June 30, 2022
Leela Mohan, Service Manager for Lintec & Linnhoff Asphalt Pte. Ltd.
Lintec & Linnhoff prioritises aftersales support to deliver the best customer experience possible. In this series of interviews, we talk to the company’s highly experienced team of specialists to understand what it takes to maintain a first-class product support operation.
What is your name and role?
My name is Leela Mohan, and I am the Service Manager for Lintec & Linnhoff Asphalt Pte Ltd. I am proud to say that I have been with the company for 15 years. Although I am based in Singapore, I work across Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa.
Tell us about the work you are involved in?
We work with big contractors, helping them with the road projects and infrastructure developments they are managing, both in developed and developing countries. Working with such companies and assisting them is both challenging and exciting.
What exactly is your job?
I oversee customer support operations for our division and handle critical and turnkey projects for the company. But it’s not a desk job and I still like to get involved. If our engineers are tied up on other projects, I’m always happy to help commission a plant for a customer. I’ve commissioned numerous Lintec and Linnhoff asphalt plants over the years, including our full range of Lintec CSD containerised asphalt plants, Lintec CDP6000M continuous asphalt plant, full range of Linnhoff TSD MobileMix, CMX CompactMix, TRX TransitMix, both HRC and CRC asphalt recycling systems, WM series of base stabilisation plants as well as the previous series of MSD and LH asphalt plants.
How would you summarise your work and what feedback do you get from customers?
My work spans different time zones as we have customers across multiple regions. Nevertheless it’s my job to ensure they get the solutions they need as an absolute priority. We understand how important the productivity of Lintec & Linnhoff equipment is to their project so we are constantly focused on minimising downtime. I think customers appreciate the value I bring to the role and I’m fortunate to work for a company like Lintec & Linnhoff where customer support is recognised as a key component of the business.
What’s the most memorable project you’ve been involved with?
I have been involved in multiple projects over the last decade but if I had to pick just one then it would have to be the delivery of a Linnhoff LH3000 asphalt plant to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi for the construction of the world-famous Formula 1 racetrack- the Yas Marina Circuit. The track was built using Linnhoff’s most advanced tower plant with an integrated silo. Currently, the Linnhoff LH Tower asphalt plant is being upgraded into the new and improved OMX OptimalMix asphalt plant series.
I recall an incident while we were assisting the German consultants on the job. A sandstorm started at around 9 am and my colleague and I were stuck in the control room waiting for it to stop. Unfortunately, it kept going till 6 pm! Luckily a few of the local workers were kind enough to share some cup noodles with us while we waited for a full 9 hours for the storm to pass!
What are your goals for the customer support organisation?
Customer support is always a top priority so we have resident engineers in many different territories. It’s important to maintain strong customer relations and make sure we are monitoring our customers’ asphalt plants closely. Needless to say, having a strong customer support team with in-depth knowledge of our technologies and systems is also smart business as our customers appreciate it and keep coming back.
For one customer in Indonesia, I remember they wanted to install a plant urgently but they were experiencing delays in delivery due to hold-ups at the port. When the machine eventually arrived, the customer asked us to accelerate the process of getting the machine to work.
We were only too happy to help, even though it meant doing the installation and commissioning work simultaneously. This was during the monsoon season and the heavy rain closed in, causing us more challenges and hindering the progress. But we refused to stop or give up. Our team worked long hours to get the job done and eventually managed to complete it all in just 7 days. It was a high-pressure job, but we were so happy to help our customer to start their project on schedule.
How would you summarise the regions you cover?
I think in Asia-Pacific the market is more competitive and needs quick and fast support. For the Middle East, it’s a more robust market, with the rugged design of higher-capacity plants more popular there. And Africa is still in its developing phase so there is plenty of work to be done there.
What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
When I am not working, I spend time with family, play badminton with friends and watch movies.
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MEDIA CONTACT
Punitha Govindasamy
Senior Marketing Manager
Lintec & Linnhoff Holdings Pte Ltd
punitha.govindasamy@lintec-linnhoff.com
