Senior Maintenance Mechanic / PLC Technician

Location: Rockaway Beach, NY | Industry: Food Manufacturing - Chocolate Production | Shift: Day Shift 2pm‑10pm

About the role

Our client, The Madelaine Chocolate Company, is seeking a hands‑on Senior Maintenance Mechanic to maintain, troubleshoot, repair, and improve production equipment in a high‑volume chocolate manufacturing facility. The ideal candidate will have strong mechanical and electrical troubleshooting skills, working knowledge of PLC‑controlled equipment, and experience in food manufacturing. This role supports a wide variety of equipment including chocolate molding lines, foil wrapping machines, packaging equipment, conveyors, and both modern and legacy European manufacturing machinery. The successful candidate will thrive in a fast‑paced production environment where minimizing downtime and improving equipment reliability are critical.

Responsibilities

• Troubleshoot, repair, and maintain production equipment including: chocolate molding machines; foil wrapping and foil handling equipment; packaging and cartoning machines; conveyors and material handling systems; pumps, gearboxes, motors, pneumatic and hydraulic systems.
• Diagnose electrical and control system issues on PLC‑controlled machinery.
• Perform preventative and predictive maintenance to maximize equipment uptime.
• Troubleshoot sensors, photo eyes, VFDs, relays, motor starters, and control circuits.
• Read and interpret electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, and mechanical drawings.
• Assist with PLC troubleshooting (Allen‑Bradley, Siemens or similar) to identify faults and support production.
• Support machine changeovers and equipment setup.
• Work on both newer automated equipment and older European production machinery.
• Coordinate with production and engineering teams to minimize downtime.
• Maintain accurate maintenance records and spare parts inventory.
• Ensure all work is performed safely while complying with food safety, GMP, OSHA, and company standards.

Qualifications

• Industrial maintenance experience in a food, beverage, confectionery, pharmaceutical, or consumer packaged goods manufacturing environment.
• Strong mechanical aptitude with experience repairing complex production equipment.
• Working knowledge of PLC troubleshooting (ability to diagnose faults).
• Experience with electrical systems up to 480V.
• Ability to troubleshoot: motors; VFDs; sensors; solenoids; pneumatics; hydraulics; servo‑driven equipment (preferred).
• Experience maintaining packaging equipment, wrappers, conveyors, or automated production machinery.
• Comfortable working on legacy European manufacturing equipment where replacement parts may require custom fabrication or creative troubleshooting.
• Food manufacturing experience strongly preferred.
• PLC programming experience is a plus.
• Preferred experience: chocolate, candy, bakery, snack food, or other food manufacturing; high‑speed equipment; molding, wrapping, and cartoning equipment; European OEM equipment; GMP, HACCP, and food safety standards.