Meet Justin. Head of Technical at La Marzocco Australia, Justin has a wealth of knowledge about our machines, parts and everything in between.
There’s rarely a technical question that Justin can’t answer, naturally leading him to support various teams across Sydney and Melbourne, while also closely liaising with our factory and headquarters in Florence.
Always on the move, we managed to sit Justin down for five minutes to learn more about his role and the various teams he leads at La Marzocco Australia.
Could you begin by sharing your job title and explaining what you do at La Marzocco?
Hi, I’m Justin and I am Head of Technical for La Marzocco Australia. Essentially, what this means is that I work across and support several teams across La Marzocco Australia.
One of the teams I support is our bench testing team here in Melbourne. Together, we test all the commercial and home machines that arrive into Australia.
I also support our training team who train and educate all the technicians and machinery partners across Australia, while also looking after our aftersales team who are on hand to support technicians and users across Australia when they need technical support with one of our home or commercial machines.
Not to mention that I also work with the factory over in Italy on R&D, field testing new products and workshopping global after sales issues.
How many years have you been working for La Marzocco
2023 marks my 5th year at La Marzocco. Time truly flies here!
What first brought you to La Marzocco five years ago?
I used to have a coffee roastery and was always a fan of La Marzocco.
A lot of my customers wanted to use La Marzocco machines and naturally I was always very technically involved in them. La Marzocco technology always appealed to me, so it seemed like a natural step to get behind, and into them when the opportunity arose.
What is your favourite machine/part and why?
This answer constantly changes! Currently my favourite machine at the moment is the Micra – it’s so cute!
My favourite part is the scales assembly – much better than the flow meter.
What does a regular workday look like for you at La Marzocco?
Man, that could be anything! Every day is different here at La Marzocco. One day I could be testing a new part that has arrived from Italy to guiding a customer through the process of updating their firmware on Wally Milk, or even workshopping how to address a new problem we have found out in the field – No day ever seems to be the same twice which can be exciting and frustrating at the same time.
What’s a simple maintenance tip you would share with baristas and café owners?
Clean more than you think necessary, weigh your grounds coffee in and trust your technician when they suggest a service and filter change.
What advice would you give those beginning a career in technical service?
Find a role model, or mentor and offer to buy them a coffee once a month in exchange for a slice of their time to chat.
Find a café or technical company you admire and work out how to get in the door. Be prepared to get dirty and work late. Lean about electricity and water and hydraulic and electrical systems, get your test and tag licence and don’t be afraid to ask questions.
What is one thing our customers should know about La Marzocco technical service that they may not already know?
We are here to help not judge – tell me what happened and we can help you fix it faster.
How can our customers learn more about our machinery and technical service?
Come visit us if you’re ever in Melbourne or Sydney! If you live remote, watch our Youtube videos and if you are a technician working on our machines, book in for some training.
What current projects are you most excited about?
Ahaha! I cant reveal much, but there are a couple of new things in the works I’m very excited to use and trial.