Pilot Plant Technician | Process & Mechanical

Bayside Group; Sydney; On-site; AUD 68,000 - 76,000; Full time

Job summary

Bayside Group is partnering with an established minerals processing organisation to recruit a Pilot Plant Technician for a 12-month, full-time on-site role at Lucas Heights NSW. You will work across pilot-plant campaigns, setting up, operating, troubleshooting and maintaining pilot-scale process equipment with engineers and scientists.

This hands-on role is not a pure maintenance fitter position and offers variety across campaigns, with safety and accurate documentation emphasized.

Qualifications

• Hands-on experience operating industrial or process plant equipment
• Experience with pumps, valves, tanks, pipework or similar process systems
• Practical mechanical fault finding and troubleshooting capability
• Exposure to preventative or breakdown maintenance
• Experience with equipment assembly, installation or modification
• Exposure to commissioning or plant start-up activities
• Experience working within chemical, industrial or process environments
• Ability to follow SOPs and maintain accurate documentation
• Strong safety awareness and a methodical approach to problem solving
• Ability to work with engineers, scientists, technicians and contractors

Responsibilities

• Set up, assemble and operate pilot plant equipment
• Work with pumps, tanks, valves, pipework and related systems
• Support commissioning, start-up and project campaigns
• Monitor plant/equipment performance during operation
• Troubleshoot mechanical and process equipment issues
• Carry out preventative maintenance, inspections and basic repairs
• Assist with equipment modifications, changeovers and decommissioning
• Prepare equipment, chemicals and materials for project work
• Support process testwork, sampling and data collection
• Follow technical procedures and maintain plant records
• Collaborate with engineers, scientists, technicians and contractors

Skills

Plant equipment ops

Pumps & valves

Mechanical troubleshooting

Preventative maintenance

Equipment installation

Commissioning/start-up

Chemical/industrial env

SOP adherence

Safety awareness

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Mechanical trade or technical qualification

Job description

Pilot Plant Technician | Process & Mechanical

Lucas Heights NSW | On-site
Initial 12-month assignment | Full-time hours
$49.15–$55.19 per hour + super

If your experience sits between process plant operations and hands-on mechanical work, this is a strong opportunity to combine both in a highly technical pilot plant environment.

Bayside Group is partnering with an established organisation operating within a specialised minerals processing environment to recruit a Pilot Plant Technician for an initial 12-month assignment, working full-time hours on site at Lucas Heights.

This is not a purely operational position, and it is not a conventional maintenance fitter role.

You will work across changing pilot plant campaigns, helping to set up, operate, troubleshoot, maintain and modify pilot-scale process equipment alongside engineers, scientists and technical specialists.

The role

Working within a pilot plant environment, you will support the operation and ongoing development of process equipment across a range of technical projects.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Setting up, assembling and operating pilot plant equipment
• Working with pumps, tanks, valves, pipework and associated process systems
• Supporting commissioning, plant start-up and project campaigns
• Monitoring plant and equipment performance during operation
• Troubleshooting mechanical and process equipment issues
• Carrying out preventative maintenance, inspections and basic repairs
• Assisting with equipment modifications, changeovers, clean-down and decommissioning
• Preparing equipment, chemicals and materials for project work
• Supporting process testwork, sampling and operational data collection
• Following technical procedures and maintaining accurate plant records
• Working closely with engineers, scientists, technicians and contractors

The work is project-driven, so the plant configuration, equipment and technical challenges can change from one campaign to the next.

About you

We are looking for someone with genuine industrial or process plant experience who is also comfortable getting hands-on with mechanical equipment.

Your background may include Process Technician, Plant Technician, Operator Maintainer, Mechanical Technician, Maintenance Technician, Mechanical Fitter, Chemical Process Operator, Pump Technician or another relevant industrial technical role.

You will ideally bring:

• Hands-on experience operating industrial or process plant equipment
• Experience with pumps, valves, tanks, pipework or similar process systems
• Practical mechanical fault finding and troubleshooting capability
• Exposure to preventative or breakdown maintenance
• Experience with equipment assembly, installation or modification
• Exposure to commissioning or plant start-up activities
• Experience working within chemical, industrial or process environments
• The ability to follow SOPs, technical procedures and maintain accurate documentation
• Strong safety awareness and a practical, methodical approach to problem solving
• The ability to work effectively with engineers, scientists, technicians and trades

A mechanical trade or relevant technical qualification will be well regarded, however equivalent hands-on plant experience is also highly relevant.

Previous mining, metallurgy or minerals processing experience is not essential.

Strong transferable experience may come from chemical processing, water or wastewater treatment, mining and minerals, manufacturing, industrial maintenance, process equipment servicing or another hands‑on plant environment.

Important requirements

To be considered, you must:

• Be an Australian citizen
• Hold a current Australian driver’s licence
• Be able to work full-time hours on site at Lucas Heights
• Be able to satisfy relevant security and pre‑employment medical requirements
• Be comfortable undertaking physical plant‑based work and wearing required PPE
• Have some flexibility for occasional varied or after‑hours work during pilot plant campaigns

Why consider this opportunity?

The attraction of this role is its variety.

You will not be working on the same fixed production line every day. You will gain exposure to pilot‑scale process development, commissioning, troubleshooting and equipment modification, with plant configurations and technical challenges changing between projects.

For someone whose experience sits across process operations, practical mechanical work and fault finding, this offers a genuinely different technical environment where you can use all three, with the stability of an initial 12‑month assignment and full‑time hours.