Process Industry Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship

As an apprentice, you’ll work at a company and get hands-on experience. You’ll gain new skills and work alongside experienced staff.

Key Tasks:

• Learn how production processes operate from raw material intake through to finished product
• Assist with operating plant and equipment in line with standard operating procedures and work instructions
• Monitor processes and equipment, identifying abnormal conditions and escalating issues appropriately
• Support quality checks, sampling and completion of production and quality documentation
• Maintain high standards of hygiene and housekeeping in line with site requirements
• Work safely at all times, following health & safety procedures, risk assessments and permit systems
• Develop an understanding of basic process control systems and data recording
• Participate fully in planned maintenance, cleaning and inspection activities
• Complete all apprenticeship learning, assessments and development activities

Knowledge Developed:

• Understanding of process industry operations, plant and equipment
• Awareness of health, safety, environmental and food safety requirements
• Knowledge of quality systems, specifications and compliance standards
• Understanding of basic process control, monitoring and data collection
• Awareness of lean manufacturing, efficiency and continuous improvement principles

Skills Developed:

• Safe operation of process plant and equipment
• Monitoring processes and responding appropriately to deviations
• Accurate completion of production, quality and safety documentation
• Communicating effectively with team members and shift management
• Working to procedures and specifications to achieve consistent quality
• Supporting routine maintenance, cleaning and fault identification

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

Course contents

• Review instructions or information to understand the task.
• Plan tasks. Identify and organise resources with consideration for safety, environmental impact, quality, and cost.
• Identify hazards and risks in the workplace and personal safety and mitigation measures.
• Apply health, safety, and environmental procedures in compliance with regulations, standards, and guidance.
• Follow environment emergency procedures. For example, make area safe, evacuate.
• Apply sustainability principles for example, minimising waste.
• Apply standard operating procedures (SOPs).
• Check equipment.
• Select, check, and prepare raw materials for process for example, weighing, measuring, control and blending, conditioning, dissolving, and sanitisation.
• Set and adjust processing parameters such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance.
• Monitor process for example, take readings and conduct walk-arounds.
• Conduct the control of product streams to maintain specifics.
• Apply quality assurance procedures. For example, density checks, contaminant check, and take samples for laboratory testing.
• Apply intermediate or post-manufacturing procedure for example, labelling, packing, storage, visual inspection, discharge.
• Manage waste streams.
• Clean equipment for example, boil-outs, steam-outs, bake-outs, steam in place SIP, clean in place (CIP).
• Conduct calculations for example, conversations, tare weight, charge weights, yield calculations.
• Store tools and equipment.
• Identify equipment for handover.
• Apply signage and access restriction measures.
• Shut down the process and equipment.
• Isolate process and systems.
• Complete isolation checks.
• Empty equipment for example, drain, purge, vent, and de-pressure.
• Purge, fill, pressurise and leak test.
• Complete post maintenance equipment checks.
• Line-up equipment.
• Connect service connections such as water, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic for chemical or petrochemical processing.
• De-isolate process, mechanical and electrical systems.
• Complete pre-start up checks.
• Start-up plant and equipment.
• Re-start process.
• Record or enter information - paper based or electronic.
• Interpret data for example, process data, quality control and test procedure data.
• Interpret drawings and graphs.
• Identify issues for example, defects, deviations, process variance, and maintenance requirements.
• Escalate issues outside limits of responsibility.
• Apply problem solving and fault-finding techniques.
• Apply continuous improvement techniques. Make a suggestion for improvement.
• 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.
• Produce written documents for example, handover notes or emails, non-conformances, design change requests.
• Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
• Apply team working principles.
• Plan how to meet personal development needs. Carry out and record planned and unplanned learning and development (CPD) activities.
• Review instructions or information to understand the task.
• Plan tasks. Identify and organise resources with consideration for safety, environmental impact, quality, and cost.
• Identify hazards and risks in the workplace and personal safety and mitigation measures.
• Apply health, safety, and environmental procedures in compliance with regulations, standards, and guidance.
• Follow environment emergency procedures. For example, make area safe, evacuate.
• Apply sustainability principles for example, minimising waste.
• Apply standard operating procedures (SOPs).
• Check equipment.
• Select, check, and prepare raw materials for process for example, weighing, measuring, control and blending, conditioning, dissolving, and sanitisation.
• Set and adjust processing parameters such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance.
• Monitor process for example, take readings and conduct walk-arounds.
• Conduct the control of product streams to maintain specifics.
• Apply quality assurance procedures. For example, density checks, contaminant check, and take samples for laboratory testing.
• Apply intermediate or post-manufacturing procedure for example, labelling, packing, storage, visual inspection, discharge.
• Manage waste streams.
• Clean equipment for example, boil-outs, steam-outs, bake-outs, steam in place SIP, clean in place (CIP).
• Conduct calculations for example, conversations, tare weight, charge weights, yield calculations.
• Store tools and equipment.
• Identify equipment for handover.
• Apply signage and access restriction measures.
• Shut down the process and equipment.
• Isolate process and systems.
• Complete isolation checks.
• Empty equipment for example, drain, purge, vent, and de-pressure.
• Purge, fill, pressurise and leak test.
• Complete post maintenance equipment checks.
• Line-up equipment.
• Connect service connections such as water, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic for chemical or petrochemical processing.
• De-isolate process, mechanical and electrical systems.
• Complete pre-start up checks.
• Start-up plant and equipment.
• Re-start process.
• Record or enter information - paper based or electronic.
• Interpret data for example, process data, quality control and test procedure data.
• Interpret drawings and graphs.
• Identify issues for example, defects, deviations, process variance, and maintenance requirements.
• Escalate issues outside limits of responsibility.
• Apply problem solving and fault-finding techniques.
• Apply continuous improvement techniques. Make a suggestion for improvement.
• 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.
• Produce written documents for example, handover notes or emails, non-conformances, design change requests.
• Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
• Apply team working principles.
• Plan how to meet personal development needs. Carry out and record planned and unplanned learning and development (CPD) activities.