Maintenance Shift Leader

AppleOne Employment Services; Buffalo (NY); On-site; USD 40,000 - 43,000; Full time

Job summary

We are seeking an experienced Maintenance Shift Leader for a temp-to-hire opportunity in Buffalo, NY. This onsite role is ideal for a hands-on maintenance professional who enjoys leading technicians, solving complex equipment issues, and improving plant reliability in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

The Maintenance Shift Leader will support a high-performing maintenance department focused on safety, uptime, quality, and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• 5 to 10 years of industrial equipment maintenance and repair experience.
• Leadership or supervisory experience strongly preferred.
• Technical college diploma or trade license preferred.
• Strong troubleshooting with PLCs, electrical controls, mechanical systems, hydraulics and pneumatics.
• Ability to read blueprints and work with electrical code, machine shop equipment and fabrication.
• Experience using Windows-based software and maintaining work orders and records.
• Strong analytical skills to identify root causes and implement fixes.
• Excellent communication, coaching and teamwork skills.
• Commitment to safety, lockout/tagout, quality standards and operational excellence.
• Willingness to travel for training or support at other locations.

Responsibilities

• Lead shift maintenance activities and provide technical direction to technicians.
• Troubleshoot, repair, and improve industrial production equipment to maximize uptime.
• Coordinate preventive maintenance, breakdown response, and changeovers.
• Support continuous improvement and safety compliance initiatives.
• Manage maintenance schedules, handovers, work orders, downtime reporting, and parts inventory.
• Ensure adherence to safety policies, LOTO, quality standards and procedures.

Skills

Leadership

Troubleshooting

Preventive maintenance

Root cause analysis

Safety compliance

Coaching

Blueprint reading

Team coordination

Education

Technical college diploma

Tools

Windows software

Job description

Job Summary

We are seeking an experienced Maintenance Shift Leader for a temp-to-hire opportunity in Buffalo, NY. This onsite role is ideal for a hands-on maintenance professional who enjoys leading technicians, solving complex equipment issues, and improving plant reliability in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.

The Maintenance Shift Leader will support a high-performing maintenance department focused on safety, uptime, quality, and continuous improvement. This opportunity offers a collaborative team culture, supportive leadership, professional development, and the chance to work with advanced manufacturing technologies and specialized production equipment. Candidates who take pride in coaching others, driving accountability, and keeping operations running efficiently will be well positioned for success.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and mentor maintenance and tooling technicians in troubleshooting, equipment operation, safe work practices, and technical skill development.
• Respond to equipment breakdowns, support machine changeovers, and provide hands‑on troubleshooting to minimize production downtime.
• Use PLCs, equipment software, and diagnostic tools to troubleshoot electrical, mechanical, vision inspection, slitting, pleating, packaging, and related production systems.
• Lead preventive and predictive maintenance activities, root cause analysis, corrective actions, and continuous improvement projects focused on equipment reliability.
• Coordinate maintenance schedules, shift handovers, work orders, downtime reporting, parts inventory, and purchasing needs.
• Ensure compliance with safety procedures, lockout/tagout requirements, quality standards, environmental practices, and company maintenance policies.

Compensation and Benefits

• Pay Rate: $29 to $31 per hour.
• Job Type: Temp-to-Hire.
• Work Location: Onsite in Buffalo, NY 14225.
• Department: Maintenance.
• Stable, full‑time onsite opportunity.
• Professional development and training opportunities.
• Collaborative team environment.
• Opportunity to work with advanced manufacturing technologies and equipment.

Required Qualifications and Skills

• Lead shift maintenance activities and provide technical direction to maintenance and tooling technicians.
• Troubleshoot, repair, and improve industrial production equipment to maximize uptime and reliability.
• Coordinate preventive maintenance, breakdown response, machine changeovers, and maintenance documentation.
• Support continuous improvement, safety compliance, and root cause problem‑solving initiatives.
• 5 to 10 years of industrial equipment maintenance and repair experience.
• Previous leadership, lead technician, or supervisory experience strongly preferred.
• Technical college diploma in a related field or industrial trade license preferred.
• Strong troubleshooting experience with PLCs, electrical controls, mechanical systems, hydraulics, pneumatics, and production equipment.
• Ability to read blueprints and work with electrical code, machine shop equipment, metal fabrication, welding, brazing, plumbing, or refrigeration systems.
• Experience using Windows-based software applications and maintaining accurate work orders, records, and reports.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to identify root causes and implement corrective actions.
• Excellent communication, coaching, teamwork, and problem‑solving skills.
• Commitment to safe work practices, lockout/tagout procedures, quality standards, and operational excellence.
• Ability to travel periodically for training, equipment buyoffs, or support at other company locations.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with high‑speed packaging equipment.
• Experience with injection molding processes and troubleshooting.
• Tooling and manufacturing maintenance experience.
• Experience with vision inspection systems, slitting systems, pleating systems, or specialized production equipment.
• Experience managing maintenance parts inventory, purchasing, vendor coordination, or cost savings initiatives.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disabled / Protected Veterans

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For temporary assignments lasting 13 weeks or longer, AppleOne is pleased to offer major medical, dental, vision, 401k and any statutory sick pay where required.

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please contact your staffing representative who will reach out to our HR team.

AppleOne participates in the E-Verify program in certain locations as required by law. Learn more about the E-Verify program.

We also consider for employment qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements, including, if applicable, the City of Los Angles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance. Pursuant to applicable state and municipal Fair Chance Laws and Ordinances, we will consider for employment‑qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records, including, if applicable, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance. For Los Angeles, CA applicants: Qualified applications with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with the Los Angles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act.