Top Team: The perfect Competition for workshops – and customers

22 SEPTEMBER 2022

Meet Omar, Luca, Giuseppe, Cristian and Lorenzo. Two engine mechanics, two electricians and a spare parts expert from Italy who are competing to be the best team of Scania service technicians in world. Here’s how they’re preparing for the 2022/23 Scania Top Team finals.

The team from Rangoni & Affini, a Scania dealer in northern Italy with workshops in Mantua, Brescia and Verona, started their training sessions early, in the first weeks of 2022. They practised twice a week, to get themselves ready for competitions. As with all the competitors, their goal was the world final in Södertälje, Scania’s headquarters in Sweden.

Giuliano Affini runs the company, along with brothers Stefano, Natalino and Paolo. He says participating in the competition is a wise investment for Rangoni & Affini.

“The five guys in our team are role models for the service technicians in our workshops,” says Giuliano. “Training and competition improve not only the team but also, by setting an example, all our mechanics, even those who do not compete.”

One of five

The Affini service team was one of five teams of Scania service technicians from Italy that passed the first selection in the competition – three from the north, one from central Italy and one from the south.

The national final took place at the start of July 2022, at Scania’s Italian headquarters in Trento. There it was decided which team was to go on to the European finals, set to take place in Bratislava from 7– 9 October 2022. The winners in Bratislava will then compete for the world title in Södertälje in the spring of 2023.

An opportunity to learn new methods

One of the Affini team members, engine specialist 26-year-old Cristian Cordioli, is experiencing his first Scania Top Team competition.

“This is a great opportunity for me,” he explains. “Competing with more experienced colleagues is teaching me a lot. And I hope we will make it to the final. I’ll be better able to do my job, and we’ll get the chance to see many new places.”

The Team captain is Omar Bernini, an electrician. At 43, he has already participated in several Top Team competitions, including the one in 2018 in which the Affini Service team ranked fifth in the world.

“Scania Top Team has taught me a lot – learning new working methods, taking on a challenge, competing with other teams,” he says. “The role of the electrician in workshops is becoming more and more important. These days everything in a truck works due to electronics.”

Teamwork is fundamental

A second electrician, Lorenzo Manenti, 29, is also on the team. Lorenzo stresses the importance of teamwork in the Top Team competition, particularly with his fellow electrician. “During the competition, one electrician puts his hands on the truck and the other checks the wiring diagrams,” he explains.

He adds: “It’s interesting to see how the other colleagues work as they prepare for the competition, to compare different techniques, as well as to follow Scania’s procedures with greater and greater precision.”

There are also two engine technicians in the Italian team. In addition to Cristian Cordioli there is Giuseppe Andreoli, 37, who is also making his debut in the competition.

“I asked to be part of the team because I have witnessed with my own eyes the improvement of colleagues who have participated in previous editions,” Giuseppe says. “I get on very well with the lads in the team. Teamwork is fundamental if you need to detect faults and repair them within the 20 minutes time limit of the competition.”

Photo: Raffaele Merler

Participation is its own reward

Luca Migliori, 31, a veteran of the 2018 competition, is in charge of finding components and supplying spare parts. “Winning? Losing? It’s all part of the game,” he says. “We strive to win, of course, but just the fact of participating in this competition will help us work better, offering customers a higher service level.”

And then there’s the customer satisfaction aspect. For a dealer such as Rangoni & Affini, customer satisfaction is crucial.

As Stefano Affini, the company’s service manager, says: “Customers feel proud to be served by a workshop that competes in the Top Team. Scania has designed a perfect competition that benefits both workshop and customers, which is why we always try to be there. May the best team win, and let's hope it’s us!”

Affini team in short

Omar Bernini, 43, electrician and the team captain. He’s participated in several Top Team competitions, including in 2018, when the Affini Service team ranked fifth in the world. “Scania Top Team continues to teach me new working methods.”
Cristian Cordioli, 26, engine mechanic, participating for the first time. “This is a great opportunity for me.”
Giuseppe Andreoli, 37, engine mechanic, also participating for the first time. “I asked to be part of the team because I have witnessed the improvement in colleagues who have participated in previous competitions.”
Luca Migliori, 31, competition veteran, is responsible for finding components and supplying spare parts. “Just the fact of participating in this competition will help us work better, offering customers a higher service level.”
Lorenzo Manenti, 29, electrician and also veteran of the competition. He stresses the teamworking aspect of Scania Top Team. “During the competition, one electrician puts his hands on the truck and the other checks the wiring diagrams.”