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Maintenance and Repair Workers, General

  • Bright Outlook
  • Numerous Job Openings

Perform work involving the skills of two or more maintenance or craft occupations to keep machines, mechanical equipment, or the structure of a building in repair. Duties may involve pipe fitting; HVAC maintenance; insulating; welding; machining; carpentry; repairing electrical or mechanical equipment; installing, aligning, and balancing new equipment; and repairing buildings, floors, or stairs.

What you’d do

  • Perform routine maintenance, such as inspecting drives, motors, or belts, checking fluid levels, replacing filters, or doing other preventive maintenance actions.
  • Inspect, operate, or test machinery or equipment to diagnose machine malfunctions.
  • Adjust functional parts of devices or control instruments, using hand tools, levels, plumb bobs, or straightedges.
  • Repair machines, equipment, or structures, using tools such as hammers, hoists, saws, drills, wrenches, or equipment such as precision measuring instruments or electrical or electronic testing devices.
  • Order parts, supplies, or equipment from catalogs or suppliers.
  • Diagnose mechanical problems and determine how to correct them, checking blueprints, repair manuals, or parts catalogs, as necessary.
  • Design new equipment to aid in the repair or maintenance of machines, mechanical equipment, or building structures.
  • Assemble, install, or repair wiring, electrical or electronic components, pipe systems, plumbing, machinery, or equipment.

Skills that matter

  • Equipment Maintenance
  • Repairing
  • Troubleshooting
  • Critical Thinking
  • Active Learning
  • Complex Problem Solving

How to get there

Medium preparation: usually vocational school, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree

Also called

  • Facilities Technician
  • Maintenance Engineer
  • Maintenance Mechanic
  • Maintenance Technician
  • Building Mechanic
  • Equipment Engineering Technician

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