Textile or Footwear Production Machine Operator
What the work is
Operates automated machines that process raw hides and skins and raw textile fibres, and dye, weave and knit fibres to manufacture finished leather, yarn, carpet, knit fabrics, garments and garment parts and footwear products.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Prepares textile or footwear production machines for operation to process raw hides, skins and textile fibres
- Operates automated machines that dye and tan hides and skins, and dye textiles
- Operates automated machines that cut and machine leather and synthetic shoe uppers, and make shoes
- Operates automated machines that convert raw textile fibres into continuous untwisted and twisted strands of yarn for use in clothing, carpets, curtains, linens and other fabrics
- Programs machines to position and feed fibre packages to produce carpets, linens and other textiles
- Oversees process of tying and splicing ends to repair broken yarns
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a small clothing and uniform factory with sewing lines, a pressing station and a textile dyeing room. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A flat pile of cut fabric becomes a bundle of finished garments that all match
- You find the quicker way to sew a tricky seam and the whole line speeds up
- A customer visits the factory and is surprised how much skill goes into a school shirt
Hard days
- A rush order with a new fabric that bunches and puckers under the needle
- Sitting at one machine for hours with a sore neck and tired eyes
- A pattern that arrives with an error just as the cut pieces have been stacked
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 731432, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.