Machining Technician - Advanced Apprenticeship

Knowledge

By the end of their apprenticeship, your apprentice should understand:

• Key health, safety, and environmental legislation, including COSHH, RIDDOR, PUWER, and sustainability regulations, and the consequences of non-compliance.
• Principles of environmental sustainability and hazardous waste disposal, including energy monitoring, recycling, and climate change-related practices.
• Engineering principles, including maths, science, materials properties, and how materials behave under machining processes.
• Interpretation of engineering documentation such as drawings, technical specifications, standards (BS, ISO, EN), and digital records.
• Machining methods, tools, and equipment including turning, milling, grinding, EDM, and gear cutting, and their appropriate selection and setup.
• Quality assurance and inspection techniques, including use of measurement and calibration equipment and documentation of quality checks.
• Diagnostic and fault-finding techniques to identify, analyse, and escalate machining or equipment issues.
• Industry knowledge including workplace organisation, technological innovation (e.g., Industry 4.0), continuous improvement practices (Lean, Six Sigma), and equality and inclusion principles.

Skills

Your apprentice will learn how to:

• Work safely, applying risk assessments, safety procedures, and environmental practices such as recycling and efficient use of materials.
• Set up, operate, and adjust conventional and CNC machines, including selection of tooling, feeds, speeds, and validating programs.
• Plan, prepare, and organise work tasks efficiently using appropriate documentation and stock/resource management procedures.
• Interpret technical documentation and apply mathematical, scientific, and engineering knowledge to machining operations.
• Produce complex machined components with precision features, using a range of machining techniques and finishing processes.
• Inspect, measure, and ensure quality and accuracy of machined parts, maintaining records and following defined QA procedures.
• Identify and resolve issues in machining processes, using fault-finding and diagnostic methods, escalating problems when necessary.
• Communicate effectively with team members and stakeholders, maintain a clean work area, and follow safe start-up/shutdown and handover procedures.

Behaviours

Your apprentice should be able to demonstrate:

• A strong focus on health and safety, ensuring personal and workplace compliance at all times.
• Ethical conduct, integrity, and responsibility in carrying out tasks and making decisions.
• Ownership of their work, showing diligence, reliability, and commitment to completing tasks to standard.
• Teamwork and collaboration, working well with others, resolving issues constructively, and contributing to shared goals.
• A proactive approach to continuous personal and professional development, including seeking feedback and learning opportunities.
• Respect for equality, diversity, and inclusion, contributing to a supportive and fair workplace culture.
• A commitment to quality and continuous improvement, suggesting enhancements to processes or productivity.

Expert Tutors

All tutors involved in the delivery of courses and apprenticeships within the College are approved to teach the subjects and modules they deliver.

Our recruitment process ensures that tutors delivering a given programme are suitably qualified and, where appropriate, possess relevant technical and industrial experience and a familiarity with professional practice. This is especially important for apprenticeships where off-the-job training needs to align with apprentices' on-the-job experience.