Background
Before joining DTE, Terri was an Early Years Teacher working with pre-school aged children, but this required a long commute and, so Terri started to look for something a bit closer to home. Terri started at DTE in 2012 in what she described as a ‘stop gap’ while applying for jobs in schools more local to her, and after almost 10 years later has never looked back. Since starting as a receptionist back in 2012 at our Ilkeston site, Terri has had the opportunity to take on many roles, in both the truss and joist teams, and now for the last 4 years has worked as Truss Production Coordinator in her most recent role.
We asked Terri some questions about her current role to find out more.
What does your role Truss Production Coordinator involve?
My main role is to communicate with our customers to confirm which plots of roof trusses are required and when, so that I can schedule these in for production at our factory. I’m in regular contact with customers for delivery dates, as often we must ensure deliveries coincide with crane hires.
How do you ensure customer demand is met?
Industry demand is high at present and has been since COVID restrictions were lifted in 2020, but good communication between our internal functions (transport and production), and our customers ensures that we can always meet demand.
I enjoy working in partnership with our customers and have built up good relationships with site managers throughout my career. The team I work with are great, we work together closely and always support each other.
One positive change that’s come out of COVID for me is my move from the main office to the truss shed in the yard. I’m now working physically closer to our production and transport teams which enables me to get answers and updates more efficiently.
What are some of the challenges you face in your role?
Some days, everything goes to plan, production is complete, trusses are loaded onto the wagons and on their way to the customer, but not every day is like that unfortunately! Sadly, delays can happen no matter how hard we try to avoid them, but I have great relationships with the site managers that we work with, and so they trust that if an issue occurs, I have a resolution ready and will work with them to ensure their delivery is on time.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I’ve recently just purchased my first home, which is a renovation project and I’m sure that will keep me super busy for the next few months! I enjoy spending time with my family and friends - lots of socialising and trips to the cinema.