Plant and equipment maintenance personnel have the responsibility to provide technical and repair work on machines, mechanical equipment and devices used in the plant.
Maintenance personnel usually are proficient in a particular trade before being employed. Their work includes repairs and maintenance outside and inside the plant, and a different work sites.
Nature of Work
Typical maintenance work includes servicing and repairing machines, devices and equipment used in the operations of the plants such plumbing, electrical, carpentry and ground maintenance. Maintenance personnel doing plumbing usually work on clogged drains, and septic systems, and repair water leaks. Those involved in carpentry usually work in the construction and repair of doors, fences, walls and other related structures. Electrical maintenance personnel are the ones in charge of repairing lighting systems, appliances, outlets, cables and other electrical components in the plant. Ground maintenance personnel are in charge of mowing, weeding and fertilizing lawns within the facilities. Most maintenance personnel do physical activities like stooping, climbing and lifting. For this reason, they should have good physical conditioning so they can transport and manipulate the objects they need to work on properly.
Generally plant and equipment maintenance personnel are tasked with ensuring the smooth and efficient operations of building structures, facilities, fixtures and all related services provided by the company. For this purpose, maintenance personnel are responsible for performing regular preventive maintenance.
Qualifications
Maintenance personnel should have trainings related to building and engineering work. They must have the ability to perform construction, engineering or mechanical work. To perform the different jobs involved, maintenance personnel for each field must have working knowledge of different trades such as machine designs, development and production of equipment, services and goods, building and other structures repair. They must understand and follow verbal and written instructions, including all safety procedures involved in a job. They must be able to apply good judgment, reasoning and logic to come up with solutions. If needed to perform a particular job, maintenance personnel should be able to operate and repair machines in their department, and have extensive knowledge of the tools and equipment used in the job.