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Career Details : Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

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Description

Set up, operate, or tend machines to extrude or draw thermoplastic or metal materials into tubes, rods, hoses, wire, bars, or structural shapes.

Experience

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience may be helpful in these occupations, but usually is not needed. For example, a drywall installer might benefit from experience installing drywall, but an inexperienced person could still learn to be an installer with little difficulty.

Education

These occupations usually require a high school diploma and may require some vocational training or job-related course work. In some cases, an associate's or bachelor's degree could be needed.

Training

Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees.

Tasks

  • Replaces worn dies when products vary from specifications.
  • Reels extruded product into rolls of specified length and weight.
  • Studies specifications, determines setup procedures, and selects machine dies and parts.
  • Examines extruded product for defects, such as wrinkles, bubbles, and splits.
  • Tests physical properties of product with testing devices, such as acid-bath tester, burst tester, and impact tester.
  • Selects nozzles, spacers, and wire guides, according to diameter and length of rod.
  • Operates shearing mechanism to cut rods to specified length.
  • Measures extruded articles for conformance to specifications and adjusts controls to obtain product of specified dimensions.
  • Installs dies, machine screws, and sizing rings on machine extruding thermoplastic or metal materials.
  • Loads machine hopper with mixed materials, using auger, or stuffs rolls of plastic dough into machine cylinders.
  • Adjusts controls to draw or press metal into specified shape and diameter.
  • Weighs and mixes pelletized, granular, or powdered thermoplastic materials and coloring pigments.
  • Starts machine and sets controls to regulate vacuum, air pressure, sizing rings, and temperature, and synchronizes speed of extrusion.

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    Important Abilities

    General Work Activities

    Important Skills

    Frequent Work Context

    • Degree of Automation
    • Indoors
    • Consequence of Error
    • Pace Determined by Speed of Equipment
    • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate

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