What a millwright does
Millwrights, known in Ontario as industrial mechanic millwrights, install, maintain and repair industrial machinery and mechanical equipment. Their work includes conveyors, pumps, compressors, gearboxes, hydraulic and pneumatic systems and production lines. They align shafts and couplings, replace bearings and seals, rig and move heavy equipment and carry out preventive maintenance that keeps unplanned downtime to a minimum and protects your production schedule.
In most plants, the millwright is the person called when something stops. Finch screens candidates for the equipment they have maintained, their troubleshooting approach, their skills in alignment, rigging, welding and hydraulics, and their 433A certificate status. We also discuss shift schedules and on-call requirements early, so the people you interview are ready for the way your operation actually runs day to day.
Typical responsibilities
- Installing, aligning and commissioning industrial machinery
- Troubleshooting and repairing mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems
- Replacing bearings, seals, belts, gears and couplings
- Carrying out preventive and predictive maintenance
- Rigging and moving heavy equipment safely
- Fabricating and welding parts and guards for repairs
Qualifications and credentials
- A Skilled Trades Ontario 433A Industrial Mechanic Millwright certificate of qualification
- Experience maintaining equipment similar to yours
- Skills in shaft alignment, rigging, hydraulics and pneumatics
- Lockout and tagout and confined space training where relevant
- Welding and fabrication skills are an asset
Who hires a millwright
- Manufacturing plants
- Food and beverage processors
- Distribution and warehouse facilities with conveyor systems
- Paper and packaging plants
- Industrial maintenance contractors
Where we recruit millwright candidates
We fill millwright roles for employers across Toronto and the GTA, including North York, Scarborough, Etobicoke, Vaughan, Markham, Richmond Hill, Mississauga, Brampton, Oakville, Burlington, Oshawa and Pickering, and for employers across Canada. GTA employers can meet us at our North York office by appointment.
What Finch checks before you meet a candidate
- 433A certificate or apprenticeship status
- Equipment maintained and industries worked in
- Troubleshooting approach for mechanical breakdowns
- Lockout and tagout and rigging safety practices
- Shift and on-call availability
Interview questions to ask
- Tell me about a breakdown you repaired under pressure. How did you find the cause?
- How do you perform a shaft alignment, and what tools do you use?
- What preventive maintenance tasks have you introduced to reduce breakdowns?