Apprentice Textile Technician Specialist
ABRAHAM MOON & SONS LIMITED
West Yorkshire (LS20 9PA)
Closes in 19 days (Thursday 20 November 2025 at 11:59pm)
Posted on 30 October 2025
Contents
Summary
Apprentice Finishing & Materials Technologist (Perfect for science lovers who want to make something real). What You’ll Do You’ll learn the art and science behind textile finishing- transforming woven wool into luxurious fabrics ready for fashion and interiors.
- Wage
-
£24,862 a year
- Training course
- Textile technical specialist (level 4)
- Hours
-
Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm (half hour unpaid lunch break)
37 hours 30 minutes a week
- Start date
-
Monday 1 December 2025
- Duration
-
2 years
- 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
What You’ll Do
You’ll learn the art and science behind textile finishing- transforming woven wool into luxurious fabrics ready for fashion and interiors. You’ll be trained to:
- Operate and understand textile finishing machinery
- Apply chemistry and physics in real industrial processes
- Use data and SAP systems to track and improve productionTroubleshoot and optimise processes with our Technical and Quality teams
- Work with natural fibres in a heritage mill environment
- You’ll complete the Level 4 Textile Technical Specialist Apprenticeship, provided by TCoE – Textile Centre of Excellence gaining recognised qualifications and skills that can launch a long-term career in materials science, sustainable manufacturing, or engineering.
Where you'll work
Netherfield Mills
Guiseley
Leeds
West Yorkshire
LS20 9PA
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
HUDDERSFIELD TEXTILE TRAINING LIMITED
Training course
Textile technical specialist (level 4)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Work within, and contribute to, a safe, healthy and well managed environment, taking into consideration the appropriate health & safety legislation that affects textile manufacturing.
- Develop working relationships in a manufacturing environment including listening skills around the machinery, effective communication skills with colleagues, identify improvements and interact confidently to ensure that production is achieved.
- Configure and prove textile machinery to ensure fabric specification, input all mechanical/electronic settings to maintain quality and productivity. Make changes to machine capabilities for different styles/qualities.
- Perform and make records of scheduled maintenance to ensure the efficiency of machinery meets production expectations and reduce malfunctions. Ensure continuing supply of spare parts to eliminate machine downtime and eliminate production losses, liaise with machine manufacturers to overcome performance limitations.
- Read and interpret data from production records, specifications, data management, process planning meetings including job documentation and appropriate work instructions.
- Accept changing priorities and work flexibly to meet company requirements. Work effectively with others in a team whilst maintaining effective working relationships. Accept that in textile production, the expectation to complete tasks within the job role affects the customer experience.
- Develop and operate plans for their own work area in line with business practice. Work with Shift Managers to produce specialist, technical reports and data to reinforce results and decision making. Identify priorities that affect the running of production whilst ensuring organisational policies are met.
- Rectify machine malfunctions and replace machine parts to tolerance settings. Maintain supply of spare parts to ensure production continuity. Carry out scheduled maintenance to machine manufacturer guidelines and lubricant specifications. Plan and forecast using known periods of peak time and downtime to maximise production with appropriate colleagues.
- Utilise production scheduling timing and accuracy to ensure changeover of jobs, staff and machinery are managed and maintained efficiently and effectively, recognising how to forecast and plan.
- Set up and configuration of weaving machinery to achieve specific parameters and understand all aspects of the weaving ticket/loom card (including warp plan, weft plan, weave plan, draft plan, yarn count etc) Contribute to achievement of desired production targets and quality standards.
- Manage fault and diagnosis of fabric and loom faults (including short picks, stitching, weft and warp bars, machine lifting, temple marks and cuts etc). Use weaving techniques to minimise faults. Recognise when fibres, yarns and fabrics used in the pre-weaving operations affect the quality of the woven product.
- Set up and configure all types of finishing machinery in the workplace to achieve specific fabric finishes, utilising skill and knowledge of treatment methods to ascertain the best finish. Contribute to achievement of production targets and quality standards in line with business practice.
- Identify when finishing treatments need refining by touch, feel, fabric rigidity and data analysis. Know how to diagnose faults in machinery and in process (water softening, temperatures etc). Undertake appropriate remedial activity to fix and redeploy personnel where necessary.
- Manage and maintain finishing equipment in line with company policy. Recognise when maintenance is affecting the fabric outcomes and technical performance.
- Manage raw materials (fabric) to ensure PH, water and chemical levels are exact and fit for customer requirement. Manage the input and output of fabrics to ensure services are maintained and monitored including environmental impact assessments.
- Work within, and contribute to, a safe, healthy and well managed environment, taking into consideration the appropriate health & safety legislation that affects textile manufacturing.
- Develop working relationships in a manufacturing environment including listening skills around the machinery, effective communication skills with colleagues, identify improvements and interact confidently to ensure that production is achieved.
- Configure and prove textile machinery to ensure fabric specification, input all mechanical/electronic settings to maintain quality and productivity. Make changes to machine capabilities for different styles/qualities.
- Perform and make records of scheduled maintenance to ensure the efficiency of machinery meets production expectations and reduce malfunctions. Ensure continuing supply of spare parts to eliminate machine downtime and eliminate production losses, liaise with machine manufacturers to overcome performance limitations.
- Read and interpret data from production records, specifications, data management, process planning meetings including job documentation and appropriate work instructions.
- Accept changing priorities and work flexibly to meet company requirements. Work effectively with others in a team whilst maintaining effective working relationships. Accept that in textile production, the expectation to complete tasks within the job role affects the customer experience.
- Develop and operate plans for their own work area in line with business practice. Work with Shift Managers to produce specialist, technical reports and data to reinforce results and decision making. Identify priorities that affect the running of production whilst ensuring organisational policies are met.
- Rectify machine malfunctions and replace machine parts to tolerance settings. Maintain supply of spare parts to ensure production continuity. Carry out scheduled maintenance to machine manufacturer guidelines and lubricant specifications. Plan and forecast using known periods of peak time and downtime to maximise production with appropriate colleagues.
- Utilise production scheduling timing and accuracy to ensure changeover of jobs, staff and machinery are managed and maintained efficiently and effectively, recognising how to forecast and plan.
Training schedule
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
HUDDERSFIELD TEXTILE TRAINING LIMITED
You’ll complete the Level 4 Textile Technical Specialist Apprenticeship, provided by TCoE- Textile Centre of Excellence, this will be through a mixture of onsite and off site visits.
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
Desirable qualifications
GCSE in:
A Level in:
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- IT skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Problem solving skills
- Presentation skills
- Number skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Initiative
- Non judgemental
- interest in Science
- ability to prioritise tasks
Other requirements
Ideal Background • A-Level Chemistry or equivalent. • Strong analytical skills and attention to detail. • Good IT skills (Excel, Word, Outlook). • Interest in sustainability, textiles, or materials.
About this employer
With over 185 years of proudly British manufacturing and design heritage to our name – we are experts in producing woollen cloth of unrivalled character and quality. Today, we are one of a select few mills within the UK that manufacture and sell our cloth directly to our customers from a single site – allowing us to control every single stage within the production process to the highest standard.
http://www.moon.co.uk (opens in new tab)
Company benefits
WE are a Real Living Wage employer Contributory pension (company 3%) onsite carpark Discounted gym membership Discount of up to 50% on Moon products Cycle to Work Scheme Company sick pay Life Assurance Health & Wellbeing support
Disability Confident
A fair proportion of interviews for this apprenticeship will be offered to applicants with a disability or long-term health condition. This includes non-visible disabilities and conditions.
You can choose to be considered for an interview under the Disability Confident scheme. You’ll need to meet the essential requirements to be considered for an interview.
After this apprenticeship
Technical Textile Finisher, progression possible to superviosor and management
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
ABRAHAM MOON & SONS LIMITED
Sam Field
samantha.field@moons.co.uk
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000347450.
Apply now
Closes in 19 days (Thursday 20 November 2025 at 11:59pm)
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