Maintenance Technician (Instrumentation and Electrical) Pharma manufacturing and lab. Pinetown/Durban. R45k-55k ctc p/m.

Introduction

Our client, a leading pharmaceutical manufacturing organisation, is seeking an experienced  Maintenance Technician  (Instrumentation and Electrical) to join their technical team.

This is an exciting opportunity for a technically skilled professional with experience in  pharmaceutical, laboratory, manufacturing or another GMP-regulated environment . The successful candidate will play a key role in ensuring that laboratory, manufacturing-support and facility equipment operates safely, and reliably within the Engineering team including efficiently  planned and breakdown maintenance, calibration of critical measuring and control instruments, standby cover, and support to engineering projects through installation, commissioning and qualification. When needed the successful candidate will also assist other engineering disciplines, including mechanical, HVAC and utilities, in a supporting capacity only, under the direction of the responsible artisan or technician.

Duties & Responsibilities

Equipment availability and routine maintenance

• Perform routine checks on plant, utilities and process equipment to confirm correct operation.

• Execute maintenance activities in accordance with the approved preventive maintenance plan and schedule.

• Calibrate, or facilitate the calibration of, critical measuring and control instruments against traceable standards, to defined schedules and production requirements.

• Investigate and report out-of-tolerance calibration results, and assess the impact on product and process.

Fault finding, repair and prevention of recurrence

• Diagnose faults and determine the maintenance or repair work required to restore production.

• Fault find on PLC and SCADA systems, including Allen-Bradley CompactLogix (Studio 5000) and FactoryTalk View SE and ME; any change to programme logic, parameters or configuration is made only under approved change control.

• Support deviation and incident investigations to root cause.

• Implement or recommend corrective and preventive actions arising from investigations.

• Provide technical liaison to third-party service providers where repairs cannot be completed on site, and verify that the work performed meets the technical requirement.

Standby and after-hours response

• Participate in the standby roster and respond to call-outs in accordance with the standby policy.

• Maintain the ability to reach site within the response time defined in the standby policy.

• Diagnose and repair breakdowns to restore production; where the fault cannot be resolved, escalate to the Engineering Supervisor or Engineering Manager, who will agree next steps with respect to product integrity.

• Support Operations with equipment start-ups and pre-production checks.

• Hand over unresolved work and interim measures to the incoming shift or dayshift team.

Planned maintenance execution and GMP documentation

• Co-ordinate and execute planned maintenance activities.

• Perform isolations and lock-out/tag-out in accordance with approved procedures before work commences.

• Work under the applicable permit-to-work system, including hot work and confined space, where required.

• Complete maintenance, calibration and work-order documentation contemporaneously, legibly and in accordance with GMP data integrity requirements.

• Close out work orders in SAP PM and maintain accurate equipment records.

Spares usage and availability

• Record all spares used against the relevant work order and equipment.

• Identify and recommend critical spares for stocking, based on equipment criticality and failure history.

• Notify the Engineering Supervisor of job-specific spares required, in time to avoid extended downtime.

• Report shortages, incorrect items or unsuitable spares identified during a job.

First-line technical support to Operations

• Provide practical demonstrations of equipment set-up, operation and shut-down.

• Coach operators in first-line maintenance and basic troubleshooting.

• Provide technical input to maintenance and operating instructions for specified plant and equipment, and initiate updates through change control when equipment or procedures change.

Commissioning and technical support to qualification

• Co-ordinate and execute commissioning of new and modified unit operations, including installation checks, functional testing and setting to work.

• Prepare and present equipment for qualification, confirming installation, calibration and functional readiness before protocol execution.

• Provide technical support to Validation during IQ, OQ and PQ execution, including operating equipment and demonstrating functions as required.

• Resolve engineering faults identified during qualification and report the outcome to Validation and the Engineering Supervisor.

Engineering projects and continuous improvement

• Support capacity expansion and capital (CAPEX) projects within the electrical and instrumentation scope.

• Provide technical input to project scope, installation requirements and equipment specifications.

• Identify and recommend process and equipment improvements that increase reliability or efficiency.

• Support change control for modifications to GMP equipment and systems.

Desired Experience & Qualification

• N6 in electrical or instrumentation engineering, with two relevant trade tests — instrumentation and electrical, or millwright together with an instrumentation trade test — and more than three years’ relevant experience  OR

• National Diploma (or Diploma in Engineering Technology) in Electronic or Electrical Engineering, or an equivalent NQF-registered qualification , with three years’ relevant experience; OR

• BEngTech (or the former B-Tech) in Electronic or Electrical Engineering, or an equivalent NQF-registered qualification , with two years’ relevant experience.

• Training or demonstrated competence in Allen-Bradley CompactLogix programming using Studio 5000 Logix Designer, and in Rockwell FactoryTalk View SE and View ME.

• Working knowledge of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 and the regulations applicable to this role, in particular the Electrical Installation Regulations, Electrical Machinery Regulations and General Machinery Regulations, including isolation, lock-out/tag-out and permit-to-work requirements.

• A valid wireman’s licence (registered person under the Electrical Installation Regulations) is an added advantage.

• Relevant experience gained in a process or manufacturing environment; pharmaceutical or other regulated manufacture preferred.

• Maintenance and fault finding on electrical installations and process instrumentation.

• PLC programming and fault finding on Allen-Bradley CompactLogix using Studio 5000 Logix Designer.

• SCADA and HMI experience on Rockwell FactoryTalk View SE and View ME, including screen navigation, alarm handling and tag configuration.

• Maintenance of refrigeration and HVAC systems.

• GMP exposure preferred.

• Able to read and interpret piping and instrumentation diagrams and electrical schematics.

• Report writing and participation in project and investigation work.

Package & Remuneration

Salary is negotiable and will be influenced by specific industry experience and specific qualifications.

A salary of around R45k to R55k CTC p/m is envisaged for this role, plus an annual bonus.

Interested?

Please apply on this Pnet portal.

Please use reference 'P80 MT'