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Metal Making and Treating Process Operatives

Metal making and treating process operatives operate furnaces, ovens and other heating vessels, drawing, rolling, extruding, galvanising, forging and other metal processing equipment to smelt, shape, coat and treat metal and metal products.

Wages

New workers
AVERAGE
Experienced
£19,056
£29,815
£43,498

New workers start around £19,056. Normal pay is £29,815 per year.
Highly experienced workers can earn up to £43,498.

Available jobs

In the past year there were 18,132 vacancies for this type of job

1.23%

Projected job growth over the next 8 years

Related courses

People work towards these careers by taking these courses at college and uni.

What they do most days?

  • Coats metal parts and articles electrolytically, forms metal articles by electro- and vacuum-deposition, dips and sprays articles with another metal, plastic powder or material and treats articles chemically to produce desired finishes.

  • Operates piercing, extruding, pressing and other metal processing equipment to shape and treat metal or metal articles.

  • Heats metal or metal articles in furnace, allows to cool for a specified time or quenches in brine, oil or water to harden, reduces brittleness and restores ductility.

  • Operates equipment to remove dirt, scale and other surface impurities by immersion in chemical solution.

  • Sets rolling speed, tension and space between rolls, guides the metal to and from rollers, and monitors the rolling process to detect irregularities, and ensure that the gauge and finish match required specifications.

  • Withdraws samples of molten metal for analysis, taps slag from surface of molten metal and directs flow of molten metal into casts.

  • Charges furnace, operates controls to regulate furnace temperature, and adds oxidising, alloying and fluxing agents as required.

Hard Skills

Hard skills are specific, learnable, measurable, often industry or occupation-specific abilities related to a position.

Skills are ranked based on the number of job adverts that list them as required skills.

  • Extrusion

  • Machinery

  • Injection Molding

  • Housekeeping

  • Tooling

  • Moulding

  • Electroplating

  • Production Line

  • Continuous Improvement Process

  • Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Soft Skills

Soft skills can be self-taught and usually do not necessitate a certain completed level of education.

Skills are ranked based on the number of job adverts that list them as required skills.

  • Detail Oriented

  • Communication

  • Troubleshooting (Problem Solving)

  • Problem Solving

  • Operations

  • Quality Control

  • Management

  • English Language

  • Computer Literacy

  • Packaging And Labeling

How do I get a job like this?

People in these types of job started their career paths after studying courses like the ones below.