How to hire an equipment engineering technician

How to hire an equipment engineering technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step equipment engineering technician hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an equipment engineering technician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new equipment engineering technician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring an equipment engineering technician, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect equipment engineering technician also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   The following list breaks down different types of equipment engineering technicians and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Equipment Engineering Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Equipment Engineering Technician	Industrial engineering technicians help industrial engineers implement designs to use personnel, materials, and machines effectively in factories, stores, healthcare organizations, repair shops, and offices. They prepare machinery and equipment layouts, plan workflows, conduct statistical production studies, and analyze production costs.	$24-55
   Validation Technologist	A validation technologist works with a process chief and applies validation methods to complete tasks and carry out installations. They perform operational protocol duties and do reviews daily... Show more	$18-31
   Quality Assurance Technician	Quality assurance is an essential part of a company that offers products and services. It is critical that the company's output remains consistent and up to par with community standards... Show more	$12-28

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Preventive Maintenance
   • Equipment Maintenance
   • Troubleshoot
   • Process Control
   • Mechanical Troubleshooting
   • Test Equipment
   • SPC
   • Hand Tools
   • Semiconductor Equipment
   • Equipment Engineering
   • Maintenance Procedures
   • Production Equipment
   • Process Engineering
   • Clean Room Environment

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Achieve multiple certifications per FDA and NRC guidelines for various internal processes critical to quality and safety.
   • Assist in PLC and SCADA installation and trouble shooting.
   • Service and calibrate RF generators and other high voltage power supplies.
   • Repair and calibration of PLC, UVEXS and LESCO UV curing equipment.
   • Spearhead repair of facility issues involving equipment such as pumps, HVAC, environmental systems, and plumbing.
   • Calibrate or adjust equipment to ensure quality production, using tools such as calipers, micrometers, or height gauges.

   More equipment engineering technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your equipment engineering technician job description helps attract top candidates to the position. An equipment engineering technician salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for an equipment engineering technician in Iowa may be lower than in Idaho, and an entry-level equipment engineering technician usually earns less than a senior-level equipment engineering technician. Additionally, an equipment engineering technician with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average equipment engineering technician salary

   $77,615yearly

   $37.31 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level equipment engineering technician salary

   $51,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average equipment engineering technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Washington	$104,708	$50
   2	California	$98,830	$48
   3	Texas	$92,321	$44
   4	New Mexico	$88,160	$42
   5	New York	$86,002	$41
   6	Massachusetts	$85,251	$41
   7	Arizona	$81,842	$39
   8	Minnesota	$71,319	$34
   9	Tennessee	$59,126	$28
   10	Arkansas	$57,841	$28
   11	Florida	$54,114	$26

   Average equipment engineering technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Providence Health & Services	$121,524	$58.42	2
   2	Erlanger Health System	$115,725	$55.64	2
   3	Swedish Hospital	$104,095	$50.05
   4	Applied Materials	$101,704	$48.90	48
   5	Intel	$101,308	$48.71	10
   6	Skyworks Solutions	$97,588	$46.92	17
   7	Ashley HomeStore	$94,541	$45.45	16
   8	Tesla	$88,891	$42.74	66
   9	Serco	$84,567	$40.66	67
   10	Northrop Grumman	$81,653	$39.26	202
   11	Siemens Healthineers	$80,608	$38.75
   12	Seagate Technology	$77,412	$37.22	12
   13	GlobalFoundries	$75,418	$36.26	17
   14	Samsung Electronics Device Solutions (Semiconductor & Display)	$74,723	$35.92	61
   15	Ericsson	$72,310	$34.76	3
   16	Columbia Trailer Co	$71,896	$34.57
   17	Genex Services	$70,229	$33.76
   18	Randstad North America, Inc.	$69,912	$33.61	1
   19	Gilead Sciences	$69,774	$33.55	1
   20	North American Lighting	$68,986	$33.17	2

4. Writing an equipment engineering technician job description

   An equipment engineering technician job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of an equipment engineering technician job description:

   Equipment engineering technician job description example

   Apply now »
   
   Date: Sep 26, 2022
   
   Location: Paris, IL, US, 61944
   
   Company: North American Lighting
   
   Job Summary
   
   Who We Are
   
   North American Lighting Inc., member of the Koito Group of Companies, is the largest tier one automotive exterior lighting manufacturer in North America. As the market share leader in exterior automotive lighting, NAL provides advanced lighting technology, engineering design expertise, and state-of-the-art production capabilities to auto makers based in North America and around the world.
   
   Our Opportunity
   
   North American Lighting (NAL) is looking for an Equipment Engineering Technician - III to join our team. The ideal candidate will provide hands-on assistance to Equipment Engineering in setting-up, fine-tuning, and maintaining production equipment. Additionally, they will provide support at both production facilities and equipment vendors to establish and maintain capability for production equipment.
   
   Essential Duties & Responsibilities
   
   Your Priorities
   
   + Provides technical support in the set-up of new production equipment.
   
   + Assists Equipment Engineers in troubleshooting processes and production equipment.
   
   + Establishes programs for new glue and screw robot applications during equipment set-up.
   
   + Writes and de-bugs PLC and touch screen programming for new production equipment.
   
   + Designs electrical and pneumatic schematics for new production equipment.
   
   + Provides technical support for equipment and manufacturing trials.
   
   Requirements
   
   Your Background
   
   + Associate's degree in Engineering, Industrial Technology, or a related discipline, plus 3 to 5 years of assembly experience in a manufacturing environment OR
   
   + High School Diploma or GED plus 5 to 8 years of assembly experience in a manufacturing environment.
   
   Experience in hot plate welding and vibration welding is preferred.
   
   At North American Lighting
   
   Team Member Benefits
   
   World class health insurance plans
   
   Award winning 401k plan
   
   Relocation assistance
   
   Paid time off (vacation, sick, holidays, etc)
   
   Supplier discounts (wireless, computer, vehicle, etc.)
   
   Company sponsored wellness program including gym reimbursement
   
   Diversity at NAL:
   
   The mission of NAL's Diversity Committee is to facilitate NAL's ongoing and continuing efforts to foster a culture and atmosphere of mutual respect, for the benefit of all Team Members from different backgrounds, perspectives, and abilities that represent our communities.
   
   You can learn more about NAL and our opportunities at jobs.nal.com.
   
   All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, genetic information, and veteran status or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.
   
   
   Location: Paris Plant
   
   Nearest Major Market: Decatur
   
   Apply now »
   
   Find similar jobs:
   
   Engineering Jobs

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5. Post your job

   To find the right equipment engineering technician for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with equipment engineering technicians they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit equipment engineering technicians who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your equipment engineering technician job on Zippia to find and recruit equipment engineering technician candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with equipment engineering technician candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new equipment engineering technician

   Once you've decided on a perfect equipment engineering technician candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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