Automotive HVAC Technician (Air Conditioning)
Company: Ulm Automotive LLC
Department: Production
Reports to: Production Manager
Location: Bogart, GA (on-site)
Employment type: Full-time, hourly, non-exempt; paid weekly.
Direct reports: None
Position Summary
The Automotive HVAC Technician owns the climate system in every vehicle we build. Ulm converts incomplete Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis into luxury passenger vehicles, and a rear-cabin air conditioning and heating system is part of every build: auxiliary evaporators, condensers, compressors, refrigerant lines, ducting, and controls that have to integrate cleanly with the chassis HVAC and deliver cabin comfort for passengers in summer heat.
This technician installs, evacuates, charges, leak-tests, and performance-tests those systems, diagnoses the ones that do not perform, and is the floor's expert on refrigerant handling and climate electrical. It is a specialist seat on the production line, not a general mechanic role, and it also supports warranty diagnosis on vehicles that come back.
Key Responsibilities
- Installation
- Install auxiliary air conditioning and heating systems to the drawing: under-body condensers, rear evaporator units, compressor upgrades or add-on compressors, refrigerant line routing, and ducting through the interior.
- Fabricate and crimp refrigerant hoses and lines, route them clear of heat, abrasion, and moving parts, and secure them to the standard.
- Wire the climate system: relays, fuses, thermostats and controls, blower circuits, and integration with the chassis electrical system, to the schematic and the 12V wiring standard.
- Install auxiliary heaters and ventilation components where the build calls for them.
- Charging, Testing & Diagnosis
- Pressure test, evacuate, and charge every system by weight to specification; log refrigerant type and quantity on the build record.
- Perform performance testing (vent temperature, pressures, airflow, cycling) before final inspection and document the results.
- Diagnose low performance, leaks, electrical faults, and noise complaints on in-process and returned vehicles and repair to root cause.
- Recover and handle refrigerant in compliance with EPA Section 609 and shop procedures; maintain the recovery and charging equipment.
Quality & Documentation
- Build to the current drawing and BOM revision; report any mismatch between the drawing, the kit, and the vehicle before proceeding.
- Complete station checklists and torque and leak-test sign-offs; tag and report nonconformities rather than working around them.
- Feed installation improvements and component problems back to Engineering and Purchasing.
Training & Support
- Serve as the floor's reference on climate systems: train production technicians on ducting, wiring, and handling of components at adjacent stations.
- Support the Quality Manager on final inspection of climate function and road-test climate checks.
- Keep the climate work area, tools, and refrigerant inventory organized, labeled, and safe.