Technician

Technicians are professionals who focus on the practical elements of a job. They provide technical assistance in specialised area, and perform the day-to-day tasks required in carry in out a project. Usually technicians work as part of a team that is engaged in a particular project or operation.

Maintenance technician jobs

A general maintenance technician is a trained expert who specialises in fixing and maintaining machines, equipment and general home appliances. They are versatile in several areas and execute many tasks in any working day. The job of a general technician requires both indoor and outdoor activities, including places such as schools, hospitals, hotels and offices, and they often take responsibility of all repairs and maintenance of the various manufacturing machinery used in the organisation. This could include maintenance on buildings, carpentry, painting, general repair, pest control and landscaping.

Gas technicians install, service and repair gas appliances and heating systems. These include gas fires, boilers and cookers. They also include central heating and shower units.  A gas service technician usually works mainly work at customers' homes, or at businesses like cafes and hotel kitchens. Their day-to-day responsibilities could include installing appliances and systems, carrying out planned maintenance checks on systems and equipment, and testing controls/safety devices to make sure that they are working properly.

Gas technicians are also responsible for finding and repairing gas leaks using computerised fault-finding equipment, replacing or repairing faulty or old partsordering new parts when necessary. They must keep records of work they have carried out and give customers advice about gas safety and energy efficiency.

IT technician jobs

An IT support technician can work on site or remotely by phone, email or using web-based applications. Their job normally includes taking reports of faults from clients, working out solutions, fixing equipment, including printers and scanners (known as peripherals). An IT technician might also be setting up new equipment and upgrading existing systems, testing and servicing equipment, recording problems and their solutions for future reference and training clients on new systems or software applications.

Materials technician jobs

Materials technicians test the behaviour of materials under different conditions, in a range of industries. The results of these tests are used by companies to improve the performance of existing products, to eliminate faults with materials already in use, and to help with the development of new technologies.

Materials technicians use various methods to examine materials, including non-destructive testing (NDT). Their duties include: testing a material's strength and flexibility under stress; testing materials' characteristics such as chemical composition or electromagnetic properties; assessing the cost, reliability, safety and environmental impact of materials; and researching new ways to use materials for the development of products.

They analyse test results and write reports for project engineers and managers, and in fact work very closely with engineers and scientists from other fields, such as mechanical, electronic or aeronautical engineering.

Accessing technician apprenticeships 

School leavers can access this industry via apprenticeships. There are programmes on offer in roles like construction technician, metrology technician, probate technician and composites technician, in Advanced and Higher Apprenticeship levels.