In the daunting leap between building test bikes and prototypes and launching commercial production, Savic Motorcycles have been extremely lucky to call on the deep systems expertise of Chris Gaspardis. Although still in his 30s, Chris is a seasoned production manager, having spent nearly 15 years overseeing various aspects of the manufacture and assembly of 5,000 Kenworth and DAF trucks each year for PACCAR Australia.

Since April 2023, this whip-smart Melburnian has also been working in his spare time to refine an integrated series of production processes and platforms to help our engineers and technicians assemble, tune, and deliver the C-Series in local markets. He has also overseen the optimisation of our factory layout and tooling to create a space capable of producing multiple bikes concurrently.

As PACCAR’s Manufacturing Engineering Manager, Chris supervises several parts of the production operation, from manufacturing processes and controls, to tooling, moulding, and even building maintenance. But as a diehard motorcyclist with a progressive conscience, he’s also strongly drawn to the electric experience.

“It’s always been in the back of my mind working with diesel trucks that I’d like to be contributing to the world in a more carbon-conscious way, and I’ve loved motorcycles since I was a little boy,” says Chris, who recently notched up 200,000km on his Honda VFR750F tourer. “Savic really ticks every box for me: it’s manufacturing, it’s high-tech, it’s green, and it’s Australian. Helping to turn this company into a successful automotive business would be a dream come true!”

At present, Chris is helping us fine-tune our ERP systems to ensure watertight tracking of each part of the C-Series’ production – from inventory and order management, to quality checks, tooling, audits and documentation. “The process doesn’t have to be perfect to create the perfect bike,” he says. “The best way to refine a process is to start doing it. As long as you’re following an established
process, you can quickly discover where it can be improved or benefit from some changes.”

Chris is confident the Savic team have “both the guts and smarts” to build the perfect bike. “What this team have been able to do with so few resources is nothing short of amazing,” he says. “I’ve been watching Savic since 2018, always thinking they might hit an impassable barrier – but they’ve just kept getting bigger and stronger. When I first came here, I thought there was going to be a team
of 15 or 20 people – but it was like, ‘Wow, there’s just six of them’!

“Getting to know the team, I’ve been so impressed by their ingenuity, their thirst for knowledge, how they keep figuring out new things. All with one goal: to get this fantastic bike into customers’ hands. The range of characters who’ve ridden the C-Series – hobbyists, professional racers, commuters, old-school rev-heads – and every single one of them says: ‘this bike’s got the stuff’. To be a little part of that, you know: it makes you feel pretty good.”