Engineering Technician Apprentice
DS Smith
Featherstone (WF7 5DF)
Closes in 27 days (Friday 30 May 2025)
Posted on 2 May 2025
Contents
Summary
Exciting opportunity for a highly motivated and ambitious individual to join us as an Engineering Technician at our Packaging Manufacturing site at Featherstone. Gain operational experience by assisting in many areas including supporting planned preventative maintenance plans and carrying out reactive repair and improvement on equipment
- Wage
-
£19,000 a year
Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)
Starting salary of £19,000 with increases year on year as you progress throughout the course
- Training course
- Mechatronics maintenance technician (level 3)
- Hours
-
Monday - Friday, 9.00am - 5.00pm, shifts, may work evenings and weekends.
37 hours 30 minutes a week
- Start date
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Tuesday 26 August 2025
- Duration
-
3 years 6 months
- Positions available
-
1
Work
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
What you'll do at work
- Maintaining and continually improve housekeeping standards in engineering workshops, and when conducting tasks around the site
- Development and execution of a planned preventative maintenance plan
- Carry out reactive repair and improvement of selected equipment
Understand how and where to source spare parts and service contracts, with a view to continually improving performance while reducing costs - Maintain comprehensive equipment records, with details of repairs completed, root causes, and corrective actions
- Comply with asset management performance targets set by group and site
- Record performance to demonstrate adherence to KPIs
- Engage with wider DS Smith engineering teams to ensure the site is fully compliant with all policies, and to stay fully informed of technical developments in the business
- Management of maintenance & repair sub-contractors
Where you'll work
Common Side Ln
Featherstone
WF7 5DF
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
College or training organisation
HEART OF YORKSHIRE EDUCATION GROUP
Your training course
Mechatronics maintenance technician (level 3)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Use information technology, for example to create documentation, communication and information management.
- Obtain, read and interpret task related documentation, such as work instructions, quality control documents, drawings, operation manuals, specifications and service manuals.
- Record information for example job sheets, risk assessments, equipment service records, test results, handover documents and manufacturers' documentation, asset management records, work sheets, checklists, waste environmental records and any legal reporting requirements.
- Conduct initial assessment of equipment that requires maintenance.
- Formulate plans setting out the methodology of the maintenance activity including timescales and resources.
- Select, prepare and use material, consumables, tools and equipment.
- Comply with health and safety regulations and organisational requirements applicable in the workplace. For example, COSHH, PUWER, LOLER, PPE and applying safe systems of work.
- Apply dynamic risk assessment, hazard identification and risk mitigation principles and techniques.
- Apply isolation principles and techniques to equipment undergoing maintenance, including dissipation of stored energies as required.
- Manufacture, repair and refurbish components using hand and machine tools.
- Restore the workplace on completion of the maintenance activity. Handover resources, consumables and equipment to process owner.
- Apply the techniques and processes used in reactive maintenance and repair activities on complex engineered systems such as electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid power and control systems.
- Produce, maintain, update, record and store documentation including electronic items such as PLC and robot programmes.
- Apply techniques and processes used in planned and preventative maintenance activities on engineered systems such as electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid power and control systems.
- Apply functional testing and checking techniques and processes after maintenance interventions, and handover to the operational team.
- Apply techniques and processes used in condition monitoring, non-destructive or sensory testing. Record findings and take necessary actions.
- Apply calculation techniques such as, feeds, speeds, tolerances, electrical calculations using Ohms law, power calculations and cable sizing calculations.
- Select, use and confirm calibration of electrical and mechanical testing and measuring equipment.
- Produce sketches or drawings to support maintenance activities.
- Communicate in writing. Prepare communications, documents and reports on technical matters.
- Segregate, separate and dispose of waste streams and by-products.
- Apply 4S or 5S principles of housekeeping to the work environment.
- Identify opportunities and make recommendations to improve operational performance.
- Apply continuous improvement techniques.
- Communicate with others verbally. Negotiate with colleagues or stakeholders. For example, to access equipment or arrange access to equipment.
- Follow equity, diversity and inclusion procedures.
- Carry out and record planned and unplanned learning and development activities.
- Apply fault finding techniques used in reactive maintenance on complex integrated systems including half split, input output, six point technique, function or performance testing, unit or component substitution and equipment diagnostics.
- Use information technology, for example to create documentation, communication and information management.
- Obtain, read and interpret task related documentation, such as work instructions, quality control documents, drawings, operation manuals, specifications and service manuals.
- Record information for example job sheets, risk assessments, equipment service records, test results, handover documents and manufacturers' documentation, asset management records, work sheets, checklists, waste environmental records and any legal reporting requirements.
- Conduct initial assessment of equipment that requires maintenance.
- Formulate plans setting out the methodology of the maintenance activity including timescales and resources.
- Select, prepare and use material, consumables, tools and equipment.
- Comply with health and safety regulations and organisational requirements applicable in the workplace. For example, COSHH, PUWER, LOLER, PPE and applying safe systems of work.
- Apply dynamic risk assessment, hazard identification and risk mitigation principles and techniques.
- Apply isolation principles and techniques to equipment undergoing maintenance, including dissipation of stored energies as required.
- Manufacture, repair and refurbish components using hand and machine tools.
- Restore the workplace on completion of the maintenance activity. Handover resources, consumables and equipment to process owner.
- Apply the techniques and processes used in reactive maintenance and repair activities on complex engineered systems such as electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid power and control systems.
- Produce, maintain, update, record and store documentation including electronic items such as PLC and robot programmes.
- Apply techniques and processes used in planned and preventative maintenance activities on engineered systems such as electrical, electronic, mechanical, fluid power and control systems.
- Apply functional testing and checking techniques and processes after maintenance interventions, and handover to the operational team.
- Apply techniques and processes used in condition monitoring, non-destructive or sensory testing. Record findings and take necessary actions.
- Apply calculation techniques such as, feeds, speeds, tolerances, electrical calculations using Ohms law, power calculations and cable sizing calculations.
- Select, use and confirm calibration of electrical and mechanical testing and measuring equipment.
- Produce sketches or drawings to support maintenance activities.
- Communicate in writing. Prepare communications, documents and reports on technical matters.
- Segregate, separate and dispose of waste streams and by-products.
- Apply 4S or 5S principles of housekeeping to the work environment.
- Identify opportunities and make recommendations to improve operational performance.
- Apply continuous improvement techniques.
- Communicate with others verbally. Negotiate with colleagues or stakeholders. For example, to access equipment or arrange access to equipment.
- Follow equity, diversity and inclusion procedures.
- Carry out and record planned and unplanned learning and development activities.
- Apply fault finding techniques used in reactive maintenance on complex integrated systems including half split, input output, six point technique, function or performance testing, unit or component substitution and equipment diagnostics.
Your training plan
- Mechatronics Maintenance Technician Level 3 Apprenticeship Standard
- You will be in college 1 day per week and 4 days a week on site working with the Engineering and wider Operations Teams
- For college you will be based at Heart of Yorkshire, Castleford Campus
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
Maths (grade 5)Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Problem solving skills
- Number skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Initiative
About this company
DS Smith is a leading provider of sustainable fibre-based packaging worldwide, which is supported by recycling and papermaking operations. We play a central role in the value chain across sectors including e-commerce, fast moving consumer goods and industrials. Through our purpose of ‘Redefining Packaging for a Changing World’ and our Now and Next sustainability strategy, we are committed to leading the transition to the circular economy, while delivering more circular solutions for our customers and wider society – replacing problem plastics, taking carbon out of supply chains and providing innovative recycling solutions. Our bespoke box-to-box in 14 days model, design capabilities and innovation strategy sits at the heart of this response. Headquartered in London and a member of the FTSE 100, DS Smith operates in 34 countries employing around 30,000 people and we are a Strategic Partner of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Our history can be traced back to the box-making businesses started in the 1940s by the Smith family.
After this apprenticeship
- Move into a full-time Engineering Technician role and progress from there
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
DS Smith
Oliver Churchill
oliver.churchill@dssmith.com
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000318501.
Apply now
Closes in 27 days (Friday 30 May 2025)
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Company’s application instructions
Please apply on the link with your CV