It's a testament to the strength of the friendships on-site at McCain's Ballarat factory that the main thing Thomas Quinlan will miss, after 34 years, is the banter.
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"The friends I've made over the time have been the best thing - that's the stuff that really stood out," he said.
"On my shift I had a couple of funny blokes, Neddy Quinlan - no relation - he's a stirrer, I'll miss his remarks and that sort of thing.
"I've had a good journey and they looked after me - they're not a bad bunch of people to work for."
Mr Quinlan retired about a month ago after becoming a fixture on the plant's maintenance team.
He worked his way up after picking up a job as a forklift operator in the '80s, ending up leading a crew of workers covering the whole site.
A lot has changed in that time - that's enabled the business to keep up and made life easier for workers on-site, he said.
A mechanic by trade, Mr Quinlan said he still remembers when he first started.
"It was the first time I'd ever worked in a factory situation - it was something different to what I was used to," he said.
"It was pretty different how everything operated (back then) - how they got the spuds into the place and how it came out as chips in a bag.
"It went from being all galvanised back then to all stainless steel, it's nearly all stainless steel now, and the new stuff - they're putting out more bags per minute, when I first started they were pretty slow but now they push out the product pretty quick.
"Us maintenance people, the electricians and that, we had to work in all different sections of the plant - from receiving to kettles, and the cutting room, we revolved right along.
"We had to try and maintain everything on the lines to keep the place running."
With several of his long-time colleagues retiring, or considering retiring, Mr Quinlan said he felt it was the right time for him to make the jump as well, while he was fit and healthy.
He said young people should consider the factory as a starting place as well, and to keep an eye out for apprenticeships if they become available.
"If you wanted to be an electrician or something like that, they've got a good bunch of blokes there that will teach you, and you can move up through the ranks," he said.
"You'll work on nearly everything through the place.
"If I was an apprentice then, I'd say do your four years, then try something else at another place - there's always life outside - get some experience and come back down the track."
For Mr Quinlan, now that he's got more free time, he's keen to get outside himself and continue working on his classic cars - keep an eye out for his FJ and retro Peugeot at car club meets.