If you are used to see a lot of trucks, tractor trailers and buses on the road while you drive, but you never see the people that maintain these big machines working properly. These people are the diesel technicians or mechanics. As you know, the diesel engine is the workhorse powering the country?s trucks and buses. This fuel provides more power, is more durable and cheaper than gasoline. Some diesel technicians and mechanics also work on heavy vehicles like bulldozers, cranes, road graders, farm equipment and inclusive locomotives. The technicians use more time doing preventive maintenance to ensure the safety and good work of the equipment of the company where they work.
On a routine maintenance, they must check brake systems, steering mechanisms and many other important parts. After that, they must repair the pieces that are not working well and if those pieces cannot be fixed must be replaced. Today the work for mechanics and technicians is becoming a little complex because more electronic components are being used to control the operations of the engines. It is normal to see these guys handling hand computers to diagnose problems and repair engine trouble. Usually, employers send the most experienced mechanics to trainings offered by manufacturers and vendors. This way they learn about the latest technology and then teach the rest of the co-workers. Technicians often receive updated technical manuals with information of the new technology and instructions too.
About the working conditions, mechanics and technicians are usually indoors, however, they can sometimes repair vehicles on the road. Their work places are very illuminated, heated and ventilated, but some of them are noisy and drafty. Also, the majority of employers provide lockers and showers to the employees. For the training they must to take, there are several schools where you can get all the knowledge to start a new occupation. This activity produced more than 267,000 jobs in 2002; of those jobs 19% worked maintaining buses, trucks and other kind of equipment of buses lines and 17% worked for freight trucking companies. The work in this field will keep going up especially in companies like trucking companies, buses lines and other kind of fleets with large operations in the country.
The most important thing that technicians and mechanics use is their hand tools. Actually, almost of all them provide their own and have a lot of money invested in them, but if they do not have much, employers provide expensive tools, computerized engine analyzers, and other equipment. Individual tools will be accumulated throughout the years and acquired experience. Statistics says that people who work in this business get paid between $13.13 and $20.54 per hour on a full time schedule (Monday to Friday 8:00a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). Some others like the independent mechanics have their own shops. Diesel technicians and mechanics have several associations, some of them are: International Association of Machinist and Aerospace Workers, Amalgamated Transit Union, International Union and others. If you are interested in working in an activity like this, start looking for a good mechanic school and then find the company that offers you the best benefits and working conditions.