Polymer Apprenticeship
ICON PLASTICS LIMITED
Eaglescliffe (TS16 0RB)
Closes in 18 days (Monday 1 June 2026 at 11:59pm)
Posted on 13 May 2026
Contents
Summary
Join Icon Plastics a fast-growing manufacturing business where no two days are the same. At Icon Plastics, you’ll work with modern machinery, automation, and an experienced technical team while developing real hands-on engineering skills. With major investment, exciting new projects, and genuine career progression.
- Wage
-
£16,640 for your first year, then could increase depending on your age
National Minimum Wage rate for apprentices
- Training course
- Polymer processing technician (level 3)
- Hours
-
During the first year of training, you will work 8am-4:30pm with a half-hour unpaid break and a 15-minute paid break.
After the first year, there may be an opportunity for you to drop into one of the rotating shift patterns 6am-2pm, 2pm-10pm, 10pm-6am.
40 hours a week
- Start date
-
Monday 15 June 2026
- Duration
-
3 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
- Assisting technicians with machine start-ups, process adjustments, and tooling changes across a range of injection moulding presses.
- Learning how to identify and troubleshoot production, quality, and tooling issues in a fast-paced manufacturing environment.
- Supporting routine maintenance, material handling, and continuous improvement activities across the shop floor.
- Working closely with experienced engineers and production teams to develop technical knowledge and hands-on engineering skills.
- Gaining exposure to automation, quality systems, and manufacturing processes while contributing to daily production targets and customer requirements.
Where you'll work
4
Sowerby Way
Durham Lane Industrial Park
Eaglescliffe
TS16 0RB
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
CITY OF WOLVERHAMPTON COLLEGE
Training course
Polymer processing technician (level 3)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Review instructions or information. For example, work instructions, sampling requirements, drawings dimensioning, labelling, formulations, machine settings.
- Plan task and identify and organise resources with consideration for safety, environmental impact, security, quality and cost.
- Identify and document hazards and risks in the workplace.
- Apply health, safety, and environmental procedures in compliance with regulations and standards. For example, daily machine checks, wearing personal protective equipment.
- Apply sustainability principles for example, in choice of materials, minimising waste.
- Segregate resources for reuse, recycling, and handling.
- Select, check, and prepare materials for polymer processing for example, weighing, control and blending, and conditioning.
- Select, configure (for example, replace or change inserts) and check mould tools, formers, dies or other process equipment.
- Check installation and function of processing equipment for the process.
- Connect service connections such as water, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic.
- Check hand tools, equipment and machinery including calibration record where applicable.
- Set or check machine settings using instructions such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance.
- Adjust machine setting for the speeds, positions, pressures and safety of the mould tool, former or die movement to meet product specification.
- Start up manufacturing processes.
- Monitor process feedback and adjust process parameters.
- Shut down manufacturing processes.
- Devise machine settings such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance for new or modified equipment, tooling or material.
- Test and evaluate machine settings for new or modified equipment, tooling or material.
- Select and apply optimal machine settings for new or modified equipment, tooling or material (for example, capability study).
- Interpret data for example, process data, quality control and test procedure data. Use data to inform action.
- Identify process faults and resolve.
- Apply post processing techniques for example, assembly, printing, decorating, cooling operations, packing, and labelling.
- Follow quality assurance processes during manufacture.
- Perform quality control checks. For example, conduct parameter checks (size, colour, weight), and take samples.
- Identify quality issues and resolve for example, defects, maintenance requirements.
- Escalate issues outside limits of responsibility.
- Apply preventative maintenance practices. For example, checking guarding, lubrication, cleaning of tooling, safety checks, and inspection for wear and tear.
- Apply continuous improvement techniques. Devise suggestions for improvement. For example, improving the effectiveness of existing production, improving the energy consumption or waste profile of processes and procedures to improve the sustainability or carbon footprint of a product, process or task.
- Apply team working principles.
- Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
- Record or enter information - paper based or electronic. For example, process and production records, traceability records, and quality assurance records.
- Present information.
- Communicate in written form in the workplace for example, handover notes or emails, non-conformances, design change requests, technical reports.
- Use information and digital technology. Comply with GDPR and cyber security regulations and policies.
- Plan how to meet personal development needs. Carry out and record planned and unplanned continued professional development (CPD) activities. Evaluate CPD against plans made.
- Review instructions or information. For example, work instructions, sampling requirements, drawings dimensioning, labelling, formulations, machine settings.
- Plan task and identify and organise resources with consideration for safety, environmental impact, security, quality and cost.
- Identify and document hazards and risks in the workplace.
- Apply health, safety, and environmental procedures in compliance with regulations and standards. For example, daily machine checks, wearing personal protective equipment.
- Apply sustainability principles for example, in choice of materials, minimising waste.
- Segregate resources for reuse, recycling, and handling.
- Select, check, and prepare materials for polymer processing for example, weighing, control and blending, and conditioning.
- Select, configure (for example, replace or change inserts) and check mould tools, formers, dies or other process equipment.
- Check installation and function of processing equipment for the process.
- Connect service connections such as water, electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic.
- Check hand tools, equipment and machinery including calibration record where applicable.
- Set or check machine settings using instructions such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance.
- Adjust machine setting for the speeds, positions, pressures and safety of the mould tool, former or die movement to meet product specification.
- Start up manufacturing processes.
- Monitor process feedback and adjust process parameters.
- Shut down manufacturing processes.
- Devise machine settings such as temperature, pressure, speed or time, distance for new or modified equipment, tooling or material.
- Test and evaluate machine settings for new or modified equipment, tooling or material.
- Select and apply optimal machine settings for new or modified equipment, tooling or material (for example, capability study).
- Interpret data for example, process data, quality control and test procedure data. Use data to inform action.
- Identify process faults and resolve.
- Apply post processing techniques for example, assembly, printing, decorating, cooling operations, packing, and labelling.
- Follow quality assurance processes during manufacture.
- Perform quality control checks. For example, conduct parameter checks (size, colour, weight), and take samples.
- Identify quality issues and resolve for example, defects, maintenance requirements.
- Escalate issues outside limits of responsibility.
- Apply preventative maintenance practices. For example, checking guarding, lubrication, cleaning of tooling, safety checks, and inspection for wear and tear.
- Apply continuous improvement techniques. Devise suggestions for improvement. For example, improving the effectiveness of existing production, improving the energy consumption or waste profile of processes and procedures to improve the sustainability or carbon footprint of a product, process or task.
- Apply team working principles.
- Communicate with others verbally for example, colleagues and stakeholders.
- Record or enter information - paper based or electronic. For example, process and production records, traceability records, and quality assurance records.
- Present information.
- Communicate in written form in the workplace for example, handover notes or emails, non-conformances, design change requests, technical reports.
- Use information and digital technology. Comply with GDPR and cyber security regulations and policies.
- Plan how to meet personal development needs. Carry out and record planned and unplanned continued professional development (CPD) activities. Evaluate CPD against plans made.
Training schedule
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE 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
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Problem solving skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
Other requirements
Being able to attend the site daily (transport), there is a train stop, but it’s a 20-minute walk from the site (a closer one is due to open this year).
Willingness to travel to Wolverhampton to attend on-site training (27 days total over the course of the apprenticeship).
The end goal is to work the rotating shifts, so you must be comfortable with this.
About this employer
Icon Plastics is a fast-growing and forward-thinking manufacturing business specialising in precision injection moulding for industries including automotive, telecommunications, construction, electronics, healthcare, and more. With two expanding facilities and over 30 moulding machines, we are continually investing in new machinery, automation, technology, and people to support exciting new projects and future growth.
At Icon, no two days are the same — apprentices and employees work in a modern, fast-paced environment alongside an experienced technical team, gaining exposure to advanced manufacturing processes, robotics, tooling, quality systems, and continuous improvement projects. We pride ourselves on creating opportunities for people to develop, progress, and build long-term careers within an ambitious and evolving business.
After this apprenticeship
The successful candidate will move on to become a fully qualified technician, leading their own shift here at Icon Plastics.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
CITY OF WOLVERHAMPTON COLLEGE
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000031370.
Apply now
Closes in 18 days (Monday 1 June 2026 at 11:59pm)