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Cawoods' Bobby Gardiner... FPS Driver of the Year 2004
14th June 2004
A tanker driver with Northern Ireland company Cawoods Oil has been named "FPS-OAMPS Driver of the Year 2004", by the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers, in its annual competition to find the driver who has gone the "extra mile" for their customers or, who has done something way beyond their normal duties.
Bobby Gardiner from Belfast is the first ever winner of this prestigious industry award from Northern Ireland, which was announced recently at the FPS 2004 Exhibition and Conference Dinner in Harrogate.
Although up against stiff competition from over 42 drivers representing oil distributors throughout the UK and Republic of Ireland, Bobby was voted unanimous winner of this year"s competition by the judging panel made up of FPS Technical Manager Peter Wortley and three FPS Council members, Robin Exley, Kevin Bennetts and Malcolm Hunt. The judges whittled the 42 entries down to three finalists, including Bobby together with Joe O"Donoghue of Breffni Oil Distributors Ltd and Clifford Tappin of British Benzol PLC.
Impressed by Bobby"s long track record of outstanding customer care and service, obvious dedication to his job and, in particular, by the strong rapport that he has established with customers and colleagues alike during his career, the judges voted Bobby the overall winner and awarded him the prestigious winners glass trophy and a £1000 first prize. Both Joe and Clifford received runners up glass trophies and £250 each.
An employee with Cawoods Oil for over 20 years, Bobby has worked within the oil distribution industry for 45 years and this recent accolade has both surprised and delighted him. According to Bobby, "I was delighted to have reached the final of the competition itself and, to have won it now is just the icing on the cake as far as I"m concerned! I"d just like to thank all those at Cawoods Oil who nominated and supported me through the competition and, an especially big "thank you" goes to all those customers who wrote in or phoned and started the ball rolling, so to speak!"
Barry Funston, Sales Manager with Cawoods Oil adds: "This is a tremendous achievement for Bobby and we wish to congratulate him heartily on his success, which he well deserves. We"re absolutely delighted that a member of our staff has received recognition of this kind at a national level and from such a long-established organisation as the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers. One of the stated objectives of the FPS is to promote best practice in the industry and competitions such as Driver of the Year not only provide a major boost for the drivers and companies involved, but also make us focus on raising standards and improving our business operations both strategically and on a day-to-day basis."
Bobby"s willingness to provide a level of service above and beyond the call of duty was evident from the numerous letters and phone calls received by the Cawoods" Customer Services department over the years. One recent incident, however, that stood out and impressed the FPS judges was when an elderly customer ran out of home heating oil late one evening and sent out an urgent call to Bobby. Unfortunately, Bobby had no oil left in his tanker but undeterred, he called round to the lady"s home, managed to prop up her oil tank so that the small amount of oil left in the tank would provide her with just enough central heating for that night, and by 8.00 am the following morning had returned to make a full oil delivery!
David Barrett, Managing Director of award sponsors OAMPS (UK) Limited comments: "The standard is getting higher year on year. These awards recognise the high standards being set by drivers in the UK and Ireland and we hope the awards will continue to encourage oil distributors to promote an ethos of safe driving, cleaner deliveries and outstanding customer care to create more drivers capable of winning this award."
