About Manufacturing & Production
The Manufacturing and Production sector covers all companies that transform parts or raw materials into goods and products with added value. As you may imagine, despite a general shift towards services in recent years, the UK economy still includes an enormous manufacturing sector.
Among the physical goods produced in Britain are clothing, food, vehicles and motor parts, and pharmaceuticals, but there are many more niche manufacturing sectors providing products for smaller but no less important part of society.
Although technology has relieved much of the physical labour that was once a staple of manufacturing and production, there is now a need for more specialised professionals to work that machinery, oversee production lines, coordinate logistics, and develop improvement plans to optimise plant efficiency.
Popular Manufacturing & Production Roles
Production Operative
Production Operative
Production Operative
Production Operative is perhaps one of the first roles that might spring to mind when you think about manufacturing. Production Operatives are the professionals charged with putting together the products being made at their factory, manipulating machinery, packing, or working on another part of the production line. Among the plus sides to being a Production Operative are the many work opportunities around the country given the widespread presence of factories and other facilities, an the chance to earn regular bonus pay during peak times such as Christmas.
Production Manager
Production Operative
Production Operative
As a Production Manager, you’ll also be working on the factory floor, but in the capacity of a team leader. It will b your responsibility to ensure everyone on the production line is happy, healthy, and working optimally to meet deadlines. Production Managers are also expected to work closely with other managers to coordinate objectives and understand company needs. As such, excellent interpersonal and communication skills are very important, but you’ll also need an edge in more technical areas such as quality control, budgeting, report writing, and planning.
Warehouse Operative
Warehouse Operative
Warehouse Operative
Warehouse Operatves form the vital link between the production line and logistics, packing, organising, collecting, and loading orders to be shipped out around the country and abroad. Like other manufacturing and production jobs, the position of Warehouse Operative is often a shift-based role, meaning you’ll need to be flexible with when you can work and sometimes available on weekends or late nights. Skills and traits that make for excellent Warehouse Operatives include attention to detail, some essential abilities in maths and communication, and even some technical qualifications such as a forklift truck license. eting, report writing, and planning.
Production Planner
Warehouse Operative
Warehouse Operative
Production Planners are the people in charge of drawing up the production schedule for a given time period, detailing the deadlines, quantities, materials and labour required, and destination of the orders to be filled. Production Planners need to have a detailed yet global knowledge of the production process from start to finish, and are expected to compile reports on many aspects of the factory’s activities including recommendations on how to optimize production and reduce costs without affecting quality standards. Production Planners are usually university graduates or have a vocational qualification, but professionals with good experience in manufacturing are also often considered for the role