Lead HVAC Mechanic – Life Science

The Lead HVAC Mechanic is responsible for leading and performing the maintenance, troubleshooting, repair, and installation of HVAC, mechanical, controls, and building systems within a highly regulated life sciences environment. This role provides technical leadership and direction to HVAC technicians and maintenance personnel while ensuring critical building systems operate reliably, safely, and in accordance with facility requirements, applicable codes, and established procedures.

The Lead HVAC Mechanic plays a critical role in maintaining environmental conditions required for laboratory, research, manufacturing, and support spaces. The position requires a strong understanding of critical HVAC systems, including air handling units, variable air volume (VAV) systems, exhaust systems, chilled water systems, pumps, cooling towers, refrigeration equipment, building automation systems (BAS), and associated controls.

The Lead HVAC Mechanic will support preventive and predictive maintenance programs, respond to equipment alarms and system abnormalities, troubleshoot complex mechanical and control issues, and coordinate with Facilities, Engineering, EHS, laboratory operations, vendors, and contractors. The role requires a strong commitment to safety, documentation, system reliability, regulatory compliance, and maintaining the environmental conditions necessary to support life sciences operations.

• Provide daily leadership, technical direction, and mentorship to HVAC technicians and maintenance personnel.
• Assign, prioritize, and review HVAC work orders to ensure timely, accurate, and high-quality completion.
• Serve as the primary technical resource for advanced HVAC troubleshooting, diagnostics, system optimization, and equipment reliability.
• Coordinate daily HVAC activities to minimize disruption to laboratory, research, manufacturing, and other critical operations.
• Oversee contractors and vendors performing HVAC and mechanical work, ensuring quality, safety, compliance, and adherence to facility procedures and project specifications.
• Train and coach team members on equipment, operating procedures, preventive maintenance requirements, safety practices, and life sciences facility standards.
• Assist management with developing preventive and predictive maintenance programs and identifying equipment reliability and capital improvement opportunities.
• Monitor team productivity, work quality, documentation, and adherence to company policies, safety procedures, and site-specific requirements.
• Support emergency response activities and provide technical leadership during HVAC or building system incidents.

• Troubleshoot, maintain, repair, and optimize HVAC equipment and associated control systems.
• Maintain critical HVAC systems supporting laboratory, research, manufacturing, office, and support spaces.
• Perform preventive and predictive maintenance in accordance with established schedules, procedures, manufacturer recommendations, and facility requirements.
• Maintain and troubleshoot air handling units, exhaust systems, VAV boxes, supply and return systems, chilled water systems, cooling towers, pumps, compressors, refrigeration equipment, and associated mechanical systems.
• Troubleshoot and maintain building automation and energy management systems, including sensors, actuators, valves, control sequences, alarms, and system programming.
• Perform or oversee brazing, soldering, welding, refrigeration work, and other mechanical repairs as required.
• Install, modify, and repair ductwork, refrigeration piping, chilled water piping, air-conditioning equipment, exhaust systems, and related mechanical components.
• Monitor critical environmental conditions and respond appropriately to HVAC alarms, temperature/humidity excursions, equipment failures, and other system abnormalities.
• Support the operation and maintenance of systems serving controlled and critical environments, including areas with specific temperature, humidity, pressure, airflow, or air-change requirements.
• Assist with system startups, shutdowns, equipment changeovers, commissioning, and operational testing.
• Review equipment performance and identify opportunities to improve reliability, energy efficiency, system performance, and operating costs.

• Execute and oversee preventive maintenance activities in accordance with site procedures and established maintenance schedules.
• Maintain accurate computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) records, equipment logs, work orders, inspection records, and other required documentation.
• Ensure maintenance activities are thoroughly documented and completed in accordance with applicable site procedures and documentation standards.
• Support investigations of equipment failures, recurring issues, alarms, and environmental condition excursions.
• Assist with identifying root causes and implementing corrective actions to prevent recurring equipment or system failures.
• Maintain accurate records of refrigerant use, equipment maintenance, inspections, repairs, and regulatory requirements.
• Ensure HVAC work is performed in compliance with applicable building, mechanical, electrical, environmental, safety, and regulatory requirements.
• Follow site-specific procedures governing work in laboratories, controlled areas, and other restricted or critical environments.
• Support change-control, permit-to-work, lockout/tagout, hot work, confined-space, and other applicable safety and operational processes.
• Participate in inspections, audits, emergency preparedness activities, and regulatory or client reviews as required.

• Maintain a strong understanding of the importance of HVAC system reliability within a life sciences environment.
• Coordinate HVAC maintenance activities with laboratory, research, manufacturing, EHS, Facilities, Engineering, and other site stakeholders.
• Plan work to minimize impact to critical operations and maintain required environmental conditions.
• Support responses to temperature, humidity, pressure differential, airflow, and other environmental deviations.
• Coordinate system shutdowns, isolations, repairs, and equipment changeovers with affected stakeholders.
• Support facility testing, commissioning, qualification, and requalification activities as applicable to the site.
• Follow site procedures for entering and working within controlled, laboratory, and restricted areas.
• Maintain appropriate housekeeping and cleanliness standards when working in controlled or critical environments.

• Respond promptly to HVAC and mechanical emergencies, equipment failures, alarms, and client concerns.
• Provide technical leadership during emergency response and coordinate additional resources as needed.
• Follow all site safety requirements, including lockout/tagout, electrical safety, confined-space, fall protection, hot work, chemical safety, and personal protective equipment requirements, as applicable.
• Inspect equipment and work areas for unsafe conditions, deficiencies, or potential hazards and report findings to management.
• Support emergency preparedness and business continuity activities related to HVAC and building systems.
• Maintain and operate applicable life safety systems within the scope of the position and coordinate with qualified vendors and specialists when required.

• Monitor HVAC parts, tools, refrigerants, and critical spare inventory levels.
• Support procurement and replenishment of critical materials and equipment.
• Coordinate vendor and contractor activities and verify work is completed according to specifications.
• Review contractor documentation and provide feedback regarding quality, safety, and performance.
• Assist management with evaluating equipment replacement, service agreements, and capital improvement opportunities.

• Maintain effective daily communication with Facilities, Engineering, EHS, laboratory and research personnel, site leadership, security, vendors, contractors, and other stakeholders.
• Provide clear communication regarding equipment status, planned maintenance, system outages, risks, and corrective actions.
• Respond professionally and promptly to customer and internal stakeholder requests.
• Escalate critical equipment issues, environmental deviations, safety concerns, and operational risks appropriately.
• Promote a collaborative, service-oriented culture across the Facilities and Engineering teams.

• Collaborate with Facilities, Engineering, EHS, laboratory, research, manufacturing, quality, and site leadership teams.
• Provide technical guidance and direction to HVAC technicians and other maintenance personnel.
• Partner with vendors, contractors, equipment manufacturers, and service providers.
• Maintain strong working relationships with internal customers and stakeholders whose operations depend on reliable building systems.
• Coordinate work across multiple disciplines to safely maintain critical facility infrastructure.

• Active HVAC/Refrigeration license or certification as required by applicable jurisdiction.
• Minimum of five years of experience as an HVAC mechanic in a commercial, industrial, laboratory, healthcare, manufacturing, or life sciences facility; prior lead or supervisory experience preferred.
• Experience working with critical HVAC systems and environments where temperature, humidity, pressure, airflow, or air quality must be closely controlled.
• Strong knowledge of HVAC, mechanical, electrical, refrigeration, and building automation systems.
• Familiarity with applicable HVAC, mechanical, electrical, fire/life safety, environmental, and occupational safety codes and regulations.
• Ability to troubleshoot complex HVAC and control systems using appropriate diagnostic tools and technical documentation.
• Mechanical and electrical aptitude with large-tonnage HVAC equipment.
• Experience servicing air handling units, VAV systems, exhaust systems, chillers, cooling towers, pumps, compressors, refrigeration systems, and associated controls.
• Ability to troubleshoot and work with building automation and energy management systems.
• Ability to change refrigeration compressors, service cooling towers, rebuild or replace large centrifugal pumps, service and repair VAV boxes, troubleshoot controls, and perform system programming.
• Proficiency in brazing, soldering, welding, and other mechanical repair techniques.
• Ability to read and interpret mechanical drawings, equipment manuals, control sequences, P&IDs, and related technical documentation.
• Strong computer skills and ability to work with CMMS, BAS, and other facility management systems.
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize multiple work orders and respond effectively to changing operational requirements.
• Ability to work varying shifts, weekends, holidays, and participate in an emergency/on-call rotation as required.

• Previous experience working in a life science, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, laboratory, healthcare, or other highly regulated environment.
• Familiarity with controlled environments, cleanrooms, laboratory spaces, critical exhaust systems, and environmental monitoring requirements.
• Experience supporting commissioning, qualification, validation, or requalification activities.
• Experience with computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) and building automation systems (BAS).
• Strong understanding of critical facility infrastructure and equipment redundancy.
• Demonstrated ability to identify root causes and implement corrective actions for recurring equipment issues.
• Strong attention to detail, accuracy, and documentation.
• Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and develop technical staff.
• Strong customer service and communication skills.
• Ability to work effectively in a team-oriented, fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrates sound judgment when responding to equipment failures and other critical facility events.
• Consistently follows established procedures and safety requirements.
• Maintains a high standard of workmanship and takes ownership of assigned responsibilities.
• Adapts effectively to changing priorities, operational requirements, and unexpected events.

At UG2, a leader in facility services, we are committed to innovation, excellence, and client satisfaction. We are committed to developing the strongest customer relationships and the highest service delivery benchmarks in the marketplace.

Founded in 2012, UG2 is privately held and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. We also have regional offices in Chicago, Washington, D.C., New York City, West Palm Beach, Los Angeles, Sunnyvale, and Dallas.