Profession filament winding operator

Filament winding operators tend, control and maintain machines that coat filament, usually fibreglass or carbon, in resin and wind them around a rotation mould to produce pipes, containers, tubes and other hollow cylindrical products.

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Personality Type

  • Realistic / Conventional
  • Realistic / Investigative

Knowledge

  • Coating substances

    Have knowledge of various types of coating, providing a workpiece with one or more finishing layers of resins, sugars, powders, inactive and insoluable fillers, waxes, gums, plasticisers, colouring materials, lacquer, and others.

  • Quality standards

    The national and international requirements, specifications and guidelines to ensure that products, services and processes are of good quality and fit for purpose.

  • Types of fibre for polymer reinforcement

    Fibres used to reinforce composite materials, such as glass fibre, carbon fibre and plastic fibre. Their usage cases, costs, advantages and disadvantages, and production techniques associated with their use.

Skills

  • Monitor processing environment conditions

    Verify that the overall conditions of the room where the process will take place, such as temperature or air humidity, meet the requirements, and adjust if necessary.

  • Consult technical resources

    Read and interpret such technical resources such as digital or paper drawings and adjustment data in order to properly set up a machine or working tool, or to assemble mechanical equipment.

  • Control temperature

    Measure and adjust temperature of a given space or object.

  • Cure composite workpiece

    Take the necessary steps to let a composite workpiece cure. Switch on heating components like infrared lamps or heated moulds, or introduce the workpiece into a curing oven.

  • Conform to health and safety regulations

    Carry out all work in accordance with relevant environmental and health and safety legislation, risk assessment requirements and company policies. Take the necessary health and safety precautions during work including posture the body well, safely operate tools and machinery, and wear the right clothes and protection for the climate.

  • Troubleshoot

    Identify operating problems, decide what to do about it and report accordingly.

  • Use personal protection equipment

    Make use of protection equipment according to training, instruction and manuals. Inspect the equipment and use it consistently.

  • Monitor gauge

    Oversee the data presented by a gauge concerning the measurement of pressure, temperature, thickness of a material, and others.

  • Remove filament composite workpiece from mandrel

    After the filament has been wound onto the mandrel mould and cured enough, remove the mandrel if called for.

  • Set up the controller of a machine

    Set up and give commands to a machine by dispatching the appropriate data and input into the (computer) controller corresponding with the desired processed product.

  • Prepare resin bath

    Fill a reservoir with resin to be used in coating a variety of materials such as filament or glass wool. Make sure the quantity is correct and the resin is of the correct composition and temperature.

  • Optimise production processes parameters

    Optimise and maintain the parameters of the production process such as flow, temperature or pressure.

Optional knowledge and skills

perform test run maintain equipment polymerisation adjust filament tension control production flow remotely measure materials manage waste report defective manufacturing materials cut filament saw off filament mandrel pins clean equipment composite materials synthetic resins plastic resins keep records of work progress manufacturing of daily use goods inspect quality of products

Common job titles

  • Extrusion operator
  • Winder operator
  • Spaceship propulsion production technician
  • Production operator i
  • Composites supervisor & machine programmer (csmp) (aco supervisor)
  • Fiberglass winder-106561
  • Winder