Quest Employment
Industrial Sewing Machinist
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Senior Industrial Sewing Machinist / Textiles Lead
Huntingdon | £33,000 – £35,000 per annum | Monday to Friday | Office Based
The Role
This is not a “stand back and manage it” role. It is a stand-alone, hands-on textiles position where you will take ownership of the function and physically make the garments yourself.
You will be sewing, working from patterns and technical information, checking quality, managing materials and keeping the whole textiles operation running properly day to day.
There is responsibility here, absolutely. But there is also a sewing machine.
So if you enjoy being practical, like knowing exactly what is going on in your area and would rather get stuck in than spend your day forwarding emails about it, this should appeal.
What You'll Be Doing
- Sewing and producing garments and textile products yourself.
- Working from patterns, drawing packs, specifications and technical instructions.
- Reviewing samples and making adjustments to improve fit, finish and construction.
- Creating and amending patterns where needed.
- Writing and updating work instructions and technical drawing packs.
- Managing your own workload and production priorities.
- Making sure finished products meet the required quality standards.
- Inspecting and repairing finished or returned items where necessary.
- Keeping control of stock, fabrics, materials and replenishment.
- Looking after the machinery and making sure equipment is maintained and serviceable.
- Supporting prototypes, development work and new product ideas.
- Working closely with engineering and other technical teams.
- Spotting ways to improve materials, processes and manufacturing methods instead of accepting “we’ve always done it that way” as the final answer.
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What You’ll Need
- Strong practical sewing experience within an industrial, manufacturing or technical textiles environment.
- Confidence using industrial sewing machinery.
- Around 3–5 years’ experience within textiles would be ideal.
- An NVQ Level 3 in a textiles-related discipline, apprenticeship background or strong equivalent practical experience.
- Good knowledge of fabrics, raw materials and garment construction.
- The ability to work from patterns, drawings and technical specifications.
- Experience making adjustments to patterns, fit or construction methods.
- Good organisation because you will largely be managing your own area and priorities.
- An eye for detail. A wonky seam is still a wonky seam, however nicely we describe it.
- Confidence using basic systems including Word and Excel.
- Good communication skills and the confidence to work with technical colleagues and senior stakeholders.
- Experience reading engineering drawings would be useful.
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What You Might Not Like
This is a stand-alone role, so there is nowhere to hide and nobody else in the department to quietly pass the fiddly bits to. You will be sewing the garments yourself, managing the materials, checking quality, dealing with the paperwork and keeping the area organised. If you are looking for a traditional management role where other people do the making and you mainly supervise, this is not that. It is also a structured manufacturing environment, so quality procedures, health & safety and 5S working practices matter.
What To Do Next
If you are an experienced sewing machinist or textiles professional who enjoys having real ownership of your work, this could be a cracking opportunity.
You do not need a fancy job title behind you. What matters more is that you can genuinely sew, understand garment construction, work accurately and are comfortable taking responsibility for the whole textiles function.
APPLY NOW and we can have a chat!
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