Engineerin Foreman

Copper Quail; Johannesburg; On-site; ZAR 620,000 - 880,000; Full time

Job summary

Copper Quail in Johannesburg is seeking an Engineering Foreman to lead day-to-day maintenance on heavy mining and drilling equipment. You will supervise artisans and technicians, plan preventive and corrective work, and ensure compliance with safety and OEM standards.

The role requires strong fault-finding across mechanical, hydraulic and electrical systems, and the ability to coordinate with production, projects and suppliers to minimise downtime and improve reliability.

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years’ relevant engineering, maintenance or heavy‑equipment experience in mining or drilling.
• Experience supervising artisans, technicians or maintenance teams.
• Strong fault‑finding capability across mechanical and hydraulic systems.
• Willingness to work shifts, overtime and possible relocation.
• Valid driver’s license.

Responsibilities

• Supervise engineering and maintenance teams across mining and drilling equipment.
• Plan and monitor preventive, planned and corrective maintenance.
• Lead breakdown response and technical troubleshooting across mechanical, electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems.
• Ensure daily, weekly and shutdown maintenance work is properly planned, prioritised, executed and closed out.
• Monitor equipment condition, downtime trends and maintenance backlogs, and drive corrective actions.
• Support root-cause investigations on significant equipment failures and implement practical reliability improvements.
• Coordinate inspections, servicing, repairs, component replacements and rebuild activities.
• Ensure maintenance standards, OEM requirements, engineering procedures and safety requirements are followed.
• Manage workshop and site engineering activities, including tools, spares, consumables and critical replacement components.
• Liaise with OEMs, suppliers and technical support teams regarding diagnostics and parts.
• Support commissioning, mobilisation and demobilisation of drilling and project equipment.
• Maintain accurate maintenance records, job cards, equipment history and reporting.
• Supervise artisans, technicians and assistants, allocate work and ensure competent execution.
• Coach technical team members and reinforce safe work practices, lock‑out procedures, permits and risk controls.
• Work with Contract Manager / Project Manager to balance maintenance with production priorities.

Skills

Leadership

Fault finding

Maintenance planning

Troubleshooting

Safety

Technical drawings

Driver's license

Education

Trade qualification (Millwright, Fitter, Electrician, Diesel Mechanic)

N4–N6 or Diploma in Mechanical/Electrical/Mining Engineering

Tools

CMMS

Job description

Johannesburg, South Africa | Posted on 09/16/2026

Copper Quail’s objective is to become a trusted partner within our clients’ organizations in Africa, understanding not only the people at their heart, but also their culture and ethos. We are Recruitment Advisors, specializing in Executive Search, Contingency Recruitment, Headhunting, Outsourced Labour and training. Using our significant market knowledge across, experience and judgement to help our clients employ the best qualified individuals for each position in Africa.

We’re known for our successful track record, responsiveness and discretion. We have a high performance culture and employ only experienced recruiters. These knowledgeable professionals provide a high level of service, deliver effective solutions and foster successful relationships through regular conversations with clients and candidates.

Job Description

ROLE OVERVIEW

The Engineering Foreman will lead day-to-day engineering and maintenance activities across a mining or drilling project environment, with responsibility for equipment availability, maintenance execution, breakdown response, technical supervision and safe delivery of work. The role combines frontline leadership with hands‑on engineering judgement and requires a strong understanding of heavy mechanical, electrical, hydraulic and drilling equipment.

The successful candidate will coordinate artisans and technical personnel, plan and monitor maintenance work, support fault finding and root-cause analysis, ensure equipment is maintained to operational standards, and work closely with production, project and engineering teams to minimise downtime and improve reliability.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Supervise engineering and maintenance teams across mining, drilling and associated project equipment.
• Plan, coordinate and monitor preventive, planned and corrective maintenance activities to support maximum equipment availability.
• Lead breakdown response, fault finding and technical troubleshooting across mechanical, electrical, hydraulic and pneumatic systems.
• Ensure daily, weekly and shutdown maintenance work is properly planned, prioritised, executed and closed out.
• Monitor equipment condition, recurring failures, downtime trends and maintenance backlogs, and drive corrective actions.
• Support root-cause investigations on significant equipment failures and implement practical reliability improvements.
• Coordinate inspections, servicing, repairs, component replacements and rebuild activities on heavy mining and drilling equipment.
• Ensure maintenance standards, OEM requirements, engineering procedures and statutory safety requirements are consistently applied.
• Manage workshop and site engineering activities, including tools, spares, consumables and critical replacement components.
• Liaise with OEMs, suppliers and technical support teams regarding diagnostics, parts, technical information and specialist interventions.
• Support commissioning, mobilisation and demobilisation of drilling and project equipment where required.
• Maintain accurate maintenance records, job cards, equipment history and technical reporting, including outstanding defects and action tracking.
• Supervise artisans, technicians and assistants, allocate work and ensure competent execution of engineering tasks.
• Coach technical team members and reinforce safe work practices, lock‑out procedures, permits and risk controls.
• Work closely with the Contract Manager / Project Manager and operations teams to balance maintenance requirements with production priorities.

EQUIPMENT & TECHNICAL EXPOSURE

• Heavy mining and drilling equipment, including drill rigs and associated mechanical systems.
• Mechanical drive systems, bearings, gearboxes, couplings and rotating equipment.
• Hydraulic power packs, cylinders, valves, pumps, hoses and hydraulic fault finding.
• Electrical motors, starters, panels, basic control systems, instrumentation and field electrical troubleshooting.
• Preventive maintenance, condition monitoring, inspections and equipment reliability practices.
• Mobile and fixed equipment maintenance within demanding mining or industrial environments.
• SANY mining / drilling equipment knowledge or previous maintenance exposure is a strong advantage.
• Experience with other recognised heavy‑equipment OEMs will also be considered relevant.
• Disciplined planning, reporting and follow‑through on defects and maintenance actions.

Requirements

EQUIPMENT & TECHNICAL EXPOSURE

• Heavy mining and drilling equipment, including drill rigs and associated mechanical systems.
• Mechanical drive systems, bearings, gearboxes, couplings and rotating equipment.
• Hydraulic power packs, cylinders, valves, pumps, hoses and hydraulic fault finding.
• Electrical motors, starters, panels, basic control systems, instrumentation and field electrical troubleshooting.
• Preventive maintenance, condition monitoring, inspections and equipment reliability practices.
• Mobile and fixed equipment maintenance within demanding mining or industrial environments.
• SANY mining / drilling equipment knowledge or previous maintenance exposure is a strong advantage.
• Experience with other recognised heavy‑equipment OEMs will also be considered relevant.
• Disciplined planning, reporting and follow‑through on defects and maintenance actions.

EXPERIENCE & REQUIREMENTS

• Minimum 5 years’ relevant engineering, maintenance or heavy‑equipment experience in mining, drilling, construction or a comparable industrial environment.
• Demonstrated experience supervising artisans, technicians or maintenance teams in an operational environment.
• Strong practical fault‑finding capability across mechanical and hydraulic systems; electrical exposure is highly advantageous.
• Experience planning and controlling maintenance work, breakdown response and equipment inspections.
• Sound knowledge of mining‑site safety requirements and safe maintenance practices.
• Ability to interpret technical manuals, drawings, schematics and OEM maintenance information.
• Strong planning, prioritisation, communication and practical problem‑solving ability.
• Willingness to work on operational project sites, including shifts, overtime, rotation or temporary relocation where required.
• Medically fit for mining / operational site work and in possession of a valid driver’s licence.

QUALIFICATIONS – PREFERRED PROFILE

• Recognised trade qualification such as Millwright, Fitter, Electrician, Diesel Mechanic or closely related technical trade; and/or
• N4–N6, Diploma or equivalent technical qualification in Mechanical, Electrical or Mining Engineering.
• Additional maintenance, reliability, hydraulics, electrical, OEM or supervisory training will be advantageous.

ADVANTAGEOUS

• Direct experience maintaining SANY drill rigs, mining machinery or associated SANY equipment.
• Raise‑bore, shaft, underground drilling or specialist mining equipment exposure.
• Experience working with maintenance planning systems / CMMS and structured job‑card processes.
• Experience with component rebuilds, major shutdowns, mobilisation or commissioning activities.
• Root Cause Analysis / reliability improvement experience.
• OEM technical training on drilling, hydraulic, electrical or heavy mobile equipment.

KEY COMPETENCIES

• Hands‑on engineering judgement and practical maintenance leadership.
• Strong troubleshooting and decision‑making under operational pressure.
• High focus on safety, equipment reliability and quality of workmanship.
• Ability to lead technical teams and hold maintenance standards consistently.
• Strong communication with operations, management, suppliers and OEM technical teams.
• Disciplined planning, reporting and follow‑through on defects and maintenance actions