Profession plastic heat treatment equipment operator

Plastic heat treatment equipment operators manipulate plastic products using machinery such as furnaces or flame-hardening machines in order to temper, anneal or heat-treat. They set up the machinery and read the production instructions to determine the furnace temperature. Plastic heat treatment equipment operators remove products from machines, let them cool down, examine and test products to see if they conform to specifications.

Personality Type

• Realistic / Conventional
• Realistic / Investigative

Knowledge

• 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.

• Plastic resins

  The process of heating hydrocarbons, forming and combining polymers to create plastic resins which are used to make different kinds of products.

• Types of plastic

  Types of plastic materials and their chemical composition, physical properties, possible issues and usage cases.

Skills

• Extract materials from furnace

  Remove materials from the furnace using a crane, a conveyor, by tilting the furnace, or using other methods.

• Operate heat treatment furnace

  Operate or tend furnaces such as gas, oil, electric to heat treat castings in order to reach the correct mechanical properties. Adjust furnace controls to heat parts the prescribed time to the right temperature.

• Record furnace operations

  Log furnace time and production data.

• Prevent damage in a furnace

  Provide damage and risk prevention in a furnace or a smelter.

• Maintain furnace temperature

  Monitor and govern the pyrometer to control the furnace temperature.

• Measure furnace temperature

  Monitor the product temperature using the available tools and measuring instruments and adjust furnace temperature if needed.

• Monitor automated machines

  Continuously check up on the automated machine's set-up and execution or make regular control rounds. If necessary, record and interpret data on the operating conditions of installations and equipment in order to identify abnormalities.

• Troubleshoot

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

• Load materials into furnace

  Load materials in furnace with correct positioning, fastening and levelling when needed.

• Use personal protection equipment

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

• 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.

• Tend discharge conveyor

  Operate and monitor the equipment used to move bulk material, such as blended granules, from one place to another.

• Optimise production processes parameters

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

• 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.

Optional knowledge and skills

Source: Sisyphus ODB