Mechanical fitter is a truly varied career
The range of Apprenticeships available in your area will depend on the local jobs market and the types of skills employers need from their workers.
As an engineering maintenance fitter, you would install, service and repair engineering machinery and equipment working on mechanical, electrical and hydraulic systems.
If you enjoy practical work, are good at solving problems and interested in engineering as a career, this could be an ideal job for you.
You’ll need to be good with your hands, able to follow technical plans and be as good at working in a team as on your own.
You can get into this career through an Apprenticeship scheme or by taking engineering qualifications at college.
As an engineering maintenance fitter, you would service and repair machinery and equipment in a range of industries: • Manufacturing equipment in
factories and on production lines • Transport equipment and
machinery
• Office and laboratory equipment • Aircraft maintenance equipment • Utilities and building services such as lifts and escalators. You could work on mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic and computerised systems to guard against production delays or shut-down of systems.
Your job would fall into one of two areas – preventative (planned) maintenance, and emergency maintenance.
In preventative maintenance, your duties would include: • Making scheduled checks on
machinery and parts • Finding and fixing faults, and
re-calibrating instruments • Oiling and cleaning machinery
and parts • Carrying out scheduled overhaul and replacing parts that have reached the end of their working life. You will need good practical skills strong problem solving skills an understanding of technical manual sand engineering diagrams good communication skills the ability to work quickly under pressure and to deadlines
the initiative to work on your own or as part of a team a knowledge of health and safety issues.
You would normally work 37 to 40 hours, five days a week. Shiftwork and overtime are common, and you may be on-call to deal with emergencies.
Depending on your job, you could be based in a factory or production plant, or outdoors in all weather conditions, for example repairing equipment on a building site. You would wear protective clothing, including overalls, a hard hat and safety boots.
Starting salaries are between £ 16,000 and £ 21,000 a year. Experienced fitters can earn between £22,000 and £30,000.
S enior fitters with e xtra responsibilities can earn up to £35,000 a year.
You may be able to start in this career through an engineering Apprenticeship. You are likely to need GCSEs ( grades A-C) in subjects such as English, maths, science and technology, or equivalent qualifications to get on to a scheme.