Extrusion & Mould Setter Engineer

Extrusion & Mould Setter Engineer

Location: Waterlooville, Hampshire

We’re working with a successful high-volume manufacturing business looking to appoint an experienced Extrusion & Mould Setter Engineer to join its manufacturing team.

This is a hands-on role focused on the setup, optimisation and continuous running of extrusion and injection moulding processes, with particular emphasis on pipe extrusion.

You’ll play a key role in keeping production lines running efficiently, minimising downtime and scrap, and ensuring consistent product quality across long production runs.

The Role

You will be responsible for:

• Setting, starting, adjusting and shutting down extrusion and injection moulding lines.
• Installing and aligning dies, tooling, calibrators, moulds and downstream equipment.
• Optimising temperatures, screw speeds, pressures, line speeds, cooling and calibration systems.
• Managing continuous pipe extrusion, maintaining diameter, wall thickness and ovality within specification.
• Setting vacuum calibration and cooling systems, haul-offs, cutters, coilers and stacking equipment.
• Carrying out first-off checks and accurately recording process parameters.
• Troubleshooting issues including dimensional variation, surface defects, ovality, melt fracture and material inconsistencies.
• Driving improvements in scrap, OEE, line speeds and process stability.
• Supporting preventative maintenance and working closely with Engineering and Toolroom teams.
• Managing material changes, purging and colour transitions.
• Supporting NPI trials, process development and root-cause investigations, including 8D.
• Maintaining high standards of health & safety and product quality.

About You

We’re looking for someone with:

• Proven experience setting and running plastic extrusion lines and injection moulding machines.
• Strong hands-on experience of pipe extrusion, including die and calibrator changes, sizing and downstream handling.
• A solid understanding of polymer behaviour, extrusion tooling and downstream equipment.
• Strong mechanical aptitude and confidence working with tooling and machinery.
• The ability to read and interpret engineering drawings and specifications.
• Experience within a high-volume or continuous manufacturing environment.
• A practical, hands-on approach to troubleshooting and problem solving.

Desirable Experience

• Qualification in Polymer Processing, Mechanical Engineering or a related discipline.
• Experience with calibration tanks, haul-offs, cutters, slitters and winders.
• Knowledge of Lean / Continuous Improvement, including 5S, SMED and OEE.
• Experience working within ISO 9001 environments.
• Forklift or overhead crane certification.

What Success Looks Like

You'll be successful in the role by delivering:

• Stable, repeatable extrusion and moulding processes.
• Reduced scrap and downtime, with improved OEE and line performance.
• Fast and accurate setups and tooling changes.
• Consistent achievement of dimensional and quality standards.
• Proactive problem solving and preventative maintenance.
• Strong collaboration across Production, Quality and Engineering.

If you're an experienced Extrusion Setter / Engineer who enjoys being hands-on, solving production problems and improving manufacturing performance, we'd like to hear from you.