Tool & Die Maintenance Mechanic

About the role

The Tool and Die Maintenance Mechanic supports production, product service, and continuous improvement projects to achieve organizational objectives in areas of quality, cost reduction, and production goals. This role maintains high levels of manufacturing and product quality, designs new fixtures, modifies existing fixtures, and ensures cost-efficiency and compliance with all regulatory standards.

Responsibilities

• Support Operations through standard Die Maintenance Practices such as inspecting, repairing, and maintaining precision tooling like progressive stamping dies and forming dies.
• Develop and/or improve a maintenance program for dies and fixtures, including maintenance schedules, spare parts identification, and drawer organization.
• Maintain equipment, dies, and fixtures by completing preventive maintenance, troubleshooting malfunctions, and reporting issues.
• Manage tooling spares and inventory, assessing fixture and die wear and facilitating spare parts ordering.
• Create or modify tooling, machine components, and fixtures as needed.
• Follow instructions and standard procedures such as Work Instructions (WI), Quality System Regulations (QSR), ISO, Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) safety rules.
• Interface with Engineering, Department Supervisors, Quality Team, coworkers, and senior management.
• Perform scheduled preventative maintenance plans and activities.
• Improve quality and running efficiency of dies.
• Support engineering groups in short and long-term projects.
• Plan machining by studying work orders, blueprints, engineering plans, materials, specifications, orthographic drawings, reference planes, locations of surfaces, and machining parameters.
• Set up general manual machine shop equipment and associated tools, attachments, collets, bushings, stops, indicating, and workholding devices, as well as tramming the milling head when required.
• Verify machine setups by measuring positions and product, first-run part, and sample workpieces, adhering to international standards.
• Adjust and reprogram controls, sharpen tools, and adhere to quality assurance procedures and processes.
• Maintain safe operations by adhering to safety procedures and regulations.
• Document and communicate actions, irregularities, and continuing needs among work shifts.
• Achieve organization goals by accepting ownership for new and different requests, exploring opportunities to add value to job accomplishments.

Physical Requirements

• Must be able to stand/sit for at least 4 hours at a time.
• Normal eye/hand motor coordination and ability to grasp and hold small objects.
• Must be able to climb stairs and ladders.
• Must be able to walk, bend, stoop, twist, reach with hands and arms several times a shift.
• Possess a normal extended reach.
• Must be able to use all tooling equipment to complete tasks.
• Consistently use manual dexterity.
• Have the ability to determine color acuity.
• Must be able to lift and transport materials, product, and equipment weighing up to 50 lbs. while wearing steel tip work shoes or toe protection when doing so.

Education

• High School Diploma/GED OR equivalent work experience at the discretion of the Hiring Manager
• Certificate for Journeyman Tool and Die/Maintenance Mechanic apprenticeship program or equivalent work experience.

Years and Type of Experience

• 1 - 5 years’ experience in a manufacturing environment.

Key Required Skills, Knowledge and Capabilities

• Experience performing Die Maintenance Practices such as inspecting, repairing, and maintaining precision tooling like progressive stamping dies and forming dies.
• Experience with Tooling and adjusting Speeds and Feeds on shop equipment.
• Experience developing machining strategy and selecting tooling and work holding solutions.
• Perform basic arithmetic computations (add, subtract, multiply, and divide, using whole numbers, fractions, and decimals).
• Knowledge of GMP.
• Ability to hold +/-.0002” tolerances. Strong understanding of tooling and product drawings and geometric tolerance interpretation.
• Ability to read, write, understand, and speak English.
• Follow all established health and safety policies.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work with a team.
• Ability to work overtime if needed. Dependability and ability to adapt to change are essential.
• Proficient in use of precision measuring instruments and the application of such instruments. Instruments should include but not limited to calipers, ID and OD micrometers, depth gages, indicators, and optical comparators/vision measuring equipment.