Who is the CNC miller machinist and what does he or she do?
Among the most important figures in the mechanical sector is the miller. This is a complete professional figure, able not only to carry out his work using traditional milling machines, but also those with Computerized Numerical Control (CNC), evolution of all classic machines. This is why this role requires a series of skills that go well beyond those of simple metal craftsmen and that must be taken into account when recruiting miller. The miller, in fact, in addition to being able to create parts to drawing by means of the milling machine, must be able to prepare the instruments, program, set up and maintain the machines and, above all, be able to read dimensioned drawings and reproduce samples. This is a role that requires continuous updates on material innovations, updates on the CNC programming languages used, new ways of creating shapes and much more. Technicians who are interested in taking part in a selection for the position of “CNC milling miller machinist” must then possess a series of requirements, including: manual skills and precision; specific technical skills and knowledge of materials; ability to read dimensioned drawings (mechanical drawing); knowledge of programming languages.
Manual skills and precision
When recruiting a CNC miller, applicants must be able to demonstrate their manual skills and precision. It should not be forgotten, in fact, that even if today most of the work of a CNC miller is carried out by machines, man always has a fundamental role, particularly in the machining of elements to be produced in small batches. If in large companies the recruitment of a CNC miller is based mainly on the technical skills of this professional figure, in SMEs a technician who is also familiar with the high technology that characterizes the machines themselves can be more useful, playing a role as the person responsible for their proper functioning and acting as an interface with the company producing the machines in the workshop.
Technical skills usually required in the recruitment of CNC millers
As you can easily imagine, during the recruitment of a CNC miller machinist specific technical skills will be required, which allow to evaluate the candidate in a more or less positive way. But what is meant by specific technical skills? It means all the knowledge that allows the miller to do its job in the best possible way. A deep familiarity with the different metal materials, from the most common to the least used, will therefore be necessary, which will allow to understand, depending on the case, how to carry out the different machining operations, i.e. how to set the machines to obtain perfect results. Furthermore, it will be necessary to know the various degrees of hardness of the latter in order to evaluate, even before starting the work, the settings of the achievable dimensions and acceptable tolerances. Furthermore, working with Computer Numerical Control milling machines, in some cases it will be necessary to be very familiar with the programming and use of these machines. From this, it follows that the CNC miller will have to have a high technical and professional preparation, constantly updated. As it happens for all technicians working with programmable machines, in fact, also for millers updates on the different and new programming possibilities are a must. This is the only way to be sure to keep up with the times, i.e. to know the different types of machines and programs, even if you will not always have the possibility to use them directly. And that’s not all: it should be remembered that the complexity of programming is accompanied by that of the capabilities of these machines, capable of performing ever-changing milling and work, which the technician must be able to know, control and use.
Reading capacity of the dimensioned drawings
The miller must be able to process objects according to the quoted drawings. Precisely for this reason, when recruiting a “CNC miller machinist” the competence in this field must be carefully evaluated. A good technician, in fact, must have a quick and easy reading of the values that are reported next to the different sections and parts of the drawings. A CNC miller must be able to read without uncertainty not only the classic dimensions of height, length and depth of the individual elements, but also the relative positions, such as hole diameters, axis distances, gear depths and everything that can be reported on a technical drawing for the production of metal elements. The greatest ability to be taken into account when recruiting a CNC miller, however, is its knowledge of the use of error, i.e. the competence and precision in calculating possible errors during the execution of a project. It is useless, in fact, to think of being able to make all products identical and without difference: despite the use of CNC instrumentation, in fact, it is possible to have measurements that do not correspond to the requirements of the dimensioned drawing. In this case, the competence of the technician in the use of tolerances, i.e. the possible allowed dimensions, is fundamental because it allows to make the difference between a saved work and one to be thrown away.
The recruitment of a CNC miller
Specific computer skills often play a very important role in the recruitment of a CNC miller. In fact, the link between the work of the machines and the programs for processing such work is becoming increasingly close.
The figure of the CNC miller is a key figure in the workshop. Precisely for this reason, the recruitment of a CNC miller represents a delicate and important moment, during which to choose a technician able to work with high precision, to interact with the machines and with the technicians of the company and, above all, to be always ready for continuous updates, both theoretical and practical, in order to keep its standard of competence in its field always high.