Start up extrusion line EX-2 on 110 mm PN16 pipe

You are a trainee extrusion operator working with the line operator.

Simulated workplaceEntry missionCAQA Polyform Plastics and Cable

What is going on

The 110 millimetre PN16 die and calibrator have been fitted to line EX-2 and the PE100 black pipe compound lot is in the silo. Job card JC-26-3315 for Riverbend Water Corporation is at First-off pending. Yesterday the line ran for twenty minutes before a wall thickness was recorded and a process deviation was logged. A burn from a purging on this line earlier in the week has put long gloves at every line. The supervisor wants the line started up to the procedure, the pipe brought to specification and measured at four points, the marking checked and the start-up scrap weighed before the job card moves to Running.

Sunita Devi, Extrusion and Film Supervisor
Subject: Start up EX-2 on the 110 mm PN16 pipe

The 110 millimetre die and calibrator are on EX-2 and the PE100 lot is in the silo. I want you to start the line up under the Pipe Extrusion Line Start-up and Shutdown Procedure with Renee beside you, bring the pipe to specification, record the dimension checks and the start-up scrap on job card JC-26-3315 and move it to Running only when the first-off is confirmed. Yesterday the line ran twenty minutes before anyone recorded a wall thickness and that has been logged as a deviation. Long gloves for purgings, every time.

Your brief

Start up EX-2 under the Pipe Extrusion Line Start-up and Shutdown Procedure, thread the line safely, bring the pipe to the standard's dimensions, check and record the marking, weigh the start-up scrap, complete the first-off and move the job card to Running only when the pipe conforms.

Work through it

You do not need to do it all. Doing a few of these will show you what the work is like. Your ticks and notes stay on this device.

Read the Pipe Extrusion Line Start-up and Shutdown Procedure and the Machine Safety and Isolation Policy and list the checks you must complete before starting the screw.
Confirm on job card JC-26-3315 and the setting sheet extract that the die and calibrator in the Tool and Die Register match the pipe size, and that the compound lot in Raw Materials and Compounds Stock is the one on the card.
Describe the heating and purging steps, including the die soak time, how purgings are handled with the long gloves and where they go, with reference to the burn recorded in the WHS register.
Describe threading the line step by step, stating where your hands must not be and the speed the haul-off runs at during threading.
Measure the outside diameter and wall thickness at four points and the ovality on the first pipe, compare them with the tolerances on the sheet and record the results on the job card.
Adjust the haul-off speed or vacuum within the sheet limits to bring the pipe into tolerance, record each adjustment and re-measure until the pipe conforms.
Check the marking for the standard, size, class, material, manufacturer and batch and record the result, with reference to the recent marking complaint in the Quality Nonconformance Register.
Weigh and record the start-up scrap, complete the first-off on the job card and move it to Running, then take the laboratory sample required by the test plan.

My notes: what did I enjoy, and what surprised me?

What someone in this role would produce

Pre-start checklist with die, calibrator and lot confirmation
Written heating, purging and threading sequence with safety points
Dimension and marking records on the job card with adjustments
Start-up scrap record and first-off approval

Printing this is a record of what you explored. It is not a certificate or a qualification.