Maintenance Technician: Job Description, Skills, Responsibilities, Salary

Being a good maintenance technician often asks for a specific set of technical skills, as well as having the ability to work well within a team.

Defining a complete list of duties and responsibilities maintenance techs hold is not an easy task as those factors vary depending on the industry and the organization they operate in.

Nonetheless, we will do our best to provide a comprehensive overview of all things you need to know if you want to become a maintenance technician – or look to hire one to expand your maintenance department.

What does a maintenance technician do?

A maintenance technician’s job is to repair and maintain the facility they work in, as well as most of the assets found there.

In theory, maintenance technicians are responsible for general maintenance tasks that do not require specialized training. Part of their job is to recognize when the task is above their skill level and should be handled by an electrician/plumber/refrigeration mechanic, etc.

In practice, many maintenance departments will look to hire people that have some background in those areas so they can handle most of the issues in-house (as outsourcing can be very expensive).

Here are some general tasks and responsibilities maintenance technicians have, no matter where they work:

handling assigned work orders and PMs (inspections, oil changes, meter readings…)

performing a variety of preventive maintenance tasks

dealing with incoming work requests

communicating existing and potential issues with their supervisors; most often maintenance manager or facilities manager

using CMMS or paper records to log performed maintenance work

cleaning and maintaining the tools they work with

abiding by different safety measures and policies

This is quite a general list so let’s try to be more specific by zeroing in on the three most common job types and specific tasks they have to perform.

1) Industrial maintenance technician

Industrial maintenance technicians are responsible for:

solving mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic issues on various production and facility equipment

troubleshooting mechanical breakdowns

reading, analyzing, and interpreting technical procedures, electrical schematics, service manuals and work orders to perform required maintenance work

(dis)assembling/installing new machines, condition monitoring sensors, equipment…

2) Building/property maintenance technician

Building maintenance and maintenance scheduling mean basically the same thing so it is only natural that technicians working in those environments have the same duties:

evaluating, repairing and maintaining plumbing, electrical and HVAC systems in the building

receiving and responding to tenant reports of mechanical or maintenance issues on their premises

maintaining the fire, carbon monoxide, smoke, and other safety systems within the structure

3) Fleet maintenance technician

Fleet maintenance technicians, as the name suggests, have a more specialized list of responsibilities:

servicing, diagnosing, and repairing all fleet vehicles

performing preventive maintenance on all fleet vehicles

general maintenance of their transit facility (repair shop and all stored equipment like pumps and vehicle lifts) and its surroundings

These are not exhaustive lists, but they do show the similarities and differences between different types of maintenance technicians.

If you’re looking for a job in the maintenance space, you will find that there are many similar positions advertised that have a lot of overlap in terms of required skills and responsibilities. Some of these positions are maintenance mechanics and industrial electricians. Depending on how much specialized work there is for them at any given day, mechanics and electricians can often be seen performing general maintenance work.