WHAT DOES A JOURNEYMAN MECHANIC DO?
Published: Nov 19, 2025 - The Journeyman Mechanic maintains and repairs diesel and gasoline-powered vehicles, including forklifts, trucks, trailers, and cranes. This role troubleshoots and services basic hydraulic, electrical, fuel, and air systems, performs welding and tire repairs, and ensures tool and parts inventory are properly maintained. The mechanic also completes electronic work orders, tracks weekly tasks, and upholds shop cleanliness and accountability.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Journeyman Mechanic
1. Journeyman Mechanic Duties
- Safety Implementation: Take personal responsibility to translate safety policies, goals and standards from paper into action
- Safety Compliance: Follow prescribed safety policies, procedures and standards in the completion of assigned tasks
- Inspection Reporting: Complete all required inspections, audits, work orders and reports
- Hazard Communication: Communicate and document hazards and substandard conditions and/or acts
- Condition Correction: Immediately correct substandard conditions and act to the best of the ability
- Incident Reporting: Report all near misses to the team leader and assist in near-miss and incident investigations.
- Regulatory Compliance: Full compliance with plant, state, and federal safety regulations and general work rules
- Lockout Procedure: Use of proper lockout procedure and personal protective equipment.
2. Journeyman Mechanic Accountabilities
- Job Prioritization: Determine job priorities working with the maintenance manager, plant manager, and department managers or supervisors.
- Equipment Inspection: Makes required checks/tests on plant equipment at the start of shift and makes repairs and adjustments.
- Checklist Duties: Performs “checklist” type duties on plant equipment.
- Preventive Maintenance: Performs preventive maintenance on plant equipment.
- Equipment Installation: Assists in installing/relocating plant equipment.
- Documentation Management: Fills out and files or forwards to the appropriate individual forms and check sheets.
- Equipment Repair: Repairs/adjusts plant equipment.
- Vehicle Operation: Operate the company vehicle.
3. Journeyman Mechanic Details and Accountabilities
- Lockout Procedure: Follow all written procedures when performing lockout/tagout.
- Pump Maintenance: Change the battery in the pump house.
- Propane Handling: Change propane tank on powered industrial truck and fill propane tanks.
- Solution Replacement: Replace the drum of cleaning solution for scrubber use.
- Safety Participation: Participate in Safety programs and Neighborhood Watch.
- Safe Work Practices: Works safely and orderly.
- Hazard Notification: Notify supervision of any hazardous conditions.
- Work Area Maintenance: Maintains a clean and orderly work area.
- Miscellaneous Duties: Perform all necessary miscellaneous work about the above job duties.
4. Journeyman Mechanic Essential Functions
- Vehicle Maintenance: Maintain and repair diesel and gasoline-powered vehicles, equipment, and pumps.
- System Repair: Maintain and repair basic hydraulic, air, electrical, and fuel systems.
- Equipment Maintenance: Perform maintenance and repair work on forklifts, trucks and trailers, and cranes.
- Welding Repair: Use welding torches, arc, and gas welders in basic metal repair.
- Tool Utilization: Use appropriate hand tools to effect repairs.
- Troubleshooting: Be responsible for basic mechanical troubleshooting.
- Tire Repair: Repair tires on trucks, trailers, and forklifts.
- Inventory Management: Maintain basic shop supplies and parts inventory.
- Work Order Management: Create, maintain, and complete electronic work orders for all maintenance performed.
- Work Reporting: Be responsible for tracking and reporting weekly work performed and upcoming work.
- Shop Maintenance: Be responsible for the mechanics shop, housekeeping, and tool accountability.
5. Journeyman Mechanic General Responsibilities
- Safety Compliance: Ensure that Health and Safety is the number one priority by complying with all safe work practices, policies, and processes, and acting safely at all times.
- Equipment Maintenance: Correct all equipment deficiencies and perform preventative maintenance on company-owned equipment as prescribed by management.
- Equipment Security: Assures that all equipment is properly secured before work/repairs, i.e., chock blocks and jack stands.
- Field Maintenance: Travel to other locations to perform repairs and maintenance on equipment.
- Paperwork Management: Completes and submits all associated paperwork for tracking PM schedules.
- Safety Inspection: Perform compliance and safety inspections on company equipment and property under management.
- Parts Coordination: Coordinate parts for the mobile repair unit.
- Tool Maintenance: Maintenance of all general repair equipment and shop tools.
6. Journeyman Mechanic Responsibilities and Key Tasks
- Facility Maintenance: Handle facility modifications, equipment changeover, and repair, encompassing electrical and mechanical aspects of each.
- Resource Coordination: Support the coordination activities and provide assistance with internal and/or external resources, including contractors/vendors for maintenance inspection, and repairs to equipment and facilities.
- Preventive Maintenance: Perform preventive and scheduled maintenance on equipment and facilities according to schedules.
- Utility Maintenance: Work includes utilities, basic HVAC systems, and process equipment.
- System Troubleshooting: Troubleshoot complex mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, and electrical systems and/or various combinations of the above.
- Equipment Inspection: Conduct inspections and repairs of glass-lined equipment.
- Technical Diagnosis: Diagnose and repair to specifications, i.e., brake and hydraulic, exhaust, primary and/or advanced fuel ignition and electrical, suspension and alignment, air conditioning, and computer systems.
- Repair Communication: Adequate explanations of technical diagnosis and needed repairs to non-mechanical individuals, which may include employees and customers.
- Technical Training: Continuously update technical skills and techniques in formal training sessions to stay abreast of rapidly changing automotive technology.