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Process industry manufacturing technician

Process industry manufacturing technician

Engineering and manufacturing

Level 3 - Technical Occupation

Apply a process or processes to create products to a specification.

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Reference: OCC1407

Status: assignment_turned_inApproved occupation

Technical Education Products

ST1407:

Process industry manufacturing technician

(Level 3)

Approved for delivery

Employers involved in creating the standard:

CPI, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, Sterling PSL, Seqens, Essar Oil, Alpek Polyester, GSK, Solenis, Conoco Philips, Seqirus UK Limited, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

Summary

Process industry technicians are found in process manufacturing industries.

They run processes involving high hazard inputs to produce products that meet specifications. This may include chemical-based products, stabilised crude, ethane, butane, methane, and hydrogen. The working environment is highly controlled due to the use of high hazard chemicals. Technicians must follow high-level safety systems. Typically, production is on a large scale using a continuous process. This usually means operations are 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Technicians may be required to work shifts.

Technicians run and maintain the process or processes in line with operational parameters. They conduct quality assurance, resolving or escalating any issues, and complete records. Maintaining workplace safety by following health, safety and environmental risk and management systems is a vital part of the role. Preparing equipment for maintenance and bringing equipment back on line is also part of the role. They also support risk assessment, improvement activities, and audits.

On a daily basis, they work with other members of the process team. They also have contact with people in other teams for example, laboratory, maintenance, process engineering, supply chain, and warehouse. They may also have contact with external people such as, customers, service providers, and regulators.

They must ensure that the process and products meet quality specifications and are produced to schedule. They must work to external manufacturing regulations to protect the process, product, plant and equipment, company employees, and the environment. They must also consider sustainability. They may need to wear specialist PPE to protect the product or themselves. This may include, safety glasses, chemical resistant gloves, suits, and footwear, and breathing apparatus. They may work alone or part of a team. They work with minimal supervision, taking responsibility for the quality and accuracy of their work.

Employers involved in creating the standard:

CPI, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, Sterling PSL, Seqens, Essar Oil, Alpek Polyester, GSK, Solenis, Conoco Philips, Seqirus UK Limited, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

Typical job titles include:

Chemical process technician
Chemical production technician
Oil and gas process technician
Petrochemical process technician
Plant technician
Process industry technician
Process manufacturing technician
Process technician
Production technician
Hydrogen production technicianeco

Keywords:

Chemical
Industrial Science
Manufacture
Petrochemical
Process
Processing
Science

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)

K1: Science process manufacturing sector awareness: range of products, manufacturing environments, types of customers.
K2: Role and limits of responsibility. Escalation procedures. Impact of operators’ competence on product quality. Change control requirement.
K3: Health and safety regulations, standards, and guidance: Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH), Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations (DSEAR), Electrical safety and compliance, Fire safety, Health and Safety at Work Act – responsibilities, incident and near miss reporting and investigation, Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER), Legionella, Lone working, Management of health and safety at work, Manual handling, Noise regulation, Permits to work, Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER), Safety signage and purpose, Slips trips and falls, The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), Working in confined spaces, and Working at height.
K4: Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) regulation and impact on workplaces.
K5: Science process manufacturing safety hazards – risks they pose and their management: temperature, pressure, and vapours. Risk assessment and safe systems of work. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) requirements.
K6: Emergency procedures.
K7: Health and safety management systems; key performance indicators (KPIs) and learning from incidents.
K8: Environmental hazards that can arise from process. Hierarchy of control.
K9: Environmental management systems standard. Environmental Protection Act. Environmental signage and notices.
K10: Principles of sustainability and circular economy. Resource (energy, water, and waste) efficiency and reuse of materials. Principles of control and management of emissions and waste.
K11: Planning, prioritising, and time management techniques.
K12: Continuous and batch techniques. Production requirements: product specification, processing specification, rate of production. Material safety data sheet, product labelling and product codes; the importance of identifying non-conforming materials and products. Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). Stock control. Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP).
K13: Standard operating procedures (SOP) - what they are and why they are important.
K14: Standard operating conditions (SOC) - what they are and why they are important.
K15: Documentation requirements: documentation control, auditable records.
K16: Main factors influencing quality assurance in industrial process industries. Quality standards.
K17: Principles of laboratory quality procedures: calibration requirements for quality control, representative sampling, and common methods of analysis.
K18: How customer feedback can be used to assess quality performance. Purpose of audits. Non-conformance reports (NCR). Corrective Action Preventive Action (CAPA).
K19: Common faults and causes in processing: flow, blockages, instrumentation failures, seals and human factors.
K20: Problem solving and fault-finding techniques: root cause analysis, 5-Whys.
K21: Continuous improvement (CI) systems and techniques.
K22: Different types of maintenance activities: preventative and reactive.
K23: Requirements for shutting down and preparing for maintenance.
K24: Requirements for bringing equipment back from maintenance.
K25: Purpose and operation of process industry equipment.
K26: Process control systems and their constituent components.
K27: Uses of water in and around the plant. Types of water: raw, treated, demineralized; uses, differences, and composition. Water purification requirements and methods.
K28: Common process manufacturing principles: distillation, phase separation, crystallisation, and drying.
K29: The thermal and flow properties of solids, liquids, and gases.
K30: The structure of atoms, elements, and compounds - chemical symbols that represent them.
K31: Fundamental scientific laws to the construction and use of balanced chemical equations.
K32: Solutions, solubility, and solubility curves.
K33: The application and importance of electrochemical principles.
K34: The structure, classification, and properties of carbon compounds and polymers.
K35: The structure and properties of elements, mixtures, compounds, crystals, and alloys.
K36: The importance of chemical equilibrium and energy changes in reactions involved in manufacturing processes.
K37: Electrochemical principles - electrolysis and galvanic corrosion, their applications and importance.
K38: Numerical approximations and unit conversion tables. Areas, volumes, and pressure and flow rates calculations. Statistical data.
K39: Conventions for drawings and graphical information.
K40: Information and digital technology to support process industry operations. Cyber security requirements.
K41: General data protection regulation (GDPR).
K42: Written communication techniques. Technical report writing techniques.
K43: Verbal communication techniques.
K44: Principles of team working. Principles of equality, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.

S1: Review instructions or information to understand the task.
S2: Plan tasks. Identify and organise resources with consideration for safety, environmental impact, quality, and cost.
S3: Identify hazards and risks in the workplace and personal safety and mitigation measures.
S4: Apply health, safety, and environmental procedures in compliance with regulations, standards, and guidance.
S5: Follow environment emergency procedures. For example, make area safe, evacuate.
S6: Apply sustainability principles for example, minimising waste.
S7: Apply standard operating procedures (SOPs).
S8: Check equipment.
S9: Select, check, and prepare raw materials for process for example, weighing, measuring, control and blending, conditioning, dissolving, and sanitisation.
S10: Set and adjust processing parameters such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance.
S11: Monitor process for example, take readings and conduct walk-arounds.
S12: Conduct the control of product streams to maintain specifics.
S13: Apply quality assurance procedures. For example, density checks, contaminant check, and take samples for laboratory testing.
S14: Apply intermediate or post-manufacturing procedure for example, labelling, packing, storage, visual inspection, discharge.
S15: Manage waste streams.
S16: Clean equipment for example, boil-outs, steam-outs, bake-outs, steam in place SIP, clean in place (CIP).
S17: Conduct calculations for example, conversations, tare weight, charge weights, yield calculations.
S18: Store tools and equipment.
S19: Identify equipment for handover.
S20: Apply signage and access restriction measures.
S21: Shut down the process and equipment.
S22: Isolate process and systems.
S23: Complete isolation checks.
S24: Empty equipment for example, drain, purge, vent, and de-pressure.
S25: Purge, fill, pressurise and leak test.
S26: Complete post maintenance equipment checks.
S27: Line-up equipment.
S28: Connect service connections such as water, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic for chemical or petrochemical processing.
S29: De-isolate process, mechanical and electrical systems.
S30: Complete pre-start up checks.
S31: Start-up plant and equipment.
S32: Re-start process.
S33: Record or enter information - paper based or electronic.
S34: Interpret data for example, process data, quality control and test procedure data.
S35: Interpret drawings and graphs.
S36: Identify issues for example, defects, deviations, process variance, and maintenance requirements.
S37: Escalate issues outside limits of responsibility.
S38: Apply problem solving and fault-finding techniques.
S39: Apply continuous improvement techniques. Make a suggestion for improvement.
S40: Use information and digital technology for example, management information systems, human machine interfaces, word processing, spreadsheet, email, virtual learning platforms, document sharing platforms. Comply with cyber security requirements.
S41: Produce written documents for example, handover notes or emails, non-conformances, design change requests.
S42: Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
S43: Apply team working principles.
S44: Plan how to meet personal development needs. Carry out and record planned and unplanned learning and development (CPD) activities.

B1: Prioritise health, safety, and environment.
B2: Consider sustainability when using resources and carrying out processes.
B3: Team-focus to meet work goals including support for equality, diversity and inclusion.
B4: Take responsibility for the quality of their own work.
B5: Respond and adapt to work demands.
B6: Committed to continued professional development.

Duties

Duty D1

Run and maintain process industry plant and equipment in line with operational parameters. For example, pressures, flows, temperatures, levels, production targets, and specification.

Duty D2

Maintain the work area following health, safety, environmental and risk management systems.

Duty D3

Resolve and report, or escalate, process, quality, health and safety, environment, and operating environment issues when operating out of normal parameters. For example, out of specification parameter.

Duty D4

Undertake quality assurance processes.

Duty D5

Conduct dispatch of intermediate product or final processed product.

Duty D6

Conduct handover responsibilities - receiving information from or providing information to other shifts or maintenance teams.

Duty D7

Complete process documentation - digital or paper based. For example, process and production records, traceability records, and quality assurance records.

Duty D8

Conduct first line routine maintenance and testing of process and plant equipment.

Duty D9

Prepare plant for shutdown for example, for maintenance, overall, and decommissioning.

Duty D10

Bring process industry equipment back on-line.

Duty D11

Participate in risk assessment activities.

Duty D12

Participate in continuous improvement activities.

Duty D13

Support audits - internal or external. For example, supply information.