen’s path to a career with John Deere began when he was accepted into the ‘Top Gun’ apprentice program at Hutcheon and Pearce in Wagga Wagga,
which was recommended to him by his neighbour.
Now a third-year apprentice, Owen has acquired extensive knowledge of the equipment and customers he serves, and
enjoys travelling the countryside meeting farmers. One of his most interesting experiences was working on and repairing a
John Deree 9410R that had been struck by lightning during the peak harvest period. Owen is a firm believer that Australia’s agriculture industry is vital for the economy, food security, environmental sustainability, rural development and innovation
MEET
Rodney Pearce, Hutcheon & Pearce Lavington
Finalist, 2024 John Deere Agriculture & Turf Service Technician of the year, Australia/NZ
If his name is anything to go by, you can guarantee Rodney Pearce ended up in the right place when he joined the Hutcheon and Pearce team as an
Agriculture and Turf Service Technician. Though not related to the company’s namesakes, Rodney may as well be part of the family, having clocked up 20
years of service. Quickly developing a preference for working with John Deere equipment during his apprenticeship with a used machinery dealership which stocked various makes of combine harvesters, Rodney’s love for the brand goes back more than 25 years, to the days when he worked on his father’s John Deere machines.
It was on the family’s small farm where his interest in anything mechanical was fostered, and he knew from an early age “a
life on the tools” was where he was headed. It’s a career path that’s brought immense satisfaction, with each completion of
a major repair yielding a deep sense of achievement as the machine returns to service and is once again operating correctly. Positive feedback he receives from customers and colleagues
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