Lead Maintenance Technician

HALF ACRE BEER COMPANY•Chicago, IL

2d•$28 - $32•Onsite

About The Position

The Lead Maintenance Technician at Half Acre Beer Co. is a hands-on technical role responsible for maintaining, troubleshooting, repairing, and improving brewery production and facility equipment, with a strong emphasis on maintenance system continuity, responsive service to internal customers, and accurate CMMS data.

Requirements

Must be 21+ years old.
Strong mechanical and electrical troubleshooting skills.
Ability to read and interpret blueprints, schematics, and equipment manuals.
Experience working within a CMMS and contributing to accurate documentation and PM development.
Ability to balance hands-on maintenance work with documentation and system improvement.
Strong communication skills and ability to train and guide other technicians.

Nice To Haves

PLC familiarity (Siemens or Allen-Bradley) preferred.
High school diploma or equivalent.
3+ years of maintenance experience in a beverage production or manufacturing environment.
Prior experience maintaining high-speed beverage packaging equipment or similar food/manufacturing systems.
Experience with automated fillers, seamers, keg lines, and brewhouse systems (or equivalent equipment).
Technical certifications.
Ability to weld.
PLC Troubleshooting.

Responsibilities

Lead by example in adherence to Half Acre safety policies, OSHA requirements, and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).
Actively participate in continuous improvement initiatives.
Maintain, troubleshoot, and repair brewery production equipment, including high-speed beverage packaging systems such as can fillers, double seamer, keg-wash/fill line, and brewhouse systems.
Support utilities and facilities systems including glycol chillers, boilers, HVAC equipment, compressors, pumps, gearboxes, and kitchen equipment.
Perform mechanical work including alignment, lubrication, disassembly/reassembly, pump rebuilding, and seal replacement.
Troubleshoot and maintain mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, and hydraulic systems.
Serve as an on-floor subject matter expert for production equipment and complex repairs.
Act as the primary day-to-day steward of CMMS data quality and usability, in coordination with the Facilities Manager.
Develop, maintain, and continuously improve preventive maintenance tasks and schedules.
Create clear, step-by-step PM and job plans for routine, complex, and infrequent repairs.
Maintain accurate asset records, equipment histories, and asset relationships.
Maintain parts lists and spare components associated with specific assets.
Ensure maintenance documentation reflects actual work practices and supports repeatability.
Identify gaps, redundancies, or unclear procedures and collaborate with management to address them.
Support broader documentation efforts using CMMS, SharePoint, and Microsoft Teams.
Assist in training and onboarding maintenance technicians on equipment, procedures, and CMMS standards.
Review PM execution quality and provide coaching on troubleshooting approaches and repair best practices.
Act as the technical decision-maker during maintenance activities when the Facilities Manager is not present.
Support autonomous maintenance initiatives and collaboration with production teams.
Serve as the primary technical point of contact for external vendors, contractors, and equipment manufacturers.
Coordinate service visits, troubleshooting calls, and equipment repairs.
Maintain service documentation, OEM manuals, and repair history.
Assist with parts sourcing and recommendations for critical spares.
Identify root causes of equipment failures and support implementation of long-term corrective actions.
Contribute to maintenance KPIs, reliability goals, and production uptime.
Maintain a clean, organized, and professional work environment.
Document work clearly and communicate effectively with production and leadership teams.
Other Duties as assigned.