Profession pultrusion machine operator

Pultrusion Machine Operators tend, control, and maintain machines which enable the production of composite materials with consistent cross-sections by adding reinforcement fibres such as fibreglass to the existing material and coating the resulting material with resin; this then is pulled through a heated dye where it becomes cured.

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.

• 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.

• Pultrusion process

  The process where a cluster of fibre is coated in resin and forced through a mold, then cured with heat to produce a fibre-reinforced polymer.

• 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

• 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.

• 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.

• Monitor gauge

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

• 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.

• 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.

• Optimise production processes parameters

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

• Feed glass fibre into pultrusion machine

  Make sure the glass fibre material is taken in by the pultrusion machine without jams or defects.

Optional knowledge and skills

Source: Sisyphus ODB