7312- Heavy-duty equipment mechanics

Canada NOC: 
7312
Job Title: 

Heavy-duty equipment mechanics

Job Description: 

Heavy-duty equipment mechanics repair, troubleshoot, adjust, overhaul and maintain mobile heavy-duty equipment used in construction, transportation, forestry, mining, oil and gas, material handling, landscaping, land clearing, farming and similar activities. They are employed by companies which own and operate heavy equipment, and by heavy equipment dealers, rental and service establishments, and railway transport companies and urban transit systems.

Main Duties: 

Heavy-duty equipment mechanics perform some or all of the following duties:


Check bulldozers, cranes, graders and other heavy construction, agricultural, logging and mining equipment for proper performance and inspect equipment to detect faults and malfunctions
Diagnose faults or malfunctions using computerized and other testing equipment to determine extent of repair required
Adjust equipment and repair or replace defective parts, components or systems, using hand and power tools
Test repaired equipment for proper performance and to ensure that work meets manufacturers' specifications
Clean, lubricate and perform other routine maintenance work on equipment
Service attachments and working tools such as harvesting and tillage equipment, blades, ploughs, winches and side booms
May perform repair work on heavy trucks
May attach components and adjust new farm equipment.

Heavy-duty mechanics may specialize in specific types of machinery such as combines or tracked vehicles, or in engine overhaul, power shift transmissions, fuel injection, hydraulics or electronics.

Employment Requirements: 

Completion of secondary school is usually required.
Completion of a three- to five-year apprenticeship program
or
A combination of over four years of work experience in the trade and some high school, college or industry courses in heavy equipment repair is usually required to be eligible for trade certification.
Heavy-duty equipment technician trade certification is compulsory in Quebec and Alberta and available, but voluntary, in all other provinces and the territories.
Agricultural equipment technician trade certification is available, but voluntary, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.
Red Seal endorsement is also available to qualified heavy duty equipment technicians and agricultural equipment technicians upon successful completion of the interprovincial Red Seal examination.

Additional Inormation: 

The Red Seal endorsement allows for interprovincial mobility.
Progression to supervisory positions is possible with experience.

Classified Elsewhere: 

Construction millwrights and industrial mechanics (7311)
Motor vehicle diesel engine mechanics (in 7321 Automotive service technicians, truck and bus mechanics and mechanical repairers)
Supervisors of heavy equipment mechanics (in 7301 Contractors and supervisors, mechanic trades)

Similar O*NET Careers (USA) : 
International Careers(ISCO): 
Source Of Info: 

National Occupation Classification, (2011)

Statistics Canada and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada,

February 2012,

Catalogue no. 12-583-X