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Plastics Technician

Technicians and Trades WorkersUsually a trade certificate or similar, or several years of experience

What the work is

Programs, adjusts, repairs, maintains and troubleshoots machines which manufacture plastic products.

Would you enjoy the work?

These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.

  • Programs production machinery, using knowledge of polymers, additives and other materials
  • Inspects, calibrates and regulates machines, and conducts ongoing basic quality control tests
  • Troubleshoots, repairs and adjusts machines which manufacture plastic products
  • Prepares production and maintenance schedules to minimise downtime and maximise productivity
  • Recommends technical design or process changes to improve efficiency, quality or performance
  • Completes routine quality checks on the product, such as dimensional checks, hardness, clarity of colour and appearances
  • Coordinates production and workflow processes, and keeps records of operational or production data

Try it

A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a rail network control centre watching a busy suburban line. They are fictional.

The kind of days you could have

Good days

  • A disrupted morning is untangled and the trains are running to time by lunch
  • A boat you rebuilt slides back into the water and floats exactly as it should
  • You find the one faulty part that has been puzzling everyone for a week

Hard days

  • A signal failure at peak hour, with phones ringing and every train asking for a decision
  • Working in a cold shed or a hot hull when the deadline for the job is fixed
  • Telling an owner their boat or equipment needs far more work than they hoped

Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.

Work a mission

Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.

Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 399936, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.