Profession pottery and porcelain caster

Pottery and porcelain casters fill moulds with clay to cast pottery and porcelain wares. They pour excess slip out of the mould when needed, drain moulds, remove the cast from the mould, smooth the casting surfaces to remove marks and place the castings on boards to dry.

Personality Type

• Realistic / Conventional

Knowledge

• Types of pottery material

  Types of clays and mud and their appearance, properties, reaction to fire, etc.

• Materials used in stoneware manufacturing

  Characteristics and properties of the different materials used in the production of the vitreous ceramic made of stoneware clay, or in some cases of non-refractory fire-clay.

• Materials in porcelain manufacturing

  Characteristics and properties of the different raw materials such as china clay, ball clay, alumina, flint and feldspar used for the production of household ware and decorative items.

Skills

• Extract products from moulds

  Remove finished products from moulds and examine them in detail for anomalies.

• Conform with clay thickness

  Conform with the specified clay thickness by pouring the excess slip from moulds while watching the clay level through the mould opening.

• Troubleshoot

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

• 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.

• Use personal protection equipment

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

• Inspect quality of products

  Use various techniques to ensure the product quality is respecting the quality standards and specifications. Oversee defects, packaging and sendbacks of products to different production departments.

• 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.

• Tend pug mills

  Tend the pug mill by adjusting the controls in order to mix, extrude or deposit the clay charges according to specifications.

• Tend jigger machines

  Tend the jigger machine in order to obtain the specified ceramic endproducts such as bowls, plates or cups.

Optional knowledge and skills

Source: Sisyphus ODB