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Industrial Electrical Construction to Electrical Maintenance

3K views 23 replies 13 participants last post by  Easy 
#1 ·
I need some advice. I've worked in the construction side of the trade for about 6 years. Now as I getting into my 40's I'm trying to go into the maintenance side. The reason is I'm tired of traveling and want to work local. There is a huge demand and I've been offered jobs starting at 40.00 hr for electrical maintenance, even though my resume doesn't specify I'm a proficient troubleshooter. The Philly area (as a lot of other places) has a huge shortage of Industrial Maintenance Electricians. This summer my local community college offers an Industrial Electrical Certificate program at Delaware Technical Community College and a PLC course (six months to complete both). I know this will be a good start;however, does everyone think I will be able to perform well enough to hold my own in the maintenance arena? I know I need to learn reading schematics and is there any beginner online course anyone can recommend that focuses on industrial electrical. Any help would be appreciated. I think I'm on the right track, just want to hear from people who made this switch and how they made out. Thanks for reading.
 
#3 ·
I don’t have a lot of advice but you probably know more than you think you do. If you took the course, you would probably become a valuable employee.

None of us know everything but, after six years in the trade, you have a pretty good ability to figure things out. Figuring things out can mean posting questions on ET. Amongst all the babble here, there’s a lot of wisdom.

Sounds like you have opportunity so why not grab it by the ballz? :)
 
#4 ·
Of the two courses I personally would value the industrial electrical certificate over the PLC certificate but it certainly couldn't hurt.

If you have been doing industrial construction you're at a huge advantage, most residential and many commercial electricians just are not familiar with the systems. Especially if you are used to working in live in-production plants.

You might or might not turn out to be a good troubleshooter. You don't know, and prospective employers don't know. There's really one way to find out. And lucky for you, that way pays $40 / hour.
 
#5 ·
You already know enough to get around so you should do well and the courses would be a benefit.
I’m sure that any plant that hires you understands your still green and they will pair you up with an old timer. That’s when the learning really begins.
Eventually you’ll be the old guy who walks in the door and just “Knows” something is about to break. That smell in the air, that odd sound, that feeling you’ll have, all adds up to experience.
 
#6 ·
It takes time so don't sell yourself short. Hands on experiences with some guidance and you will just get quicker and better. We don't mind answering questions around here, they just seem to jump off the rails every once and awhile. Good luck how ever you get there.


Tim
 
#10 ·
Depending on the situation the majority of industrial maintenance can't be taught through a "course". Every situation is different, but site specific. I used to do refinery maintenance, and when production is down, and you're the guy on call, everybody knows who you are, the pressure can be daunting. If you can function under extreme pressure, at 3am, on your own, find the correct print, the most recent revision, out of hundreds of thousand's of prints, form a game plan, grab all the right test gear, know where to start, reassure the suits that you have it under control, find the right parts, and then pull it off, you'll love maintenance. Otherwise stick to new construction.
 
#16 ·
Thanks for all who responded. I'll sign for the industrial electrical class during the summer and look at making the change. I guess there is two types in the world, one who talks, and one who does. I'd align myself with the doer. I'm glad I signed up for ET, you folks are helpful and it's comforting to know your just a couple of keystrokes away. Thanks again!
 
#21 ·
It's really not that big of a leap to go from construction to maintenance. Your still young and have a long road ahead. Maintenance work is usually at a much slower pace and who knows what they will have you working on. Hopefully you can land a job in a company that has more than just one maintenance electrician. Your boss will probably give you work you can easily handle and tell you what systems you need to learn about. Most of the maintenance electricians I have worked with don't have much construction skills. The remaining group of so called Industrial Maintenance Electricians were actually electronics technicians. In a large company you will be involved in everything from small construction projects, instrumentation and so on. Even if you are not skilled in such things as controls, PLC's, heat treat, thermography, energy management and other specialties you will shine if you are willing to work. When you help and train the other maintenance electricians to do simple construction tasks they will help you learn the systems in the plant you work in. Within a year or so you will probably be able to repair anything in the plant. A good maintenance program will usually have written procedures for any complex systems.
 
#24 ·
Union and non-union Industrial Maintenance Electrician jobs seem to differ in this respect. I have worked in both arenas and found that non union electrical maintenance jobs tend to have their guys work outside their trade. Especially in plants that have production machinery. If your non union who knows what they might have you doing. If you possess mechanical and hydraulic skills you be very valuable and probably be working mostly on machinery rather than cleaning, painting or unstopping toilets.
I am in no way pushing union work and I am sure that all companies differ in how they distribute the work but it's just something to consider. Also try to get into a large company as you will probably get much better working conditions and training.
 
#23 ·
I agree -- don't sell yourself short.

Attach yourself to the hip of some of the more experienced electrical folks. Learn all you can from them. Most will appreciate showing you the ropes if you're ready to learn.

Get to know the operations folks too. They may not be able to get down to the nitty gritty electrical details, but they understand the processes and what they say may help you troubleshoot problems and make improvements quicker and better.

The industrial electrical certificate would be a great way to kick start things. It'll help you with the "why" things are like they are.

Taking advantage of learning PLC logic can help. Whether you work daily with them or not, the logic process can help you understand hard wire controls and they why they are like they are.

All the best and good luck!
 
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