Profession stone planer

Stone planers operate and maintain planing machines that are used for stone blocks and slabs finishing. They manipulate the stone and ensure that the required parameters are according to specifications.

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Personality Type

  • Realistic / Conventional

Knowledge

  • Types of stone for working

    Different types of stone that stonemasons and other stone workers use to process into building materials. The mechanical properties of stone, such as their weight, tensile strength, durability. Economical properties such as cost, transport and sourcing.

  • Types of sawing blades

    Types of cutting blades used in the sawing process, such as band saw blades, crosscut blades, plytooth blades and others, made from tool steel, carbide, diamond or other materials.

  • 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.

Skills

  • Use traditional stone splitting techniques

    Drill holes in a large stone and insert the plugs and feathers. Strike the plugs several times until a crack appears.

  • Wear appropriate protective gear

    Wear relevant and necessary protective gear, such as protective goggles or other eye protection, hard hats, safety gloves.

  • Tend planing machine

    Tend and monitor the planing machine used to shape and smooth the stone blocks and slabs according to specifications.

  • Maneuver stone blocks

    Maneuver the blocks of stone, placing them in the correct position in the machine bed using electric hoist, wooden blocks and wedges.

  • Troubleshoot

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

  • Ensure equipment availability

    Ensure that the necessary equipment is provided, ready and available for use before start of procedures.

  • Dispose of cutting waste material

    Dispose of possibly hazardous waste material created in the cutting process, such as swarf, scrap and slugs, sort according to regulations, and clean up workplace.

  • Mark stone workpieces

    Mark planes, lines and points onto a stone workpiece to show where material will be removed.

  • Supply machine with appropriate tools

    Supply the machine with the necessary tools and items for a particular production purpose.

  • Remove processed workpiece

    Remove individual workpieces after processing, from the manufacturing machine or the machine tool. In case of a conveyor belt this involves quick, continuous movement.

  • Measure materials

    Measure the raw materials prior to their loading in the mixer or in machines, ensuring they conform with the specifications.

  • Inspect stone surface

    Inspect the surface of the stone to identify any uneven areas.

  • Operate precision measuring equipment

    Measure the size of a processed part when checking and marking it to check if it is up to standard by use of two and three dimensional precision measuring equipment such as a caliper, a micrometer, and a measuring gauge.

  • Measure flatness of a surface

    Measure the evenness of a workpiece's surface after it has been processed by checking for deviations from the desired perpendicular state.

  • Supply machine

    Ensure the machine is fed the necessary and adequate materials and control the placement or automatic feed and retrieval of work pieces in the machines or machine tools on the production line.

  • Regulate cutting speed

    Regulate the speed and depth of stone cutting by pulling the levers and turning the wheels.

  • Prepare stone for smoothing

    Prepare the stone for the smoothing process by wetting it with the hose.

Optional knowledge and skills

polish stone by hand mechanical tools operate grinding hand tools keep records of work progress report defective manufacturing materials maintain equipment perform test run use stonemason's chisel operate lifting equipment mechanics sharpen edged tools consult technical resources inspect quality of products polish stone surfaces work ergonomically set up the controller of a machine monitor automated machines lubricate engines

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