Planer Technician

Responsibilities

• Act as the primary operator of critical production equipment
• Operate and maintain planers, sizing equipment, material handling systems, and associated production equipment
• Monitor dimensional accuracy, surface finish quality, throughput, and equipment performance
• Perform planer knife changes, cutter head setup, and machine adjustments required to maintain product specifications
• Act as the primary operator of critical production equipment during startup, commissioning, ramp-up, and early production operations
• Inspect planer knives and tooling for wear, damage, and performance degradation
• Perform planer knife grinding, sharpening, balancing, and maintenance activities in accordance with manufacturer recommendations and Timberlab standards
• Manage knife inventory, replacement schedules, and tooling change records to ensure continuous production readiness
• Establish and maintain tooling standards to optimize surface quality, dimensional consistency, equipment uptime, and production efficiency
• Troubleshoot planer-related quality issues, including dimensional variation, surface finish defects, tear-out, adhesive bonding issues, and tooling performance concerns
• Lead machine setup, startups, shutdowns, changeovers, and production troubleshooting activities
• Develop and maintain standard operating procedures, startup procedures, work instructions, and best practices
• Train, coach, and mentor Machine Operators assigned to the work center
• Monitor production performance, downtime, quality, recovery, and throughput metrics and implement corrective actions
• Cross-train across Finger Jointing, Planing, RF Press Operations, and other production work centers to support operational coverage

Qualifications

• A High School Diploma or GED
• Minimum 2 years of manufacturing, lumber, wood products, engineered wood products, or industrial production experience
• Demonstrated experience operating, setting up, and troubleshooting industrial manufacturing equipment
• Experience operating planers, sizing equipment, including planer setup, knife changes, tooling maintenance, and production troubleshooting
• Experience performing planer knife grinding, sharpening, balancing, and cutter head maintenance
• Strong mechanical aptitude and advanced problem-solving skills
• Ability to lead, train, and support machine operators
• Ability to read and interpret technical documents, work instructions, and production specifications
• Strong commitment to safety, quality, and continuous improvement
• Ability to work flexible schedules, overtime, and shift work as required