Fibre preparing, spinning and winding machine operators

Fibre-preparing, spinning and winding machine operators operate and monitor machines which prepare fibres, and spin, double, twist and wind yarn and thread from natural textile fibres. They twist two or more strands of yarn to prepare single stronger, smoother, uniform and heavier strands and treat textiles to make them stiff and water resistant.

Duties and tasks

• Operating and monitoring machines for tearing woollen rags into fibre
• Operating and monitoring machines for cleaning and turning woollen yarn waste into fluffed wool
• Operating and monitoring machines which combine textile fibres into uniform blends
• Operating and monitoring machines which clean and fluff textile fibres, transform them into sliver, comb them into sliver for first drawing, combine slivers into sliver lap or sliver laps into ribbon lap
• Operating draw frames (machines) having numbers of drawing sets, each set combining several slivers into one of nearly the same weight and thickness as any of the original slivers
• Operating and monitoring machines which spin thread and yarn from roving, wind two or more threads onto a bobbin, twist two or more strands of yarn or thread into single strands of yarn to increase strength, smoothness and/or uniformity of yarn, or wind yarn or thread from one package to another
• Operating and monitoring spinning frames that draw out and twist roving or sliver into yarn
• Operating and monitoring machines for drawing slivers received from drawing machines into loosely twisted strands
• Preparing sizing for use in stiffening and finishing cloth and yarn by mixing ingredients such as starch, tallow, resins and soaps with water and boiling mixture for specified times in steam
• Treating textiles with chemicals to make them water resistant
• Cleaning rollers and cylinders of carding machines to remove wool waste
• Operating and resurfacing metal drawing rolls of various spinning, combing and lapping machines with new rubber or leather covers