Performing Engineer Operations Level 2

Carrying out Engineering activities Efficiently and Effectively QPEO2/002N

Arrive in the workshop wearing the correct PPE

Being correctly dressed means wearing clothes appropriate for the work.

In the engineering workshop, appropriate clothing refers to personal protective equipment (PPE), usually overalls, eye protection, protective footwear and barrier cream on your hands.

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, it is the law that appropriate clothing must be worn in engineering workshops.

If you are clean, tidily dressed and well presented, you will feel better in yourself and will be able to work more effectively.

Safety GlassesWorkshop OverallSafety BootsHair Net for Long HairBarrier Cream Being correctly dressed and well presented can positively influence your performance at work, your safety and how other people see you. 

It is important that overalls are the corrected size and are not baggy or have parts that could get caught on equipment. Long hair must be tied back or a hairnet worn to reduce the change of becoming entangled in moving parts. Where gloves are not worn barrier cream should be applied to hands instead to protect them.

Obtain the appropriate job documentation

Before starting the job, students need to obtain the appropriate job documentation which includes component drawing, operation sheet, machine safety check list and specification sheet.

Operation Sheet  Specification sheet Machine safety check sheet

Component Drawing

Engineering drawing

Obtain the appropriate job documentation

These are located in a secure fire cabinet or on carousels in the workshop.  Secure fire cabinet Carousels

Drawings and documentation

Drawings and documentation can sometimes be confusing or misleading. It is always the best idea to check each dimension from the drawing with the operation sheet to make sure that it is correct.

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Any discrepancies identified must be clarified with the supervisor.

Missing Angle

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Working Area

• Students will prepare the work area and ensuring that it is in a safe condition to carry out the intended activities. It is essential to keep the work area free from hazards and special care must be taken when using hazardous materials, fluid power equipment, machinery and electrical supplies.

• Working areas must be kept clear.

Tools and equipment must be returned to stores and chemicals placed in a COSHH locker.

Effective planning skills

Students will also be required to demonstrate effective planning skills before they commence the engineering activity and be able to calculate speeds and feeds required by machines before starting any operations. You must only use equipment or machines if you have been trained how to use it properly and safely. 

Materials to be used: Ø15mm Aluminium x 30mm long bar x 2  Formula for machine spindle speed: S x 1000 = RPM π x DS = Material cutting speeds:- Mild Steel 25 m/min Aluminium 100 m/min1000 = conversion to mmπ = 3.14D = diameter of bar or diameter of rotating cutting tool (i.e. drill or milling cutter) 

Locating tools, equipment and materials

Following the instructions from the operation sheet or supervisor students will locate tools, equipment and materials required for the work activities undertaken. It is very important that all tools, equipment and materials to be used are checked that they are in a safe and usable condition.

It is your responsibility to check equipment BEFORE USE

Check tools before use Adjustment Broken teeth

completion of the engineering activity

On completion of the engineering activity, students will be required to return their work area to an acceptable condition. Machinery and equipment must be isolated before cleaning down. When tidying up your area you must sweep up swarf including oily rags/tissue and dispose of in the correct waste bin.

Machines must always be turned before off cleaning and tools removed.

completion of the engineering activity

Placing part-completed or completed work in the correct location, returning drawings and work instructions, returning and/or storing any tools and equipment in the designated location, removing any waste and/or scrapped materials disposing of waste materials in line with organisational and environmental requirements, and reporting to the supervisor or technician any defects or damage to the tools and equipment used. Finally tidy up the work area on completion of the activity.  Tidiness is essential and the work area should always be made clean and tidy after work.

Material waste is disposed of using the correct method.

Develop your skills and knowledge

When you start a new job, you are probably hoping to do a good job, develop yourself and obtain qualifications and promotion. At the same time, most people have to work with other people, and good working relationships are an important part of the working lives of everyone. People should be able to get on with each other and work well as a group or team to achieve the best results for their organisation and the welfare of its staff. If working relationships are good, the workforce becomes effective and efficient and working relationships improve even further.

In many organisations, there is a management structure that may be referred to as ‘line management’. Usually, your line manager is your supervisor and this is the person to whom you should turn to if you are not sure of what is expected of you.

Develop your skills and knowledge

Finding out what is expected of you in terms of developing skills means that you must be prepared to ask question, listen, watch practical demonstrations (YouTube) and work safely using your initiative when working independently.

Your firm may well have a training scheme for apprentices and trainees and you may be informed that you will be attending college once a week to learn more about the theory side of your work or to extend ‘key skills’.

Develop your skills and knowledge

Your initial training plan is really a contract between you, your company, the Government (via some representative) and the training provider. The training plan is drawn up and this outlines the main stages in your training and may set dates by which various stages will be completed or when there will be official assessments. You should take some responsibility for your own development by researching topics off-line, reading recommended text books and researching relevant websites.

National vocational qualifications

National vocational qualifications (NVQs) have assessment plans by which you know what stage you have reached in your training. NVQs require you to provide evidence that you are competent and can carry out a task skilfully and prove that you understand what you are doing.

National vocational qualifications

Your progress is checked by your supervisor. Meetings with supervisors may be little more than a chat or they may be more formal, again depending on the size of your firm. What is important is to understand is that your progress is being continually checked against your progress tracker spreadsheet so that updated targets can be developed. It is essential that you are fully aware of the qualification you are aiming to achieve and exactly what the training entails.

National vocational qualifications

NVQs are divided into units and each unit consists of two or more elements. A major NVQ qualification, such as performing engineering operations, consists of core units, support units and optional units. Additionally, you need to achieve key skills in 6 areas.

Your supervisor or manager should ensure that you have been told what is required of you and explained what is needed for you to become qualified.

You need to appreciate that becoming qualified depends on you, as you are the one who must show that you have reached the skill level required and that you know and understand what you are doing and can demonstrate your knowledge and understanding by answering questions.

National vocational qualifications

It is important you review your training by studying the progress tracker chart and by gauging the progress of other students against your progress for any shortfalls in skills/knowledge or progress against the targets set for completion of work.  

If you find that you are behind, you must set an agreed time with you manager/supervisor for a progress review and produce a realistic action plan to complete targets.

Developing your skills begins with assessing which skills are important for your desired career development. You should take some responsibility for your own development by researching reading recommended text books, researching relevant websites, forums, engineering journals and watch YouTube skills tutorials. Speak with your supervisor or manager to identify the types of experience that will help move you forward successfully developing those skills with training or on-the-job opportunities.

Continuous personal development

Continuously learning and developing one's skills gives adding value to enhancing your career development and employability prospects. It will help you progress and realise your potential by acquire the appropriate knowledge and skills to define goals and objectives. This is very important that as technology advances forward in the manufacturing world that you remain up to date in your approach to engineering now and in the future.

Respecting the views of others

Being at work usually means working with other people. The ‘other people’ can make being at work very pleasant but on occasions these people can also cause problems. Trainees can expect a certain amount of teasing, but teasing that gets out of hand becomes bullying. Probably the best advice here is to treat people the way you would like to be treated.

At work, there are usually set procedures but sometimes part of a job may be open to interpretation. If you disagree with a colleague's interpretation and method, there is no point in jumping in and arguing about it. Listen to their views and consider carefully and ask your supervisor for advice if there is still uncertainty. You are more likely to have an effective working relationship if you are polite and respectful to others regardless of personal opinions.

Remember that those in charge have been appointed to their position on merit and are usually experienced. Pay attention to your supervisor and other personnel in senior positions and follow their advice.

Respecting the views of others

Be prepared to be helpful, and if you want help, make sure that the person you ask has time to help you and that you ask in a polite way. When the help has been given, make sure that you say ‘thank you’. Also, think how you could help yourself; show some initiative but be careful that you are not doing anything that you should not do.

It may seem easier for you to ask for help, but when someone else is trying to get their work done, it can be quite annoying to have a trainee constantly asking questions – therefore, think about helping yourself.

Respecting others’ property

There is nothing worse than not being able to trust the people you work with. If you need to borrow tools or equipment from a workmate, it is important to ask properly, to look after them appropriately and return them promptly in the some condition as you received them. This contributes to good team work. If you do not work in this manner, you may lose the trust of the people you work with, who will be much less likely to lend you things in the future.

The tools used from the company or college store should also be looked after properly. Also, if you always return items promptly and in good condition, you will make a good impression.

Teamwork, cooperation and integration

At work, it may be that much of your time will be spent working as an individual under supervision or working constantly alongside colleagues. Whatever the situation, you, your colleagues and your supervisor are members of a working group or team.

At work, the aims of the engineering team members should be to work together for the success of the organisation and the well-being of the employees.

Two important aspects of working well in a team or group are cooperation and integration. To be successful you need to cooperate with:-

• Your supervisor when instructions are issued• Colleagues when help and assistance are needed • Other individual team members or other teams of workers in the same

organisation.

Teamwork, cooperation and integration

An example of cooperation in the workshop is that you need to inform others of your activities which may have an impact on their work. You could place somebody at risk of injury or scrapping their work if you do not inform them of what you are doing, e.g. suddenly turning off the power supply could cause damage to the tool and the work during a machining operation, turning off lighting without warning could also be hazardous and transporting difficult loads about in the passage ways in the workshop.

A further example of cooperation occurs when people are sharing the machines in the workshop. You may have operated a machine for part of the day but someone else is going to work at the same machine as you when you have finished. The machine should always be left cleaned with all the tools returned to stores and the machine isolator turned off so that it is ready for the next student. This avoids the risk of the next user endangering themselves on left over swarf, sharp drills left in drill chucks, untreated coolant spillages. If there is ever a complaint, you can be sure it will not be against you and, in addition, you may feel in a positive frame of mind that you have left the machine in a safe condition.

This is also good housekeeping and will avoid problems with working relationships.

Teamwork, cooperation and integration

Being cooperative with the staff outside your immediate work area is necessary to have some understanding of their work. Knowing what they do will make cooperate with them easier and will also give you a fuller insight into all the activities of your organisation. Many companies ensure that trainees achieve a good understanding of all aspects of the company's work by moving the trainees around from one department to another throughout their training

This way of working will certainly help you to cooperate in all aspects of work and it will also help you to explain about the firm to newer staff and visitors. In the past, people were often asked to carry out repetitive tasks every day. This way of working often led to boredom and low output. The modern approach is to work in teams in which people share the jobs and are required to do the repetitive tasks only when it is their turn. The team approach also encourages those with leadership qualities to encourage everyone to work together.

Teamwork, cooperation and integration

Working in a team also means that you need to trust the other team members. Teamwork can have its drawbacks. Most people have strengths, things that they are good at, and they also have weaknesses. Getting the best out of a team means making the best use of people's strengths and minimising their weaknesses. It also calls for tact and understanding, for example, you might be frequently asked by someone to lift things when you are working with them. Before you complain too bitterly or make a fuss, just check that this person does not a have bad back!

Teamwork can have its drawbacks. Most people have strengths, things that they are good at, and they also have weaknesses.

Reporting difficulties in working relationships

• The majority of people realise the importance of good working relationships and will try to get on with others as best as they can. However, in working environments, even though there are good working relationships, problems among people sometimes arise.

• Problem Example Cause:-

• Inconsideration - Ignoring other people's feelings and needs. • Clash of personalities - Difficulties or differences related to jealousy. • Unfair treatment - Treating people in an unfair or unacceptable manner.• Lack of trust - Arising from a lack of respect for people and property.• Rejection - Deliberately or inadvertently leaving people out.• Harassment - Picking on someone, bullying and continual sarcasm.•  Attitudes which could cause conflict or negative response - being rude, disrespectful,

aggressive, using offensive language, racist remarks, being unrealistic about completion times may result in negative responses.

Reporting difficulties in working relationships

In most cases, the problems are minor and, with a lot of give and take, they can usually be resolved by discussion among the people involved. Colleagues who may have noticed a problem possibly someone being bullied will often step in to help sort things out. Another example could be arguing over a shortage of tools and becoming impatient due to waiting. Ideally you should agree on who uses what first and wait your turn.

The usual way of sorting out things is by talking about the issues with the people involved. It is also worth noting that people who are respected in a workplace are not people who treat others badly. There may be peer pressure to ‘go with the crowd’ as far as someone else is concerned, but do you really want to make someone else miserable? It is worth trying to sort out problems there and then, by discussion; but discussion does not involve shouting. However, if this approach has failed or is not practicable, it is important that difficulties among colleagues are sorted out and this may mean reporting the difficulty. If you have any problems with another student that you are unhappy about you must report it to your tutor and not attempt to resolve any conflict on your own.

Reporting difficulties in working relationships

Your supervisor or tutor will act as a mediator for problems where you need to resolve a disagreement with another student.

In many organisations there are set procedures for reporting problems; the procedures usually involve some or all of the following persons:

• Tutor • Supervisor • Department manger• HR Personnel officer• Student welfare services

There are also many independent organisations who you can contact. The important thing is that you speak to somebody for advice and don’t feel that you are on your own.

Employment laws

All these people have an interest in helping you in maintaining good working relations, both at work and elsewhere. They are there to help you because if you are having problems, you are probably not working as well as you are capable of, and this could affect other people.In addition to Company policies, there are Employment laws. These laws ensure that people at work are treated fairly and not exploited.

• In 1970, the Equal Pay Act was brought in to ensure that men and women doing the same job must receive the same pay.

 • The Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and the Race Relations Act 1976 make it an offence to

discriminate between individuals on the grounds of gender or race.

The Equal Opportunities Commission

The Equal Opportunities Commission looks into breaches of employment law where people think they are being discriminated against, for example, people in wheel chairs now have rights to demand access to workplaces and they cannot be discriminated against because of their disability.

Cases of discrimination do not go to the police; they are dealt with by civil law.

You work with someone who is regularly late for work. This affects you as it means that you are the one who has to do most of the preparation. The same person is also quite happy to ‘skive’ off early and leave you to do the clearing up. This will result in you having a negative attitude about this person. Also being requested to complete targets which are unrealistic about completion times may result in negative responses.

Equality Act 2010

Equality is ensuring individuals or groups of individuals are treated fairly and equally and no less favourably, specific to their needs, including areas of race, gender, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation and age. Creating a fairer society, where everyone can participate and has the opportunity to fulfil their potential.

The Equality Act brings together over 116 separate pieces of legislation into one single Act. Combined, they make up a new Act that provides a legal framework to protect the rights of individuals and advance equality of opportunity for all.

Equality Act 2010

The Act simplifies, strengthens and harmonises the current legislation to provide Britain with a new discrimination law which protects individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair and more equal society. The main nine protective characteristics of the Act :- • The Equal Pay Act 1970• The Sex Discrimination Act 1975• The Race Relations Act 1976• The Disability Discrimination Act 1995• The Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003• The Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003• The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006• The Equality Act 2006, Part 2• The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health 2002 (COSHH)

The occupational use of nanomaterials is regulated under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH).

COSHH Symbols COSHH Storage

All waste products must be collected and stored in appropriately labelled containers. They must be collected by an environment health registered company which are licensed to collected and dispose of waste products.

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health 2002 (COSHH)

COSHH is the law that requires employers to control substances that are hazardous to health and includes nanomaterials. You can prevent or reduce workers' exposure to hazardous substances by:

Finding out what the health hazards are; • deciding how to prevent harm to health (risk assessment); • providing control measures to reduce harm to health; • making sure they are used; • keeping all control measures in good working order; • providing information, instruction and training for employees and others; • providing monitoring and health surveillance in appropriate cases; • planning for emergencies.  

Most businesses use substances, or products that are mixtures of substances. Some processes create substances. These could cause harm to employees, contractors and other people.

Storage of tools, equipment and materials

Engineering tools and equipment should always be used correctly to minimise accidents and to keep them in good working order.

Engineering tools and equipment should always be used correctly to minimise accidents and to keep them in good working order. Tools and equipment should be replaced in their designated tools and cabinets for the next user. This is good housekeeping and will avoid problems with working relationships over lost or misplaced tooling.

Engineering tools refer to hand tools, measuring tools and powered hand tools. Equipment includes all types of equipment used in the workshop from vices and benches to lifting tackle.

Materials should be stored and transported carefully and in such a way as to minimise the risk of injury.

General rules for safe use of tools and equipment

Before carrying out engineering activities it is important to following ● Carefully select the correct tool for the job.● Never use any tools/equipment without full instruction or training. If you are not sure, ask your

supervisor.● Check tools /equipment for any obvious faults, damage or excessive wear before use. Never use

a faulty tool or equipment: report it to your supervisor.● Always follow set safety rules and procedures, e.g. files must be fitted with handles, guards used

on machine tools, protective clothing worn when necessary.● For powered hand tools, use low-volt equipment with a transformer whenever possible: the lower

voltage significantly reduces the severity of electric shocks.● Know the emergency stop procedures for all powered tools and machines.● Take care to lay power tool cords avoiding 'trip wires'.● Switch off the electrical supply after working electrical hand tools.● Never operate electrically powered hand tools with wet hands, near water or flammable liquids.● Treat all tools/equipment with respect and never use any tools or operate machinery if you are

unwell or unfit to do so.

General rules for storage of tools and equipment

All tools and equipment must be stored in a way that does not present a risk of injury to persons, e.g. sharp edges should be covered, and long items should not protrude from shelves.● After use, tools and equipment should be cleaned as instructed.● Tools and equipment should be tidily stored in a clean and dry place.● Tools and equipment should be stored in their specially allocated place to enable easy

retrieval. If issued by the store person, they should be returned to him.● Accurate measuring tools may be lightly oiled before being stored to prevent corrosion.● General rules for handling and storage of materials● Always use correct lifting techniques.● Wear appropriate protective clothing to guard against possible injury.● Store materials away from gangways.● Flammable materials should be kept away from naked flames.● Liquids should be moved only in sealed containers to avoid splashing. ● Gas cylinders must be in well-ventilated areas and away from risk impact.● Hot materials should be cooled in protected areas.● Observe and obey any special instructions or safety signs.

Working safely in the workshop

When working in the workshop, be mindful of the safe working practises in the workshop, to include wearing the correct PPE and following instruction from your supervisor. It is also very important to fill out machine safety check list before commencing work on any machines and be aware of people around you who are also carrying out work.

You will be trained to carry out tasks in the workshop so that you can work to the best of your abilities and develop you skills safely. It is good to show initiative when learning new skills however you should only act on your own initiative if you have been shown/trained/instructed how to do something and know how to do it safely. If you are unsure about how to do something or use a machine, you always seek help from your supervisor.