• The role of a coffee technician – a professional who installs, maintains, and repairs commercial coffee equipment – is essential.
• It’s a demanding job that requires extensive travel and is often considered less glamorous than other roles in specialty coffee.
• However, as coffee equipment becomes increasingly complex and advanced, the demand for skilled technicians rises.
• Many educational institutions offer courses and training to learn the necessary technical and practical skills.

There’s a crucial job role working behind the scenes in specialty coffee to ensure every cup meets expectations: the coffee technician. 

These skilled professionals are the industry’s unsung heroes who keep complex machinery running smoothly, making the entire coffee experience possible. From troubleshooting espresso machines in busy cafés to performing essential preventative maintenance, technicians form the backbone of the coffee industry’s operational success.

The demand for qualified technicians continues to grow as the specialty coffee market expands and equipment becomes increasingly sophisticated. Modern cafés, roasteries, and hospitality businesses rely on complex machinery that requires specialised knowledge to maintain and repair. 

Unlike other roles in the coffee industry that may focus on sensory skills or business acumen, coffee technicians combine technical expertise with a deep understanding of how equipment affects coffee quality.

Lorenzo Roncali of Cimbali, Dan McCloskey of CYA Cover Your Assets, Brady Butler of Trail Blaze Coffee Academy, Jan Robert Brinck of Espresso Academy Firenze, and Collin Bay of First Crack Coffee share their insight.

You may also like our article on how to attract and retain the best baristas and roasters.

An essential role in the coffee industry

A coffee technician is a trained professional specialising in the installation, maintenance, and repair of coffee equipment. They ensure that espresso machines, grinders, roasters, and other machinery function correctly, efficiently, and safely, contributing to the overall quality of the coffee experience.

“They are the most important cog, at least in the hotel, restaurant, café (HoReCa) sector,” says Dan, the COO of CYA Cover Your Assets (CYA), a coffee equipment tracking and management solution.

Technicians handle several key responsibilities in the coffee industry, including installing new equipment, performing preventative maintenance to avoid breakdowns, troubleshooting and repairing when issues arise, replacing parts, and training café staff on proper equipment usage. Their work directly impacts the quality of every beverage served, making them indispensable to the coffee supply chain.

“Cafés are absolutely dependent on technicians to keep their businesses running,” says Collin, the owner of First Crack Coffee, a co-roasting facility and equipment distributor. “Although some owners and managers are skilled technicians themselves, many don’t have the time or expertise to focus on tech, which itself is an entirely different skill set.”

Although crucial, the job role is often deemed less alluring or “romantic” than others in the industry, such as baristas or roasters.

“Fixing machines is often a dirty job, and working around electricity, hot surfaces, and pressurised steam comes with the risk of injury,” says Brady, the founder of Trail Blaze Coffee Academy. “Since they generally work behind the scenes, even the best in the business aren’t often known outside of the tech community.”

The career path to becoming a coffee technician

Despite being essential to the coffee industry, launching a career as a technician presents unique challenges. The role requires technical expertise and problem-solving skills for a range of equipment, including different brands and models.

For those with existing technical skills or experience in coffee, the transition can be more straightforward than pursuing other specialised roles. Unlike becoming a head of coffee or green buyer, which requires extensive knowledge of sourcing, cupping, and business operations, technician work builds on mechanical and electrical skills that coffee professionals may develop over time working in cafés and roasteries.

However, unlike the barista-to-roaster career step, the path to becoming a coffee technician often isn’t direct.

“Every tech I’ve met has had a vastly different career path,” Collin explains.

Ultimately, the career trajectory varies significantly based on prior experience and overall job goals. 

“After initial training, new techs often start with shop rebuilds, installations, and preventive maintenance tasks, working up to simple repair calls,” Brady explains. “Many technicians should be able to handle most types of calls on familiar equipment within one to two years. Techs with three to five years of experience should be comfortable with complex troubleshooting and repair tasks.”

In the long term, many technicians may also have managerial career aspirations.

“As you develop in the job role, you can transition from fixing machines to managing a team of people who carry out this work,” Dan says. “The successful advanced technician can become a process manager too.”

It can also offer a lucrative career trajectory if approached correctly, especially in major metropolitan areas with a higher number of coffee shops, roasteries, hotels, restaurants, and other hospitality businesses. Conversely, for smaller towns and cities, the job may require more travel to reach a wider range of clients.

Although it’s not considered a customer-facing role, coffee technicians often have to interact with coffee shop and roastery staff – and not all communication will be overly positive. 

“There is plenty of opportunity to become a technician, as it’s a vastly underserved market; however, the skills are more valued by other industries, which really makes it a labour of love,” says Lorenzo, the Group Service Operations Manager at coffee equipment manufacturer Cimbali. 

“It’s also a thankless job. While preventive maintenance means interacting with customers when they’re happy, the true tech work inherently occurs when customers are most upset, angry, and stressed,” he adds. “You must be patient and have good people skills to pursue this career.”

Resources and training

Building expertise as a coffee technician requires developing an in-depth understanding of various equipment types and learning both preventative maintenance and repair techniques. This complexity cannot be understated; modern coffee equipment combines mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic systems.

“I find theoretical knowledge the most important,” says Jan, a coffee consultant and instructor at the Espresso Academy Firenze. “It’s not easy to learn how to fix coffee equipment without someone clearly explaining how things are supposed to work and why. It’s not enough to just stop something from leaking; we want it to work the way it was designed to.”

Prospective coffee techs can look to several resources, courses, and training programmes for support. The SCA Coffee Technicians Program is one of the most prominent examples.

“Structured learning experiences like SCA CTechP provide a good foundation of knowledge and skills that techs can build on out in the field,” explains Brady, who was the Lead Author for this programme. “Since its launch in 2021, these classes have helped hundreds of aspiring technicians launch their careers.

“However, it’s important to understand that the programme and manufacturer classes aren’t professional certifications,” he adds. “The real value of these classes is the knowledge and skills they gain.”

Other resources, like Cimbali’s Coffee Technicians Wheel, offer ongoing support for both new and experienced technicians to understand how equipment performance impacts extraction and flavour.

“The wheel is divided into five sections, each represented by a different colour,” Lorenzo explains. “The first focuses on the machine, with all its technical characteristics and maintenance aspects; then three sections related to coffee, covering grinding, blends and single origins, and roasting, all of which are fundamental to the final result in the cup. 

“Last, but not least, is the knowledge of water and its impact both on the reliability of the machine and on the sensory profile of the extraction,” he adds. “The wheel also has a cultural significance: it bridges the technical and sensory areas, bringing together worlds that are often perceived as separate.”

Like many other job roles in coffee, networking plays a crucial role in a technician’s career development.

“Find other technicians and talk to them, or find a mentor if possible,” Dan recommends. “This is a job that requires a lot of knowledge, and that knowledge is not necessarily found in a book. The specific vagaries of each equipment brand and model, and the moment that a technical problem arises, are not necessarily available to new people.”

For job opportunities, platforms like PDG Jobs provide access to technician positions and other coffee industry roles, helping connect qualified candidates with employers seeking skilled professionals.

How will the coffee technician job role evolve?

As coffee equipment becomes more technologically advanced and intuitive, the responsibilities and expertise of technicians will inevitably need to evolve in tandem with these changes.

“Machines are becoming more and more complex every year,” Jan says. “Bean-to-cup machines are gaining popularity; they are very easy to install and use, but really tricky to troubleshoot and fix. They often have features like wi-fi and Bluetooth connectivity.”

Industry professionals will need to familiarise themselves with new AI-driven features and smart technology integrations to keep up with new equipment technology – which could also offer solutions for reactive, preventative, or predictive maintenance.

However, as with producers, roasters, and baristas, the human element of this crucial job role will remain indispensable.

“I don’t think AI will take over,” Dan says. “You need the human hand to fix and a person to synthesise all the information.”

In fact, there’s the potential for AI solutions to better support coffee technicians in their job roles, managing tasks that can utilise remote access.

“New technologies, when used correctly, can greatly simplify the work of technicians, making it faster and more effective,” Lorenzo explains. “Over the years, Cimbali Group has developed several solutions that integrate full after-sales service, from the Global Remote Service Program for remote management of maintenance issues to solutions for scheduled maintenance.

“The most relevant recent innovation is undoubtedly the use of AI as a support tool for the service network, such as our new Techmate AI, with the goal of providing 24/7 responses and resources while shortening learning times related to new products.”

For those considering a career as a coffee technician, the combination of technical challenge, job security, and contribution to the coffee experience offers a rewarding professional journey. 

While it may not provide the same level of public recognition as other coffee roles, it offers the satisfaction of being an essential part of bringing exceptional coffee to consumers worldwide.

Looking for new positions in the coffee industry? Check out PDG Jobs here.

Photo credits: Cimbali Group, Espresso Academy Firenze

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