Job Purpose: The Stainless-Steel Fabricator role is responsible for the production of stainless-steel equipment to meet customer specifications, quality standards and production schedules. The role works from engineering drawings and job documentation to manufacture high-quality products while maintaining safe work practices, supporting efficient workshop operations and contributing to continuous improvement across the workshop.
Key Responsibilities: - Fabricate, weld, and assemble stainless steel tanks, vessels, pipework, and associated equipment in accordance with engineering drawings and job specifications.
- Read and interpret fabrication drawings, sketches, and work instructions to ensure accurate and efficient manufacturing.
- Safely and efficiently operate fabrication equipment, hand tools, and workshop machinery.
- Complete stainless steel welding and fabrication to a high standard, ensuring precise fit-up, quality workmanship, and compliance with specifications.
- Perform fitting, alignment, and assembly of fabricated components as required.
- Inspect completed work to ensure it meets required quality standards and rectify any defects before progressing to the next stage of production.
- Work collaboratively with the Workshop Foreman and team members to meet production schedules and customer deadlines.
- Identify and promptly communicate fabrication issues, material shortages, and potential production delays.
- Maintain a clean, organised, and safe work environment in accordance with OH&S requirements.
- Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives by identifying opportunities to improve workshop efficiency, quality, and productivity.
Qualifications and Competencies: - Trade-qualified in boilermaking, fabrication, or a related trade.
- Experienced in stainless steel fabrication and welding, with fitting experience preferred.
- Food and beverage industry experience is advantageous.
- Strong knowledge of fabrication techniques, tools, equipment, and materials.
- Able to interpret engineering drawings, sketches, and job documentation.
- High attention to detail and quality workmanship.
- Can work independently and effectively as part of a team.
- Strong problem-solving and prioritisation skills.
- Committed to workplace safety and OH&S compliance.
Additional required qualifications: -
Food-grade tank fabrication: Experienced in building food-grade tanks from start to finish, including marking out, cutting, fitting, tack welding and polishing. Experience with:
- Forming shallow cones and knuckling cones
- Flaring tank walls for fittings
- Fitting and seal welding cladding to vessels
- Fabricating and fitting pop-riveted cladding with lock-seamed joints and jennied/swaged edges
- Fitting dimple plate
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Tube welding: Experienced in setting out, tacking and purge welding, including “walking the cup” welding.
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Reading drawings: Able to read and understand fabrication and engineering drawings.
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Stainless steel: Familiar with different grades of stainless steel, including 304, 316, 2205, 2507 and 904L.
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Pressure vessels: Experienced in fabricating pressure vessels, following welding procedures, carrying out dye penetrant testing and performing hydrostatic testing.
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Ribbon and paddle blenders: Experience fabricating and assembling ribbon blenders and paddle blenders.
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Platforms and access systems: Experience fabricating platforms, staircases and handrails.
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Skid-mounted systems: Experience fabricating and assembling skid-mounted systems, including tanks, pipework, pumps and controls.
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Conveyors: Experience fabricating flat-belt and wire-belt conveyors, including fitting take-up bearings and aligning shafts.
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Augers: Experience fabricating augers, including welding flights to shafts and straightening augers when required.
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Transitions and bends: Experience fabricating square-to-round transitions, lobster-back bends and branches in materials ranging from 1.5 mm to 6 mm thick.
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Tube and pipe fittings: Able to identify and work with BSM, BSP, tri-clamp (T/C) and Swagelok connections.
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Valves: Able to identify and work with butterfly, ball, slide-gate, gate and iris valves.
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Fitting and machining: Experience with:
- Machining shafts to tight tolerances, cutting keyways and slots, drilling and tapping
- Machining flanges, and fitting gearmotors
- Aligning shafts and couplings
- Familiar with centrifugal, lobe, gear, mono
- Repairing, refurbishing and replacing parts on customer equipment
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Licences and qualifications: Hold a current car licence, along with relevant licences and qualifications for:
- Forklift
- Confined spaces
- Working at heights
- EWP
- Crane
- Dogging
