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The differences between plant technicians and repair technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a plant technician and a repair technician. Additionally, a plant technician has an average salary of $46,164, which is higher than the $41,643 average annual salary of a repair technician.
The top three skills for a plant technician include preventive maintenance, ladders and data collection. The most important skills for a repair technician are customer service, hand tools, and customer satisfaction.
| Plant Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $46,164 | $41,643 |
| Hourly rate | $22.19 | $20.02 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 146,543 | 162,051 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Associate Degree, 38% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A plant technician is in charge of overseeing plant operations, ensuring everything runs smoothly and efficiently. Their responsibilities include installing and upgrading machines and equipment, identifying the strengths and weaknesses of existing systems, implementing solutions to vulnerable or problem areas, and developing strategies to optimize plant operations. They must also perform regular maintenance checks, conducting corrective measures and adjustments as needed. Furthermore, a plant technician must provide technical support to employees, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
A repair technician's role focuses on assessing the problem or damage of a device and implementing solutions for it to function again. Although the extent of a technician's tasks will depend on the device or industry of employment, most of it revolves around troubleshooting, providing technical support, installing and writing programs, detaching and re-attaching wirings, welding, and even thoroughly discussing problems and solutions to clients. Furthermore, there are instances when a repair technician must work in a team setting that requires coordination and communication.
Plant technicians and repair technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Plant Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Average salary | $46,164 | $41,643 |
| Salary range | Between $31,000 And $67,000 | Between $27,000 And $63,000 |
| Highest paying City | Kent, WA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | Hawaii |
| Best paying company | BP America Inc | SoCalGas |
| Best paying industry | Utilities | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a plant technician and a repair technician in terms of educational background:
| Plant Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Associate Degree, 38% |
| Most common major | Business | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between plant technicians' and repair technicians' demographics:
| Plant Technician | Repair Technician | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 75.4% Female, 24.6% | Male, 88.3% Female, 11.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.5% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 4.6% White, 60.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 2% |