Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for a Technical Planner

🎯 Role Definition

A Technical Planner is the strategic linchpin of an organization's operational or maintenance departments. This role is responsible for proactively planning and coordinating all technical activities, ensuring that work is executed efficiently, safely, and with minimal disruption to production or project timelines. By meticulously developing detailed work packages—encompassing labor, materials, tools, and safety protocols—the Technical Planner transforms engineering needs and maintenance requirements into actionable, sequenced tasks. They serve as a critical liaison between engineering, maintenance crews, operations, and supply chain, orchestrating the seamless flow of resources and information. The ultimate goal of a Technical Planner is to enhance asset reliability, optimize resource utilization, improve workforce productivity, and control maintenance costs, thereby directly contributing to the organization's operational excellence and bottom line.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Maintenance Technician / Lead Technician
Junior Engineer (Mechanical, Industrial, or Electrical)
Production Supervisor
Project Coordinator

Advancement To:

Senior Technical Planner / Planning Lead
Maintenance Supervisor or Manager
Reliability Engineer
Project Manager

Lateral Moves:

Operations Planner
Supply Chain Planner
Quality Assurance Engineer

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Develop comprehensive and detailed job plans for corrective, preventive, and predictive maintenance activities, ensuring all necessary resources, parts, and safety precautions are clearly identified.
Scope the full extent of work required for maintenance tasks, including operational steps, required parts and materials, special tools, and external services.
Create and manage detailed work packages for maintenance teams, including technical specifications, schematics, safety procedures (like Lockout-Tagout), and permits.
Estimate required labor hours, skills, and crew size for each job to ensure accurate scheduling and resource allocation.
Act as the primary liaison between the maintenance, engineering, and production departments to coordinate equipment availability and schedule downtime effectively.
Procure and stage necessary materials, spare parts, and specialized equipment in advance of scheduled work to eliminate delays and maximize "wrench time."
Review incoming work requests for accuracy and clarity, clarifying details with the originator to ensure the planned work addresses the root issue.
Maintain and update the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS), such as SAP PM or Maximo, with accurate job plans, material lists (BOMs), and task histories.
Develop and manage short-term (weekly) and long-term (major shutdown/outage) maintenance schedules in collaboration with operations and maintenance leadership.
Analyze maintenance backlog and work order data to identify trends, prioritize tasks, and recommend strategies for backlog reduction.
Walk down job sites to confirm scope, identify potential hazards, and ensure that all logistical and safety requirements can be met.
Participate actively in shutdown/turnaround planning meetings, developing integrated schedules and coordinating with multiple craft and contractor teams.
Manage the Bill of Materials (BOMs) for critical assets, ensuring accuracy and availability of essential spare parts.
Track and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) related to planning and scheduling, such as Schedule Compliance, Planned vs. Unplanned Work, and Backlog Hours.
Continuously refine and improve the work planning and scheduling process by incorporating feedback from maintenance technicians and analyzing work order outcomes.
Provide technical assistance and clarification to maintenance crews before and during job execution to ensure work is performed correctly and efficiently.
Coordinate with external vendors and contractors for specialized services, ensuring they have clear scopes of work and adhere to site safety policies.
Develop and maintain a library of standard job plans for recurring maintenance tasks to improve planning efficiency and consistency.
Review completed work orders to ensure all required information has been captured, including labor hours, parts used, and failure analysis details.
Champion a proactive maintenance culture by shifting the focus from reactive repairs to planned, reliability-centered activities.
Assist in the development of the annual maintenance budget by providing data-driven estimates for labor, materials, and contractor costs.

Secondary Functions

Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis to investigate equipment performance issues.
Contribute to the organization's asset management strategy and continuous improvement roadmap.
Collaborate with business units and reliability engineers to translate data needs and failure analysis findings into engineering and maintenance requirements.
Participate in sprint planning, daily stand-ups, and other agile ceremonies within the maintenance and engineering teams.
Assist in Root Cause Analysis (RCA) investigations for significant equipment failures or safety incidents.
Support the MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Operations) storeroom by helping to optimize spare parts inventory levels and identify critical spares.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

CMMS Proficiency: Advanced skills in Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (e.g., SAP PM, IBM Maximo, Oracle eAM, Infor EAM).
Technical Drawing Interpretation: Ability to read and interpret technical documents, including P&IDs, electrical schematics, mechanical drawings, and OEM manuals.
Project Scheduling Software: Competency with scheduling tools like MS Project or Primavera P6 for planning complex outages and projects.
Bill of Materials (BOM) Management: Experience creating, managing, and optimizing BOMs for critical equipment.
Cost Estimation & Control: Skill in accurately estimating labor, material, and service costs and tracking actuals against budgets.
Data Analysis: Proficiency in using tools like Microsoft Excel (Pivot Tables, VLOOKUPs) and BI software to analyze maintenance data and KPIs.
Reliability Principles: Strong understanding of maintenance philosophies such as Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) and Preventive/Predictive Maintenance (PdM) techniques.
MRO Inventory Management: Knowledge of spare parts management, inventory optimization, and procurement processes.
Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Familiarity with structured problem-solving methodologies like 5-Whys or Fishbone Diagrams.
Safety Regulations: Deep knowledge of industrial safety procedures, including Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), confined space entry, and work permitting.

Soft Skills

Stakeholder Communication: Exceptional ability to communicate technical information clearly and concisely to diverse audiences, from technicians to senior management.
Attention to Detail: Meticulous and thorough approach to planning, leaving no detail to chance.
Problem-Solving: A logical and analytical mindset to effectively troubleshoot planning conflicts and work request issues.
Prioritization & Time Management: The ability to manage a high volume of work requests and competing priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Collaboration & Teamwork: A natural ability to build strong working relationships and foster collaboration between different departments.
Negotiation & Influence: Skill in influencing others and negotiating schedules and resources to achieve optimal outcomes.
Adaptability: Flexibility to adjust plans and schedules in response to unforeseen breakdowns or changes in production demand.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Associate's Degree in a technical field or a Technical/Vocational Diploma combined with significant relevant experience.

Preferred Education:

Bachelor's Degree in an engineering or related discipline.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Mechanical or Industrial Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Operations Management
Business Administration

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 3-7 years of hands-on experience in a maintenance, engineering, or industrial operations role.

Preferred: Direct experience as a planner/scheduler in a heavy industrial, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, or high-tech environment is highly desirable. Experience as a qualified maintenance craftsperson is a significant asset.