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Textile technical specialist - Technical Finishing Technician

Textile technical specialist - Technical Finishing Technician

Engineering and manufacturing

Level 4 - Higher Technical Occupation

Using specialist textile machinery and equipment to weave or to finish textiles.

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Reference: OCC0581A

Status: assignment_turned_inApproved occupation

Average (median) salary: £34,397 per year

SOC 2020 code: 5223 Metal working production and maintenance fitters

SOC 2020 sub unit groups:

  • 5223/11 Textile machine technicians
  • 3119/02 Textile consultants
  • 5419/01 Embroiderers and sewers
  • 5419/02 Knitters
  • 5419/03 Sail makers
  • 5419/04 Weavers (excludes baskets, wig and wire goods)

Technical Education Products

ST0581:

Textile technical specialist - Technical Finishing Technician

(Level 4)

Approved for delivery

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Bower Roebuck & Co Ltd, Cosmotec, English Fine Cottons, Autoliv, Holmfirth Dyers, H & C Whitehead, Mallalieus of Delph, Schlegel Products, Samuel Weller & Sons, William Reed Weaving, Wyedean Weaving, OJAM Jacquard Weavers, SIL Holdings, Marton Mills Co Ltd, Townend Weaving, Shirley Dyeing & Finishing, Carrington Workwear, Pincroft Dyeing & Printing, Antich & Sons (Huddersfield), Burberry, Camira Fabrics, Heathcoat Fabrics, WooltexUK, Bulmer & Lumb, J Bradbury Fabrics

Summary

This occupation is a technical role within textile and fashion advanced manufacturing companies. The occupation is a production/manufacturing role that involves the production of textiles for woven or finished fabrics. The broad purpose of the occupation is to ensure that the technical capabilities of the plant, the product and the machinery are appropriately and innovatively fined-tuned to meet customer expectations. This involves the use of specialist textile machinery and equipment, either to WEAVE or to FINISH textiles which service the world’s textile supply chain.

The Textile Technical Specialist is a core and options apprenticeship standard. The options are as follows:-

1) Technical Weaving - this occupation covers the whole of the weaving production operation in an advanced textile manufacturing company
2) Technical Finishing - this occupation covers the whole of the textile finishing operation in an advanced textile manufacturing company

A Textile Technical Specialist is highly skilled and can utilise, operate and maintain all equipment within either the WEAVING department or the FINISHING department.

In their daily work, an employee in either of these occupational roles works in a sophisticated production environment using computer systems to plan and programme production machinery, interchanging between manufacturing facilities and laboratories. Almost all their work is indoors in controlled environments and they would usually deal with customers by telephone or email over technical matters that affect production performance.

An employee in this occupation is responsible for the exact machinery programming, scientific analysis, accurate measurements, trials, whole production and efficiency as well as quality of fabric production for either the textile weaving or finishing applications. The role is heavily mechanised with the use of bespoke computer systems. It directly involves the production/output of fabrics to meet a high value market.

They work in a senior role as a business’s technical expert and lead a team of operatives. They report directly to senior management and directors and have overall scrutiny and responsibility for the accuracy of manufactured products. Textile Specialist have overall autonomy for the use of production machinery, ensuring that appropriate personnel are appointed to production roles to meet demand. They are employed across micro businesses, SMEs and large businesses, ranging from small weaving and finishing businesses to large clothing businesses to meet requirements of a global fashion market.

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Bower Roebuck & Co Ltd, Cosmotec, English Fine Cottons, Autoliv, Holmfirth Dyers, H & C Whitehead, Mallalieus of Delph, Schlegel Products, Samuel Weller & Sons, William Reed Weaving, Wyedean Weaving, OJAM Jacquard Weavers, SIL Holdings, Marton Mills Co Ltd, Townend Weaving, Shirley Dyeing & Finishing, Carrington Workwear, Pincroft Dyeing & Printing, Antich & Sons (Huddersfield), Burberry, Camira Fabrics, Heathcoat Fabrics, WooltexUK, Bulmer & Lumb, J Bradbury Fabrics

Typical job titles include:

Finishing Manager
Finishing Technician
Production Managers
Technical Finisher
Technical Weaver
Textile Technician
Textile Technologist
Weaving Manager
Weaving Overlooker
Weaving Technician

Keywords:

Fashion
Manufacturing
Production
Textile Machinery
Textiles

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)

K1: Principles of health, safety and welfare including employment law, safety management systems, control of substances, first aid, safe systems of work, dynamic risk assessment, safe personal protective equipment usage and the adherence to safety management practices.
K2: The textile sector, its history, heritage, manufacturing process and innovation potential in detail. Know how goods are procured and how they affect the economic potential in UK manufacturing. Understanding the sector will involve research in past, present and future manufacturing processes, including how new technology will affect production.
K3: The sources and processes of the textile supply chain, from raw materials consisting of natural fibres and manufactured fibres, their origin and their manufacturing process. Understanding pre and post production operations from fibre to finished garment. Knowing customer standards and expectations and adapting in-company processes to meet client need.
K4: The quality management systems deployed in textile processing at the high level. learners will require advanced knowledge and understanding of analytical product assessment and how it affects quality. The differences between quality testing methodology, upholding ISO systems, textile specific measurements and industry standards. Read and interpret specifications and test results and implement changes to machinery/processes as required. Understanding which aspects of quality production can affect final creations.
K8: Sources of fibre production, properties of different fibres and identification methods, how manufactured fibres are produced, and methods used, use of blends in textile manufacturing processes, production methods of raw materials and varied processes fibre to yarn to fabric, specialist materials and properties used in technical textile manufacturing.
K9: The different finishing processes including wet, dry, mechanical and chemical procedures. How finishing techniques can vary but are largely dependent on fibre type and yarn/fabric structure, fibre physical properties, fibre absorption properties and fabric receptivity to finishing agents, and susceptibility to chemical modifications.
K10: Finishing machinery and all services that affect and contribute to finishing of fabric types including woven, knitted, non-woven fabrics including machine limitations and design of construction. The machine finishing processes singeing, crabbing, scouring, carbonising, mercerising, bleaching, milling, hydro-extraction, drying, shearing, raising, pressing, cropping, decatising, steaming, calendering, inspection, tentering and stentering as required within production facilities.
K11: The conditions in which finishing machinery operates, the temperatures and climatic conditions that affect fabric finishing, cleaning and cross contamination practice, environmental impact of textile finishing, waste reduction, recycling.
K12: The use and disposal of chemicals/finishes for mildew proofing, mothproofing, crease resistance, moisture and soil resistance, flame retardents, microencapsulation, easy care, shrink resistance, and other functional coatings.

S1: Work within, and contribute to, a safe, healthy and well managed environment, taking into consideration the appropriate health & safety legislation that affects textile manufacturing.
S2: Develop working relationships in a manufacturing environment including listening skills around the machinery, effective communication skills with colleagues, identify improvements and interact confidently to ensure that production is achieved.
S3: Configure and prove textile machinery to ensure fabric specification, input all mechanical/electronic settings to maintain quality and productivity. Make changes to machine capabilities for different styles/qualities.
S4: Perform and make records of scheduled maintenance to ensure the efficiency of machinery meets production expectations and reduce malfunctions. Ensure continuing supply of spare parts to eliminate machine downtime and eliminate production losses, liaise with machine manufacturers to overcome performance limitations.
S5: Read and interpret data from production records, specifications, data management, process planning meetings including job documentation and appropriate work instructions.
S6: Accept changing priorities and work flexibly to meet company requirements. Work effectively with others in a team whilst maintaining effective working relationships. Accept that in textile production, the expectation to complete tasks within the job role affects the customer experience.
S8: Develop and operate plans for their own work area in line with business practice. Work with Shift Managers to produce specialist, technical reports and data to reinforce results and decision making. Identify priorities that affect the running of production whilst ensuring organisational policies are met.
S10: Rectify machine malfunctions and replace machine parts to tolerance settings. Maintain supply of spare parts to ensure production continuity. Carry out scheduled maintenance to machine manufacturer guidelines and lubricant specifications. Plan and forecast using known periods of peak time and downtime to maximise production with appropriate colleagues.
S11: Utilise production scheduling timing and accuracy to ensure changeover of jobs, staff and machinery are managed and maintained efficiently and effectively, recognising how to forecast and plan.
S12: Set up and configure all types of finishing machinery in the workplace to achieve specific fabric finishes, utilising skill and knowledge of treatment methods to ascertain the best finish. Contribute to achievement of production targets and quality standards in line with business practice.
S13: Identify when finishing treatments need refining by touch, feel, fabric rigidity and data analysis. Know how to diagnose faults in machinery and in process (water softening, temperatures etc). Undertake appropriate remedial activity to fix and redeploy personnel where necessary.
S14: Manage and maintain finishing equipment in line with company policy. Recognise when maintenance is affecting the fabric outcomes and technical performance.
S15: Manage raw materials (fabric) to ensure PH, water and chemical levels are exact and fit for customer requirement. Manage the input and output of fabrics to ensure services are maintained and monitored including environmental impact assessments.

B1: Ensure efficient and effective use of time, especially at shift changeover and during textile machinery downtime or changeovers. Manage time to meet business priorities.
B2: Recognise the value of the role within the organisation and the value of the role others perform, the drive and ambition needed to achieve in all aspects of work, including the importance of self-organisation and self-management of time.
B3: Commit to maintaining the highest standards of precision and excellence as appropriate to mechanised textile production, a positive work ethic in line with the organisation’s core strategies and principles.
B4: Appropriate communication techniques within a manufacturing environment, including patience, calmness, vigilance and appropriate communication styles when dealing with all types of customer.
B5: Complies with statutory and organisation health & safety regulations and policies at all times. Accepts responsibility for their workload with a responsible approach to risk. Continually demonstrates a high level of motivation and resilience when facing challenges.

Duties

Duty D1

plan daily production schedules for specialist textile equipment.

Duty D2

manage staff within the team to ensure effective and efficient textile production.

Duty D3

create technical product reports that demonstrate production expectations for customers, taking into account the technical specifications needed to meet bespoke client needs.

Duty D4

calculate production, ratios, energy consumption, and other measurements appropriate to the production of high quality textiles.

Duty D5

manage Health & Safety processes undertaken and maintain safety of the team.

Duty D6

manage customer need and produce according to specific bespoke client requirement.

Duty D7

tailor/adjust equipment for effective production and optimise machinery ensuring that the core values of production are maintained throughout including the use of specialist ICT software on machines.

Duty D8

plan and maintain all schedules for upgrade, upkeep and maintenance to reduce downtime production loss.

Duty D9

maintain quality control expectations and identify fault through rigorous analysis of end product.

Duty D16

Set up and prepare finishing machines and its various processes (tentering, cropping, decatizing) as required, ensuring that batch sheets are fully evaluated prior to production, as outlined in client brief.

Duty D17

Set machine width on machine control systems and ensure machine temperature settings are precise for the type of material in production prior to tenter pinning (e.g. difference for wool, cottons, blended cloth fibres etc)

Duty D18

Plan, organise and carry out fabric cropping on piece ends, ensuring that settings are appropriate in terms of speed, time and pass (example: 18metres per minute standard industry practice) and manage cylinder cutting.

Duty D19

Review cropping processes to ensure damage hotspots are identified, evaluated for severity and amended, working on setting changes as the fabric passes through each cylinder, before recording on batch records using the appropriate computer control systems.

Duty D20

Organise decatising of fabric, through system control panel, noting input wrapper and roller settings as per recorded settings. Run at industry speed (example: 200m empty wrapper standard expectations) before introducing piece end into the machine, making sure the edge isn’t frayed and even.

Duty D21

Apply weft straightener settings and run into machine meterage (example: 600m) and work with the parameters of the autoclave machine to finalise fabric for client despatch.

Duty D22

Monitor spare part usage on the finishing machinery (across the whole of the finishing department) and order replacements in a timely manner to ensure production targets are maintained. Enforce a proactive and preventative maintenance programme, according to schedule set by machinery manufacturers (example: utilising correct specification of lubricants on moving parts to maintain machine efficiencies).

Occupational Progression

This occupational progression map shows technical occupations that have transferable knowledge and skills.

In this map, the focused occupation is highlighted in yellow. The arrows indicate where transferable knowledge and skills exist between two occupations. This map shows some of the strongest progression links between the focused occupation and other occupations.

It is anticipated that individuals would be required to undertake further learning or training to progress to and from occupations. To find out more about an occupation featured in the progression map, including the learning options available, click the occupation.

Progression decisions have been reached by comparing the knowledge and skills statements between occupational standards, combined with individualised learner movement data.

Technical Occupations

Levels 2-3

Higher Technical Occupations

Levels 4-5

Professional Occupations

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Engineering and manufacturing