Profession glass forming machine operator
Glass forming machine operators operate and maintain machines that press or blow molten glass in moulds to form or shape products, such as neons, bottles, jars and drinking glasses. They set up and adjust machines, and weigh, measure and check production samples to check conformity to the set specifications.
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Personality Type
- Realistic / Conventional
Knowledge
- Blow moulding
The three main techniques to create hollow plastic and glass parts, namely extrusion blow molding, injection blow molding and injection stretch blow molding.
Skills
- Tend glass forming machines
Tend automatic glass forming machines by setting them up and operating them in order to press, blow, or spin gobs of molten glass in moulds having end-products such as bottles, containers or cathode ray tubes.
- Prevent casting adhesion
Prevent the casting sticking to the moulds by brushing the mould with oil, hot wax or graphite solution, according to the specification of each casting components.
- Measure materials
Measure the raw materials prior to their loading in the mixer or in machines, ensuring they conform with the specifications.
- Inspect glass sheet
Inspect the drawn sheets of glass in order to detect any flows such as blisters or stones, signalling the defective glass sheets.
- Observe products' behaviour
Observe the color of fires and pyrometric cones under certain processing conditions such as high temperature.
- Clean moulds
Clean the mould using water, grease or oil, washing and scraping them by hand.
- Optimise production processes parameters
Optimise and maintain the parameters of the production process such as flow, temperature or pressure.
- Observe glass under heat
Observe the characteristics of the glass already set into the kiln so that cracking, warping or blistering is avoided.
- Adjust feeder tubes
Use wrenches to install and adjust the tubes that carry the gob to the moulds.