Facilities Equipment Technician
Department: Facilities
Reports To: Facilities Manager
FLSA Status: Non-Exempt (Hourly)
Location: Kansas City, MO
SUMMARY:
• Primary responsibility is to provide efficient and timely preventive maintenance, troubleshooting, and repair of forklifts and material handling equipment across a multi-building industrial campus. This role supports daily operations by maintaining fleet uptime for electric, LP, and diesel-powered forklifts, reach trucks, pallet jacks, order pickers, and related equipment.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other duties may be assigned.
• Performs scheduled preventive maintenance on all material handling equipment per manufacturer specifications and OSHA requirements, following established PM cycles.
• Diagnoses and repairs electrical (12V through 48V systems), hydraulic, pneumatic, and mechanical systems on forklifts and material handling equipment.
• Conducts daily, monthly, and annual OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 required inspections on powered industrial trucks and maintains compliant inspection records.
• Provides emergency and unscheduled repairs of material handling equipment during production, minimizing operational downtime.
• Reads and interprets equipment manuals, wiring diagrams, hydraulic schematics, and parts catalogs to perform required maintenance and service.
• Sources and procures replacement parts, maintaining a critical-spares inventory to ensure parts availability and reduce equipment downtime.
• Performs battery maintenance including watering, equalization charges, and charger diagnostics for electric-powered equipment.
• Maintains detailed service records for each asset including work orders, parts usage, PM completion dates, and cost tracking.
• Coordinates with third-party specialists for major repairs beyond in-house capability, such as battery reconditioning, major hydraulic rebuilds, and structural welding.
• Responds quickly to emergency situations across multiple campus buildings, summoning additional assistance as needed.
• Supports equipment lifecycle planning by recommending repair-versus-replace decisions and providing cost data to leadership.
• Keeps abreast of new equipment, tools, and diagnostic technology available and recommends purchases.
• Monitors the location and care of shop tools and diagnostic equipment.
• Strives to work and maintain a safe work environment with knowledge of PPE and safety devices.
• Must refer to SDS when using any chemicals, substances, and materials, understanding the SDS information and abiding by required personal protective equipment.
• Understands and follows federal, state, and local regulations such as those governing the disposal of hazardous waste.
• Ensures the disposal of used oil, grease, and fluids in the assigned location to ensure EPA compliance.
• Attends factory-sponsored and manufacturer training classes as needed.
• Quality-checks completed jobs.
• Must work with and for all departments in harmony.
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:
This position has no supervisory responsibilities.
QUALIFICATIONS: To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
EXPERIENCE:
Minimum 3 years of hands-on experience maintaining and repairing forklifts and material handling equipment. Multi-brand experience strongly preferred. Demonstrated ability to work under limited supervision, performing complex preventive maintenance and corrective repair of industrial material handling systems and equipment. Experience managing parts inventory and vendor relationships for direct procurement is a plus.
CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS:
Valid driver’s license required; ability to travel between campus facilities daily. OSHA 10 or 30 certification preferred; must be willing to obtain within first 90 days. Factory training or certification from major MHE manufacturers (Toyota, Crown, Hyster-Yale, Komatsu, Raymond, or similar) is a plus. Employee must obtain an appropriate Custom Truck fork truck license before operating a fork truck. Must have a standard set of tools to perform the duties described above.
COMPETENCIES:
• Electrical diagnostics (12V through 48V systems)
• Hydraulic and pneumatic systems
• Mechanical drive components
• LP fuel systems
• Battery and charger maintenance
• Problem solving/analysis
• Ethical conduct
• Welding (MIG, stick) – preferred
LANGUAGE SKILLS:
Ability to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, technical manuals, wiring diagrams, hydraulic schematics, operating instructions, and procedure manuals. Ability to communicate effectively with employees at all levels of the organization.
OTHER SKILLS AND ABILITIES:
Highly detail oriented and organized in work. Acceptable written and oral communication skills. Ability to work cooperatively and collaboratively with a customer service focus with all levels of employees, management, and external agencies to maximize performance, creativity, problem solving, and results. Must have initiative and the ability to act and operate independently with minimal daily direction from manager to accomplish objectives. Must possess a strong desire to learn. Experience with CMMS or computerized work order systems is a plus.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
While performing the duties of this job the employee is regularly required to stand, walk, bend, kneel, and work in confined spaces. The employee frequently uses hands to finger, handle, or feel; reaches with hands and arms; and talks or hears. The employee must regularly lift and/or move up to 50 pounds and occasionally lift and/or move up to 75 pounds. The employee is required to seek assistance in the lifting of more than 100 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, and ability to adjust focus.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly exposed to fumes or airborne particles, moving mechanical parts, and vibration. The employee works in both shop and outdoor environments with occasional exposure to extreme cold, extreme heat, toxic or caustic chemicals, and outdoor weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate to loud.
I have read and understand all the requirements of this position. I can perform the essential functions of this job, with or without a reasonable accommodation.