The Big Lemon is an award-winning bus and coach operator based in Brighton. We operate two local public bus services using vehicles which we run on biodiesel from recycled cooking oil. We are opening our own vehicle maintenance workshop on 1 February to bring our maintenance in-house.

Our current fleet is as follows, although this is subject to change:

• Volvo B10M Van Hool 49 seat coach
• Two Dennis Plaxton Mini-Pointer Darts, 29 seats
• Three Mercedes 709s, 25-29 seats
• VW LT45 minibus 17 seats
• Land Rover 110

This position is a full-time post of 37.5 hours per week working principally between the hours of 0730-1530 Monday to Friday although some flexibility will be required to meet the operational needs of the company. The start date is Monday 3rd February 2014.

Reporting to the General Manager, the post holder shall be responsible for the maintenance of The Big Lemon’s fleet of vehicles. The post has no line management responsibilities. The post holder will need to work unsupervised and be able to meet tight deadlines. The post holder will need to be flexible, quick-thinking and able to adapt to fast-changing operational circumstances whilst maintaining the highest quality of work.

Remuneration

• £12 – £15 per hour depending on level of experience and whether you have your own tools
• 28 days paid holiday per annum
• The company will also be offering a workplace pension in the near future in accordance with current legislation.

Person Specification

Essential

• As a minimum 1 years apprenticeship experience and hold either a City and Guilds or NVQ level 2 or 3 accreditation. Exceptions can be time served experienced engineers with verifiable references.
• A full manual PCV licence attained not less than two years ago
• A set of tools
• Availability to be on call for breakdowns outside working hours, on an enhanced rate of pay
• The ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines while maintaining a high standard of work and a friendly disposition
• Good communication skills and the ability to work well in a team environment to provide the highest levels of service to our customers

Desirable but not essential

• Familiarity with Microsoft Office programs and web browsers
• Driver CPC

Responsibilities & Tasks

1. Presentation for MOT & other statutory testing: to prepare and present all vehicles for annual MOT tests and any other statutory tests as required.
2. Preventative maintenance : to carry out routine inspections on all vehicles according to stipulated inspection frequencies and carry out fault diagnostics and repairs as necessary
3. Running repairs: to carry out repairs to vehicles as and when required to ensure roadworthiness of the fleet at all times and enable vehicles to be off the road for the absolute minimum amount of time.
4. Stocks & Spares: to maintain stocks of workshop consumables as required and order spare parts as necessary in accordance with company policies and procedures.
5. Breakdowns: to operate a rapid response service to all fleet vehicles in the event of a breakdown and arrange replacement and recovery of defective vehicles as required.
6. Driving: to be available for bus driving at short notice at any time within your hours of work in the event of sickness or absence of other members of staff.
7. Records: to keep full records in accordance with the company’s policies, procedures and statutory obligations and ensure these are available for inspection by company managers or VOSA inspectors at any time
8. Workshop: to keep the workshop clean and tidy and maintain it as a safe working environment
9. Health & Safety: to maintain awareness of relevant health & safety legislation, undertake risk assessment as necessary and ensure compliance with all relevant policies, procedures and legislation.
10. Training: to attend all relevant mandatory training including external courses required for the job role
11. To undertake all other reasonable tasks as directed by company managers.

There will be on-going training and personal development opportunities for the right candidate.

Applying for the role:

To download a PDF copy of the vacancy please click here

If you are interested in this position please email your CV with a covering letter for the attention of Tom Druitt, Managing Director, to tom@thebiglemon.com.
Please outline clearly how closely you meet each aspect of the person specification, and identify relevant experience in all aspects of the job description.

Applications close at noon on Friday 17 January 2014

Interviews will be held during the week commencing 20 January, with the successful candidate notified by close of business on Friday 24 January.