Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Lead Industrial Maintenance Technician

🎯 Role Definition

The Lead Industrial Maintenance Technician is the frontline technical leader responsible for ensuring plant equipment reliability, coordinating maintenance activities, mentoring technicians, driving preventive and predictive maintenance programs, and executing improvement projects that increase throughput, reduce downtime, and ensure a safe working environment. This role requires hands-on troubleshooting capabilities across electrical, mechanical, pneumatic, hydraulic and control systems, strong experience with PLCs and VFDs, and proven leadership of small to mid-sized maintenance teams in a production environment.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Senior Maintenance Technician
Electrical Technician
Mechanical Technician
Automation/Controls Technician

Advancement To:

Maintenance Supervisor / Maintenance Manager
Reliability Manager / Continuous Improvement Manager
Plant Engineer / Operations Manager

Lateral Moves:

Reliability Engineer
Facilities Manager
Automation Controls Specialist

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead, schedule and coordinate daily maintenance activities for a multi-shift, multi-craft maintenance team (electricians, millwrights, mechanics, instrumentation technicians), ensuring prioritized and scheduled work aligns with production goals and safety standards.
Perform advanced electrical troubleshooting and repair on medium-voltage and low-voltage distribution systems, motor control centers (MCCs), starters, contactors, relays and circuit protection devices to restore equipment quickly and safely.
Diagnose, troubleshoot and repair PLC-based control systems (Allen‑Bradley, Siemens or Rockwell) and associated HMI/SCADA components, including ladder logic debugging, I/O verification and firmware updates during production-critical outages.
Lead root cause analysis (RCA) activities following unplanned equipment failures, develop corrective action plans, implement preventive solutions and track effectiveness using KPIs to reduce recurrence and improve mean time between failures (MTBF).
Develop, implement and continuously optimize preventive maintenance (PM) and predictive maintenance (PdM) programs using CMMS tools (e.g., SAP, IBM Maximo, Maintenance Connection) to ensure PM compliance, spare parts readiness and data-driven decision making.
Perform mechanical troubleshooting and repairs including bearing replacements, shaft alignment, gearbox servicing, belt/chain replacement, coupling installs and precision laser alignment to restore rotating equipment reliability.
Oversee the commissioning, installation and start-up of new equipment and capital projects, working with vendors, contractors and engineering to validate mechanical, electrical and control system integration and to produce accurate as-built documentation.
Manage predictive maintenance technologies and analyses, including vibration analysis, infrared thermography, oil analysis and motor current signature analysis, interpret results, and convert findings into prioritized corrective work.
Maintain and own spare parts inventory strategy, bin stocking levels and critical spares list; coordinate procurement for long-lead items to minimize production risk while controlling inventory costs.
Implement, coach and sustain reliability-centered maintenance practices such as TPM, 5S, root cause problem solving, and Kaizen events that reduce waste, improve safety, and increase asset performance.
Supervise planned shutdowns, turnarounds and major maintenance outages including work scope development, permit coordination, contractor management, schedule adherence and post-shutdown performance verification.
Ensure compliance with safety programs and regulatory standards including OSHA, NFPA 70E electrical safety, confined space, LOTO (lockout/tagout), and other site-specific safety procedures; conduct toolbox talks and lead safety investigations when needed.
Train, mentor and develop maintenance technicians through structured on-the-job training, skills matrices, certifications, and performance coaching to build a highly capable and cross-functional maintenance team.
Review and update electrical and mechanical schematics, P&IDs, BOMs and maintenance documentation; create and maintain accurate maintenance logs, job plans and work instructions to support repeatable troubleshooting and repairs.
Resolve complex control system and motion control issues, including servo drives, programmable drives, soft starters and VFD tuning, to optimize machine performance and reduce setup time.
Coordinate with production, quality and engineering teams to diagnose intermittent process issues, support root cause studies, and implement process improvements that improve yield and reduce rework.
Lead continuous improvement projects that reduce maintenance costs and downtime, present business cases for CAPEX improvement projects, and measure ROI and performance improvement post-implementation.
Perform routine calibration, testing and inspection of critical instrumentation and sensors (temperature, pressure, flow, level) to ensure measurement accuracy and process control integrity.
Ensure contractor and vendor compliance during outsourced maintenance and installation work, verify qualifications, manage permits, and perform quality acceptance testing before returning equipment to service.
Maintain accurate CMMS records for completed work, downtime causes, parts usage, and labor hours; analyze maintenance data to build trending reports and recommend reliability improvements.
Troubleshoot and repair ancillary plant systems such as compressed air, vacuum, HVAC, boilers, chillers and water treatment systems to support continuous operation of production equipment.
Provide technical support during design reviews and project planning phases, offering practical maintenance input to improve maintainability, access, and life-cycle costs of new equipment.
Drive energy efficiency and sustainability initiatives related to equipment operation (e.g., VFD optimization, pump and fan system efficiency) and track savings as part of the plant’s continuous improvement goals.
Serve as the technical escalation point for complex equipment failures and act as liaison between maintenance, engineering, operations and corporate reliability teams to expedite resolution and minimize production impact.

Secondary Functions

Support continuous improvement initiatives by documenting current-state maintenance processes and proposing standardized work to reduce variability and error.
Participate in cross-functional planning sessions for production scheduling to align major maintenance activities with minimal impact on customer deliveries.
Assist in the development and tracking of departmental KPIs (MTTR, MTBF, PM completion rate, backlog hours) and provide weekly reports to site leadership to inform strategic decisions.
Contribute to budget planning and cost control by estimating labor and materials for maintenance projects, monitoring expenditures and recommending cost-saving measures.
Facilitate apprentice and trainee programs by providing structured learning opportunities, evaluating progress, and reporting development milestones to HR and leadership.
Support asset integrity and lifecycle management activities including documentation of remaining useful life (RUL), and participate in asset health reviews with reliability teams.
Maintain vendor relationships and manage warranty claims with OEMs for defective parts and equipment, including coordinating returns and performing warranty-covered repairs.
Take on special technical projects such as implementing new CMMS modules, integrating condition monitoring technologies, or piloting Industry 4.0 maintenance tools.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Advanced electrical troubleshooting and repair (low/medium voltage distribution, MCCs, motor control)
PLC programming and troubleshooting (Allen‑Bradley/Rockwell, Siemens) and ladder logic debugging
VFD, servo drive and motor control tuning and diagnostics
Mechanical systems repair (gearboxes, bearings, couplings, shafts) and precision alignment (laser/shaft alignment)
Pneumatics and hydraulics maintenance and component troubleshooting
Predictive maintenance techniques: vibration analysis, infrared thermography, oil analysis, motor current signature analysis
CMMS administration and work order management (SAP, IBM Maximo, Fiix, Maintenance Connection)
Reading and interpreting electrical schematics, P&IDs, mechanical drawings and BOMs
Welding and basic fabrication skills (MIG/TIG/Stick) for in‑house repairs and modifications
Instrumentation and control calibration (pressure, temperature, flow, level sensors)
Root cause analysis methods (5 Whys, Fishbone/Ishikawa, RCA documentation)
Knowledge of lockout/tagout (LOTO), NFPA 70E, OSHA regulations, and confined space procedures
Project management for small-to-medium capital projects, including scope definition and vendor coordination
Spare parts inventory optimization and procurement planning

Soft Skills

Strong leadership and team development skills with experience coaching and mentoring technicians
Excellent written and verbal communication for clear work instructions, reporting and cross-functional collaboration
Analytical mindset with data-driven decision-making and KPI-focused problem solving
Prioritization and time-management skills to balance emergency repairs and preventative tasks in a production environment
Conflict resolution and vendor management skills to negotiate schedules and scope with contractors
Attention to detail for safety compliance, documentation accuracy and precise troubleshooting
Adaptability and calm under pressure during production emergencies and shutdowns
Continuous improvement mindset and ability to lead kaizen events and reliability projects

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

High School Diploma or GED plus technical trade certification (electrical, industrial maintenance, mechatronics) or equivalent military technical training.

Preferred Education:

Associate degree or technical diploma in Industrial Maintenance, Electrical Technology, Mechanical Technology, Mechatronics, or related field.
Bachelor’s degree in Engineering Technology, Mechanical or Electrical Engineering is a plus for advancement to supervisory roles.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Industrial Maintenance / Maintenance Technology
Electrical Technology / Electrical Engineering Technology
Mechanical Technology / Mechanical Engineering Technology
Mechatronics / Automation & Controls
Instrumentation and Process Control

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 5–12 years of hands-on industrial maintenance experience, including both electrical and mechanical responsibilities.

Preferred:

7+ years of broad maintenance experience with at least 2–4 years in a lead or supervisory role.
Demonstrated experience with PLCs, VFDs, CMMS systems, predictive maintenance tools, and leading planned shutdowns.
Proven track record of implementing reliability improvements, reducing downtime, and mentoring technician staff.