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Career Details : Heaters, Metal and Plastic

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Description

Operate or tend heating equipment, such as soaking pits, reheating furnaces, and heating and vacuum equipment, to heat metal sheets, blooms, billets, bars, plate, and rods to a specified temperature for rolling or processing, or to heat and cure preformed plastic parts.

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

  • Pushes cart to curing oven or places part in autoclave.
  • Starts conveyors and opens furnace doors to load stock, or signals crane operator to uncover soaking pits and lower ingots into them.
  • Adjusts controls to maintain temperature and heating time, using thermal instruments and charts, dials and gauges of furnace, and color of stock.
  • Records time and production data.
  • Signals coworker to charge steel into furnace.
  • Places part on cart, connects vacuum line to tube, and smoothes bag around part to ensure vacuum.
  • Sets oven controls or turns air-pressure valve or autoclave.
  • Ignites furnace with torch, and turns valve to regulate flow of fuel and air to burners.
  • Positions stock in furnace, using tongs, chain hoist, or pry bar.
  • Positions plastic sheet and mold in plastic bag, heats material under lamps, and forces confrontation of sheet to mold by vacuum pressure.
  • Removes material from furnace, using crane, or signals crane operator to transfer to next station.
  • Removes stock from furnace, using cold rod, tongs, or chain hoist, and places stock on conveyor for transport to work area.
  • Impregnates fabric with plastic resins and cuts fabric into strips.
  • Assists workers in repairing, replacing, cleaning, lubricating, or adjusting furnace equipment, using hand tools.
  • Adjusts controls to synchronize speed of feed and takeoff conveyors of furnace.
  • Positions part in plastic bag and seals bag with iron.
  • Removes part and cuts away plastic bag.
  • Inserts vacuum tube into bag and seals bag around tube with tape.

    Related Careers

    Important Abilities

    General Work Activities

    Important Skills

    Frequent Work Context

    • Consequence of Error
    • Indoors
    • Using Hands on Objects, Tools, Controls
    • Standing
    • Degree of Automation
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