Hiring a CNC machinist must be a piece of cake since most CNC machining services provide training for their hardware, right? Wrong! Although CNC machining has never been easier to handle than it is these days, certain levels of competence are required form operators to make sure they will be able to handle the tasks at hand without any problem. Testing a candidate for a company should go through various stages to make sure that every new technician can handle all the tasks that are expected from them without messing up. A poorly trained professional could very well mean a loss of money for the company as well as the time of the client.

Here are a few of the Skill you need to make sure your new CNC machine operator must be able to handle before hiring him full time:

Capable of Handling Prep Work

Your brand new CNC operator must be familiar with the basic vocabulary of CNC machining. Words like drilling, milling, and grinding shouldn’t be weird for him. He should also have the necessary skills to read blueprints and mechanical plans. While handling software coding is not required it is desirable that the operator feels comfortable using computer programs and has to some extent basic knowledge of computer commands for the machines he’s about to operate.

Ability to Follow Plans and Instructions

A CNC operator doesn’t have to be a top-level engineer to handle a CNC machine, but he needs to pay close attention to instructions. As we stated previously, in the prep stage of any project, the operator will have to deal with a lot of technical terms and indications provided on the blueprints and plans that are given to him before starting the task. Their ability to understand these plans are crucial and should be double tested by his immediate supervisor to make sure they are ok.

Top Physical Form

Modern CNC machining does not have the complexity of the past, and it certainly doesn’t have the physical demands that came with it, but the operator must still be able to unload raw materials or to deliver finished parts through the CNC machines. While most of these materials do not have a great deal of weight, some strength is required to work these procedures correctly.

The Ability to Handle test runs and Notice Performance Issues

Once CNC machines start to deliver outputs, the operator must be able to do periodic test runs on the delivered parts by following the specifications asked of them in the blueprints. If the operator notices any problem, he must communicate immediately with the design department or the engineer in charge of the project. The operator is tasked with completing the fabrication cycles of these machines, but if a full cycle is completed with no supervision and faulty parts come out of it, he will likely get the blame for it.

There are other skillsets required by individual companies such as specific mathematical aptitudes as well as good knowledge of math, but is mostly a right eye for details and good results on the tests runs that should land a job for a CNC operator.