Description
Set up, operate, and tend manual and automated equipment to cut or slice insulation materials—such as fiberglass, mineral wool, foam board, and elastomeric products—to specified dimensions and tolerances for packaging or further fabrication.
- • Feed insulation onto conveyors or under cutting heads by threading, guiding, or turning handwheels.
- • Position material along cutting lines or against stops and fences on cutting equipment.
- • Change or replace blades, hot wires, cutter heads, and abrasives using hand tools.
- • Mark cutting lines or identification on stock with markers, rulers, or scribes.
- • Manually cut or trim insulation for setup or rework using knives, shears, or handsaws.
- • Sharpen or replace knives and blades, and tension hot wires to maintain cut performance.
- • Follow safety procedures for handling fibers and foam, including PPE, ventilation, and lockout/tagout.
- • Minimize, collect, and dispose of or recycle scrap according to company procedures.
- • Coordinate with team members or direct helpers on cutting and material handling tasks.
- • Examine, measure, and weigh insulation to verify conformance using tape measures, calipers, thickness gauges, and scales.
- • Set up, operate, or tend insulation cutting machines such as hot-wire cutters, slitters, guillotine cutters, and die cutters.
- • Stack and sort cut insulation by type, thickness, and size for packaging, staging, or shipping.
- • Review work orders, blueprints, specifications, or samples to determine machine settings and adjustments.
- • Enter programs on HMIs or computers, or manually set cutting guides, clamps, fences, and knives.
- • Remove defective or out-of-spec pieces and adjust machine components to meet quality standards.
- • Press buttons, pull levers, or use foot pedals to start and operate cutting equipment.
- • Adjust controls to alter position, alignment, speed, temperature, or pressure for optimal cut quality.
- • Maintain production records for quantities, types, lot numbers, and dimensions produced.
- • Monitor machine operation to detect malfunctions or replenish stock, blades, and hot wires.
- • Start machines to verify setups and make necessary adjustments for accuracy.
- • Unload finished parts from machines and stage them for further processing or packaging.
- • Select and install blades, hot wires, rollers, dies, and templates according to specifications using hand tools.
- • Move stock and scrap to and from machines using carts, hand trucks, or forklifts.
- • Clean and maintain cutting tables, conveyors, guards, and dust collection or vacuum systems.
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Advanced Manufacturing
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Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
