what does a maintenance technician do?
Like a doctor at a patient’s bedside, your role as a maintenance technician covers both prevention and repair. You ensure the good health of the machines used by your employer and repair them when necessary. When the work is done well, the production line can operate at full capacity. You are therefore responsible for maintaining production equipment and preventing malfunctions as far as possible, and only intervening for breakdowns as a last resort.
what is your mission as a maintenance technician?
Your primary mission as a maintenance technician is to anticipate, check, monitor and maintain equipment. When a problem occurs, you intervene without delay, establish a diagnosis and carry out the repair work. Finally, you work to improve production tools through technological optimisation and updates.
The maintenance technician role suits practical workers whose technical skill goes hand in hand with keen powers of observation and analysis. Method, anticipation and the ability to make decisions are also essential to ensure the smooth running of a park of advanced equipment. Discover which skills and qualifications you need to become a maintenance technician.
explore our vacanciesaverage salary for a maintenance technician.
As an entry level maintenance technician, earnings rarely exceed the minimum wage, that is around €2,700 gross per month. Your salary can rise quickly, potentially reaching about €3,000 or even €3,500 gross per month during your career. Depending on your employer’s policies, financial supplements and bonuses, profit sharing, incentive schemes, meal vouchers, may be added to this fixed base.
which factors determine salary in a maintenance technician role?
Seniority and experience are decisive factors in salary progression. A highly sought after specialisation can also allow you to negotiate above average pay. Likewise, your working conditions directly influence your earnings. Risk premiums and other financial compensation may apply in high risk environments, such as nuclear power plants, petrochemical sites or oil refineries.
types of maintenance technician roles.
There are different types of maintenance technician roles, such as:
- industrial maintenance operative, who takes on the role of service operative to supervise the installation and troubleshooting of industrial equipment and machinery
- specialist maintenance technician, for example in rolling stock, wind farms, amusement park operations or equipment
- field maintenance technician, who travels to a client’s site when called out to a breakdown and may carry out occasional advisory assignments
- industrial maintenance electromechanic, who keeps industrial equipment in working order or restores it to service
The types of maintenance technician roles mentioned here are examples, this list is not exhaustive.
working as a maintenance technician.
Your daily work as a maintenance technician takes place at an operating or production site, from a factory workshop to an agricultural operation. You carry out your tasks under the supervision of a maintenance workshop manager or an industrial maintenance foreman. Learn more about the day to day work of a maintenance technician, working time arrangements and career prospects.
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tasks and responsibilities
Your activities aim to ensure preventive, corrective and improvement maintenance. The role also has a service dimension, leading you to support clients and to provide technical assistance to various internal departments. Between inspection rounds and repairs, your tasks are varied, and you will:
- lead preventive actions to avoid failures, patrols, readings, cleaning, checks
- locate a fault and establish a diagnosis in order to define technical solutions to return out of service equipment to operation
- replace or repair a defective component
- carry out technical modifications and optimisations to improve equipment
- take part in the installation and assembly of new industrial or operational equipment, from commissioning to configuration
- complete follow up records in order to report your interventions to your line manager
- deliver occasional training or advice
- plan and then supervise maintenance operations
- monitor maintenance data in support of your analysis
- conduct technology watch activities so you can anticipate, or better adapt your knowledge to, developments in your field of expertise
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working environment
Most maintenance technician vacancies are in the private sector. Your working conditions vary significantly between industries. From a transit hub to a shipbuilding site and an industrial workshop, your assignments may take place indoors or outdoors. You will work at height and at ground level, and sometimes at sea.
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who are your colleagues?
Depending on your employer, your colleagues may include maintenance mechanics, maintenance technician dispatchers and maintenance supervisors. You may also work with operators, commissioning technicians for industrial equipment and other specialists, such as hydraulics technicians or automation technicians.
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work organisation
The maintenance technician profession requires a high degree of adaptability. You are often called upon at weekends and on public holidays, and sometimes in the evening or at night. On call duties are common, as are overtime hours, particularly when returning strategic equipment to production. Shift work in two eight or three eight rotations is standard in many industries. As a field technician, your days differ from those of office based peers and involve travelling to all the sites where you are called in as support.
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career prospects
Within a large company, you can move up to lead a small maintenance team. You can then progress to team leader or foreman, and then to maintenance manager, which can lead towards production control. Alternatively, your expertise may attract the interest of audit firms and engineering consultancies. Technical sales roles or quality control positions are also accessible.
getting an overhead crane operator role with randstad.
When you search for your maintenance technician role with Randstad, you benefit from attractive advantages, such as:
- a wide variety of companies to work in and development opportunities
- an experienced point of contact to support you when needed
- a broad range of opportunities in your sector
- weekly or monthly pay depending on the assignment
- permanent contracts, CDI, fixed term contracts, CDD, and temporary assignments
Would you like to be hired on a CDI, permanent contract? In many cases, working in a temporary assignment as a maintenance technician is a first step and acts as a springboard to obtaining a permanent contract. Many companies also recruit employees on a CDI via Randstad.
training and skills.
To become a maintenance technician in Luxembourg, it is essential to have broad technical skills to carry out maintenance and repair of equipment and installations across various industrial sectors. The role of a maintenance technician is to ensure that machines and equipment function correctly and to resolve issues in order to avoid production interruptions. The following are the types of training and skills required to become a maintenance technician in Luxembourg:
- Technical training in industrial maintenance, the first step is to complete technical training in industrial maintenance. This is usually offered by vocational schools or specialist training centres. It covers a range of topics, including industrial mechanics, electricity, electronics, automation, and control systems. This may include a DT or DAP via apprenticeship, a vocational baccalaureate, a BTS, a DUT or a specialised professional licence
- Industrial safety certificate, safety is an absolute priority for maintenance technicians working in industrial environments. An industrial safety certificate, issued by approved training bodies, is often required. This certification covers safety standards, emergency response protocols and personal protective equipment
- Diagnostic and problem solving skills, a maintenance technician must be able to diagnose technical problems quickly and find effective solutions. Diagnostic and problem solving skills are therefore essential to carry out rapid repairs and minimise equipment downtime
- Knowledge of industrial equipment, a maintenance technician must be familiar with a variety of industrial equipment, such as machine tools, automated production systems, pumps, motors and heating and air conditioning systems. In depth knowledge of this equipment is crucial to perform effective maintenance operations
- Maintenance planning and management skills, preventive maintenance plays an essential role in reducing failures and maintenance costs. A maintenance technician should have planning and maintenance management skills, preparing preventive maintenance schedules, carrying out regular inspections and keeping maintenance records
know how and competencies.
On a daily basis, you are first and foremost an industrial technician, with all the specialist expertise and know how that implies. You are also observant, methodical and resourceful, able to adapt to all situations, including urgency and the unexpected.
Your competencies therefore include:
- strong cross functional knowledge in mechanics, pneumatics, hydraulics, metrology and industrial electricity
- mastery of industrial IT, including computer aided maintenance management systems
- robust technical base, reading diagrams, plans and Grafcet, welding techniques, joining processes, technical drawings
- understanding of safety rules and hygiene standards governing the production line
- possible authorisation to operate industrial equipment, reach trucks, forklifts, rider operated stackers, requiring a safety driving certificate
- use of technical tools, test devices, electrical measuring instruments
- essential knowledge of English to decipher technical documents
- analytical and synthesis skills
- clear communication and a pedagogical approach to explain your recommendations
- strong service orientation and consistent drive
- ability to work effectively as part of a team and entirely autonomously
FAQs.
FAQ about the maintenance technician profession
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in which sectors do maintenance technicians work?
Maintenance technicians work across industry in the broad sense, automotive, aeronautics, naval, rail, and more. From the manufacture of mechanical equipment or electrical supplies, to metallurgy, plastics, agri food, cosmetics, and transport equipment, the sectors are particularly varied.
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what are the advantages of a maintenance technician role?
Industry is recruiting in Luxembourg and there are many opportunities for maintenance technicians. Even with a vocational baccalaureate, rapid progression is possible towards managerial roles. In addition, the variety of tasks and responsibilities leaves no room for routine.
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what are the drawbacks of the profession?
Technological advances have a direct impact on the role. As a result, it is up to you to update your skills continuously or risk losing technical proficiency. In addition, overtime and regular on call duties can affect personal life. Working conditions can also be physically demanding, handling heavy loads, exposure to risky equipment or components, continuous noise.
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is the maintenance technician role risky?
Handling dangerous equipment makes the use of personal protective equipment, PPE, mandatory. Depending on the machinery you supervise, you may work at height or in harsh climatic conditions. Some industries also involve working in high risk zones, explosiveness, corrosiveness, toxicity.
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what developments are affecting the profession?
The rapid development of telecommunications is changing the role in depth. Remote maintenance allows technicians to carry out repairs without travelling, through remote control systems. As a corollary of this digital transformation, mastering increasingly sophisticated digital interfaces and tools has become essential.
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how do you apply for a maintenance technician role?
Applying is straightforward, create a Randstad account and browse the vacancies in your sector, then send us your CV and cover letter.
