Apprentice Engineering & Manufacturing Support Technician

Introduction

The role involves operating, maintaining, and supporting production machinery, including equipment used within the winding room and across manufacturing lines. The apprentice will also support the introduction of newly developed machines and processes into production and assist with troubleshooting and continuous improvement activities.

About the Employer

Pickering Interfaces is a global leader in the design and manufacture of modular signal switching, simulation and connectivity solutions for electronic test and verification. Headquartered in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, with sales, support and manufacturing operations across Europe, North America and Asia, we have been innovating in test and measurement technology for over 35 years as part of the Pickering Group, whose heritage dates back to 1968. Currently we have approximately 600 employees worldwide. Our products are used by leading organisations in aerospace, automotive, defence, energy, medical and semiconductor industries worldwide, and we pride ourselves on combining engineering excellence with a supportive, customer-focused culture.

What You'll Do

Key Responsibilities:

• Support the operation and maintenance of manufacturing equipment used in production
• Maintain equipment across the production line, including welder calibration, dehumidifier maintenance, air plumbing systems, and production floor layout adjustments
• Support with machine setting and operation
• Assist production teams where required to meet manufacturing demands
• Learn and understand the operation of all production machinery to support troubleshooting and fault finding
• Support the introduction of new machinery and processes into manufacturing
• Build duplicate production machines from engineering schematics and drawings once designs have been approved and validated
• Test and evaluate new manufacturing processes and techniques, providing feedback to engineering teams
• Develop and maintain process instructions and manufacturing documentation
• Use measurement tools and inspection equipment to verify components, tooling, and assemblies meet specification requirements
• Support quality inspection and testing activities
• Follow all company health, safety, and quality procedures

Departmental Training & Development Exposure:

• Hardware Engineering - Build simple electronic circuits and develop understanding of basic electronics and PCB assemblies
• Mechanical Engineering - Design simple mechanical parts/components and use CAD and 3D printing technology
• Stores & Materials Control - Goods-in inspection, kit picking, stock control systems and VSS operation
• SMT (Surface Mount Technology) - Programming pick-and-place machines, ODB and BOM collation, SMT component recognition, screen printing operations, paste application theory, machine setup and operation, AOI, and vapour phase soldering
• Production Assembly - Use of production documentation, BOMs, through-hole component insertion, relay assembly, wave soldering, hand soldering, wire preparation, crimping, and swash machine operation
• Inspection & Quality - Roving inspection, continuity checking, and final inspection processes
• Test Engineering - Product testing procedures and understanding of production test methods and equipment

Training Outcome

Within Pickering there are possible career routes into Engineering, Test, R&D, Product Management or Customer Service.

Skills Required

• Communication skills
• IT skills
• Attention to detail
• Organisation skills
• Problem solving skills
• Analytical skills
• Team working
• A good sense of humour
• Curious about engineering
• Keen to learn and develop
• Practical/hands on skills
• Reliable
• Committed
• Interest in product design

Qualifications

• Essential - GCSE - maths and English - A*-C/9-4

Course Information

Course: Engineering and manufacturing support technician (level 3)

Level: 3

Route: Engineering and manufacturing

Apprenticeship Level: Advanced

Working Arrangements

Working Week: Monday to Friday, 8.00am - 4.00pm, with a 30-minute unpaid lunch and two 15-minute paid breaks.

Expected Duration: 3 Years 6 Months

Number of Positions Available: 2

Training Provider: COLCHESTER INSTITUTE