Automation and Controls Technician

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Utility Maintenance Mechanic ​ – JLL

What this job involves:

The Utility Maintenance Mechanic is responsible for the operation, maintenance, troubleshooting, and repair of critical utility systems supporting a Life Sciences Research and Development facility. This role ensures continuous, reliable operation of HVAC, clean utilities (purified water, clean steam), compressed gases, vacuum systems, and other mission-critical infrastructure that supports sensitive research operations and maintains regulatory compliance.

What your day-to-day will look like:

Utility Systems Operation & Maintenance

• Operate, monitor, and maintain central utility plant equipment including chillers, boilers, cooling towers, air handling units, and building automation systems.

• Perform preventive maintenance on purified water systems (WFI, RO, DI), clean steam generators, and associated distribution loops according to established schedules and cGMP requirements.

• Maintain compressed air systems, nitrogen generation equipment, CO2 systems, and laboratory vacuum systems to ensure continuous supply at specified quality parameters.

• Monitor and adjust HVAC systems to maintain precise temperature, humidity, and differential pressure requirements in clean rooms, laboratories, and controlled environments.

Troubleshooting & Emergency Response

• Diagnose and resolve utility system failures quickly to minimize impact on research operations and maintain environmental stability in critical areas.

• Respond to after-hours emergency calls for utility system failures, alarms, or environmental excursions affecting research spaces.

• Perform root cause analysis on equipment failures and implement corrective actions to prevent recurrence.

• Coordinate with researchers and laboratory staff to schedule maintenance activities that minimize disruption to ongoing experiments.

Compliance & Documentation

• Maintain accurate maintenance logs, work order records, calibration certificates, and equipment histories in the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS).

• Execute maintenance activities in accordance with standard operating procedures (SOPs), FDA regulations, and industry standards (ISO, cGMP) as applicable.

• Support facility qualification and validation activities including Installation Qualification (IQ), Operational Qualification (OQ), and Performance Qualification (PQ).

• Participate in regulatory inspections and audits by providing documentation and technical expertise on utility systems.

Safety & Quality Assurance

• Conduct all work in compliance with OSHA regulations, life safety codes, environmental health and safety protocols, and facility-specific biosafety requirements.

• Perform lockout/tagout procedures and confined space entry protocols as required for safe maintenance operations.

• Monitor utility system performance for deviations that could affect product quality, research integrity, or regulatory compliance.

• Maintain awareness of biosafety levels and contamination control procedures when working in or near research areas.

Required Qualifications:

• High school diploma or equivalent

• Minimum 3-5 years of hands-on experience maintaining industrial utility systems in pharmaceutical, biotechnology, laboratory, or healthcare environments.

• Universal EPA 608 certification for refrigerant handling.

• Proficiency in operation and maintenance of industrial chillers, steam and hot water boilers, cooling towers, and central plant equipment.

• Working knowledge of purified water systems including reverse osmosis, deionization, electrode ionization, and clean steam generation.

• Experience with building automation systems (BAS),…