Join our Team
Why Plastipack?
Plastipack is a leading global manufacturer of energy and resource saving products, focused on the preservation of water resources and the reduction of energy and chemical consumption through sustainable solutions. Our water covering materials prevent evaporation and help to control the environment of swimming pools and agricultural and industrial water storage facilities.
The team
Plastipack offers a variety of career routes to a diverse work force. With roles in admin, production, customer service, engineering and more, the Plastipack team works closely together to ensure that we deliver the best possible products and service to our customers globally.
Our production team is responsible for the production and loading of our materials. This close-knit team works in the factory, running the extruders to create our range of innovative pool and water storage cover materials.
This team is responsible for quality control of our products, ensuring that every roll of material that leaves our factory meets the incredibly high standards our customers have grown to expect from us.
Once created and packed, the warehouse team works with the drivers to load the materials on to trucks and containers, ensuring safe transit of our products to their destinations.
Working closely with the production team, our customer service team ensure that orders are planned and executed in a timely manner. They ensure that customers are kept informed of their order status, with our finance team handling all invoicing and payments.
Our marketing team works closely with the R&D team to ensure that all of our communications and collateral and accurate and backed by science. They also work closely with our customers ensuring that they have all the tools they need to successfully sell our products.
Our Research and Development team spend much of their time testing current and future products to ensure that they are providing the best possible performance, ensuring that our customers are offered the most innovative products on the market. (Read more at our Innovation page).
Each year we take on a placement student to work alongside the Research & Development team as part of their undergraduate or master’s degree. Students from past placements have been involved in significant improvements to our working processes as well as in the launch of new products.
Find out more at our innovation page.
Click here to see our mission, vision, and value on our about us page
Our current vacancies:
To apply, please email: info@plastipack.co.uk
Extruder Operative
Salary: £27000 per annum
40 hours a week, 8-hour shifts (Shift times include: 0600-1430, 1400-2230, 2200-0630)
Benefits
- Company pension scheme
- 25 Days holiday
- Death in service cover (after 1 year of service)
- Health cashback plan
- Benenden Healthcare (after 1 year of service)
- Performance based Bonus
This is a Level 1 entry level role with no formal qualifications required. A good understanding of English is needed.
Location: St Leonards-On-Sea, East Sussex
Job Type: Full Time, Permanent
Note: Overseas candidates will NOT be considered for this role. We are not sponsoring Visas currently, so please refrain from applying unless eligible to work in the UK.
About the role
As an Extruder Operator your function is to aid the Extruder Technicians in all required tasks within production. Taking direction from the Team Leader on shift and the Extruder technicians working on the task allotted
About you
As a member of this company, you are a steward for our vision, mission and values and share the company’s focus on a quality driven, safe, supportive and respectful workplace.
Detailed Job description
- To work under the direction of the Team Leader and Extruder Technicians to meet the production requirements of the shift allotted.
- Ensure that you record all required information clearly and diligently.
- To be a steward for the continual quality standards and the improvement of our products, production procedures and equipment.
- To work to achieve efficiency goals, repairs, and maintenances of our equipment.
- Take a proactive role in the implementation of changes to production equipment and processes.
- To strictly follow all health and safety procedures/ regulations and ensure your production team abide by these vital protocols and all matters relating to this are dealt in line with the company Health and Safety policy.
- You will communicate clearly and diligently all relevant information to the Team Leader and other team members on the allotted shift.
- To report any defective safety equipment immediately and ensure all necessary safety actions are taken until equipment is repaired or replaced.
- You will ensure that all equipment and the surrounding working spaces are kept in a clean and orderly condition, ensuring all staff understand that this is a joint responsibility for both safety and cleanliness.
- To follow the company’s quality systems, processes, and procedures.
- Report defective materials or questionable conditions to the Team Leader and Extruder Technicians.
- You will take a proactive approach to your own continued personal and skills development, taking part in all relevant training required.
- Perform any other tasks appropriate to this position.
Extruder Technician
Salary: circa £29000 DOE
40 hours a week, 8-hour shifts (Shift times include: 0600-1430, 1400-2230, 2200-0630)
Benefits:
- 25 Days holiday
- Death in service cover (after 1 year of service)
- Health cashback plan
- Benenden Healthcare (after 1 year of service)
- Cycle to Work scheme.
- Performance based Bonus
Personal attributes:
- A minimum of 1 year working in manufacturing environment as a high-level operator or an equivalent role. Ideally from a plastics background.
- A high value candidate will have experience with the following: extrusion machines, plastics recycling, quality control methods.
Key Responsibilities:
- Your duties will include the setup, operation, and light maintenance duties such as lubrication and cleaning.
- You will be responsible for ensuring that the machines produce high quality product. Achieve throughput targets and be capable of taking necessary actions when these targets are not being met.
- You will excel in your position by working as a team with the Extruder Operators in ensuring high levels of output and maintaining a safe, well organised shop floor.
- You will also coordinate with Maintenance Engineers during problem solving, breakdowns and improvement efforts.
- There will also be interaction with other departments such as Production Planning, Health and Safety and Quality Control. Health and Safety is priority, and so adherence safety related procedures and working practice is key.
Day to day Tasks:
- To have an active role in the company’s continuous improvement efforts to achieve plans for future growth.
- Operate the plastic extrusion machines on site.
- Adjust machine as needed for changeovers, different functions, or other varying needs of production such as responding to variation in raw material properties.
- Optimise machine settings during production so that product throughput, quality and waste are optimised.
- Be fully aware of production plans and targets and be able to take necessary corrective actions if these targets are not being met.
- To be involved in the development and continual improvement of standard operating procedure for specific machines.
- Undertake maintenance duties on certain machines such as cleaning and lubrication.
- Monitor, measure and report on production related process performance and general issues.
- To ensure good communication is given either verbally or written to other members of the team as shift counterparts.
- To ensure that Health and Safety rules and regulations are adhered to during the shift and all matters relating to this are dealt with using the resources within company’s Health and Safety system.
- To work closely with Team Leaders to ensure production handovers are effective communication tools.
- To keep up to date with training.
Apprentice Mechatronics Maintenance Technician – Level 3
Definition:
Maintenance is the use of different systems and processes to ensure that facilities, layout and machinery used to produce new and existing materials and goods run to their maximum efficiency and output. This includes total preventative maintenance, managing breakdowns and repair. An apprenticeship programme will result in a time served qualification.
Overall Purpose of the Role:
Undertake a programme of training to gain full working knowledge in all aspects of Maintenance including learning to diagnose faults leading to repair, as well as maintaining facilities process equipment. To assist and support with planned and reactive maintenance as well as liaise with internal stakeholders and subcontractors.
Duration:
Typically the duration of this apprenticeship is 36 – 48 months. This duration may be reduced for a candidate with previous relevant experience and/or someone already part qualified.
Key Responsibilities:
General and Task Management
- Use different systems and processes to ensure that facilities, layout and machinery used to produce new and existing materials and goods run to their maximum efficiency and output
- Ensure that plant and equipment perform to the required standard to facilitate production targets regarding Safety, Quality, Delivery and Cost within High Value Manufacturing environments
- Work on a broad range of activities including installation, testing, fault finding and the on-going planned maintenance of complex automated equipment
- Apply of a complex blend of skills, knowledge and occupational behaviours across the electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid power and control systems disciplines
- Use and interpret a range of engineering data sources and supporting documentation
- Utilise lean techniques to improve efficiency & effectiveness
- Where appropriate, support installation, testing and commissioning of a wide range of equipment
- Carry out complex fault diagnosis and repair on high technology engineered systems
- Maintain mechanical equipment
- Maintain fluid & pneumatic power equipment
- Maintain electrical & electronic equipment
- Maintain process control equipment
- Minimise machinery downtime by carrying out preventative planned maintenance
- Confirm testing and subsequent smooth hand over of equipment & plant
Self Management
Modern high value manufacturing organisations require their apprentices to have a set of occupational behaviours that will ensure success both in their current and future roles and in meeting the overall company objectives. These required behaviours include:
- Safety Mindset: This occupation sits within an industry with a high level of safety critical activities. There has to be strict compliance and a disciplined and responsible approach to manage, mitigate and avoid risk
- Strong work ethic: Positive attitude, motivated by engineering; dependable, ethical, responsible and reliable
- Respect for others: Acts at all times with consideration to others and actively promotes equality and diversity
- Logical approach: Able to structure a plan and develop activities following a logical thought process, but also able to quickly “think on feet” when working through them
- Problem solving orientation: Identifies issues quickly, enjoys solving complex problems and applies appropriate solutions. Has a strong desire to push to ensure the true root cause of any problem is found and a solution identified which prevents further recurrence
- Quality focus: Follows rules, procedures and principles in ensuring work completed is fit for purpose and pays attention to detail / error checks throughout activities
- Personal responsibility and resilience: Motivated to succeed accountable and persistent to complete task
- Clear communicator: Use a variety of appropriate communication methods to give/receive information accurately, and in a timely and positive manner
- Team player: Not only plays own part but able to work and communicate clearly and effectively within a team and interacts/ helps others when required. In doing so applies these skills in a respectful professional manner
- Applies Lean Manufacturing Principles: Continuous Improvement in driving effectiveness and efficiency
- Adaptability: Able to adjust to different conditions, technologies, situations and environments
- Self-Motivation: A ‘self-starter’ who always wants to give their best, sets themselves challenging targets, can make their own decisions.
- Willingness to learn: wants to drive their own continuous professional development
- Commitment: Able to commit to the beliefs, goals and standards of their own employer and to the wider industry and its professional standards
Skills and Attributes:
The apprentice will need to develop a solid grasp of the core job skills and then apply them in the workplace in a logical and systematic approach. These skills will not only allow the apprentice to demonstrate that they have the required manual dexterity to do their current role but their competencies are transferable and can be built upon over time, as the technology involved continues to rapidly advance. As a core the technician needs to have a solid grasp of:
- Statutory regulations and how to comply with stringent organisational safety requirements
- How to use and interpret a range of engineering data sources and supporting documentation
- Key Performance Indicators, utilising lean techniques to improve efficiency and effectiveness
- Where appropriate, how to support installation, testing and commissioning a wide range of equipment
- How to carry out complex fault diagnosis and repair on high technology engineered systems:
- Maintaining mechanical equipment
- Maintaining fluid and pneumatic power equipment
- Maintaining electrical and electronic equipment
- Maintaining process control equipment
- How to minimise machinery downtime by carrying out preventative planned maintenance
- Confirmation testing and subsequent smooth hand over of equipment and plant
The academic learning that is required to underpin the above vocational skills will allow the apprentice to demonstrate a thorough breadth and depth of understanding of relevant maintenance principles, appropriate to and in the context of their company’s needs. As a core the technician needs to cover around 720 academic Guided Learning Hours in order to have a solid grasp of:
- Analytical and Scientific Methods for Engineers
- Project Design, Implementation and Evaluation
- Instrumentation and Control Principles & Applications
- Mathematics for Technicians
- Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic and Digital Principles & Applications
- Quality Assurance Principles Within Mechatronic Systems
- Applications of Pneumatics and Hydraulics
- Health, Safety and Risk Assessment in Engineering
- Plant and Process Principles & Applications
- Condition Monitoring and Fault Diagnosis
- Business Improvement Techniques
Qualifications and Experience Levels:
- In order to optimise success, candidates will typically possess 4 GCSEs at Grade C or equivalent, including Mathematics, English and a Science/Technical GCSE. Apprentices without level 2 Maths and English need to achieve this prior to completion of their Apprenticeship
- Advanced Apprenticeships will generally be structured over 4 years, combining training with a local College and work based learning and experience
Further Information:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-standard-mechatronics-maintenance-technician
Example roles this job description may cover:
- Junior Maintenance Technician