Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment

In industrial maintenance today, AI mostly helps people rather than replaces them. For example, factories use sensors and smart software to record how machines are running. That means tasks like keeping performance logs and routine checks can be done by computer systems ^{[1] [1]}.

Advanced systems even use AI to predict breakdowns and auto-create repair work orders ^{[1] [1]}. In one case, a power plant used an AI tool to help schedule maintenance before problems appeared ^[2]. Still, setting up, adjusting, and fixing equipment mostly needs a person at the controls.

Technicians must walk around, use tools by hand, and talk with operators – skills like listening and explaining fixes that AI can’t do.As a result, AI is augmenting this work (by handling data and alerts) but not fully automating it yet ^{[2] [1]}. Humans are still needed for the tricky problem-solving, hands-on repairs, and customer communication.

Whether this field embraces AI quickly depends on practical factors. One big reason companies look at AI is labor needs. Many maintenance workers are older and retiring faster than new ones arrive, so businesses feel the pinch of a shrinking workforce ^[3].

This pushes some companies to adopt AI tools and advanced software, even partnering with tech firms, to fill gaps ^{[3] [2]}. On the other hand, rolling out AI also has costs and challenges. New AI systems can be expensive and require skilled staff to run them – something many firms admit they lack ^[3].

Industries with strict safety rules (like nuclear power) also rely on humans for final checks ^[2]. Economically, businesses will balance the cost of AI against paying experienced technicians. In the end, AI is likely to grow where it clearly saves money or time and where operators trust it.

But human skills – creativity, manual dexterity, and talking with customers – will remain valuable. In short, AI tools will augment these repair jobs over time, but people will still lead on the complex, hands-on, and social parts of the work ^{[3] [2]}.