The unit involves sharpening and aligning blades and knives in a forest products factory setting

The skills and knowledge required for competent workplace performance are to be used within the scope of the person's job and authority

ELEMENT

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA

1. Prepare blades and knives for sharpening

1.1. Applicable occupational health and safety (OHS), environmental, legislative and organisational requirements relevant to sharpening and aligning blades and knives are identified and followed

1.2. Work order is reviewed and clarified with appropriate personnel

1.3. Type of blade or knife to be sharpened is removed from the designated machinery

1.4. Equipment is selected appropriate to work requirements and checked for operational effectiveness in line with manufacturer recommendations

1.5. Sharpening and aligning process is planned in line with site procedures and environmental requirements

1.6. Communication with others is established and maintained in line with OHS requirements

2. Assess condition and set up blades or knives and assemblies

2.1. Cutting performance of blade or knife is assessed to determine sharpening requirements

2.2. Condition of knife holder, jig and chuck is assessed and defects are corrected

2.3. Knife holder is cleaned and secured to the chuck to enterprise standards

2.4. Jig type and setting are selected for required blade or knife setup

3. Sharpen blades and knives

3.1. Pre-startup checks are carried out on equipment in line with site requirements

3.2. Blades or knives are cleaned of excess build-up and babbitts and inspected for defects, with those unable to be repaired by sharpening replaced

3.3. Geometry for blades or knives is selected from manufacturer's instructions

3.4. Grinder is set up with suitable attachment for holding the knife or blade and grinding wheel is examined and dressed

3.5. Grinding wheel speed and feeds are selected to suit the wheel and the blade or knife

3.6. Grinding wheel is fed across and into cutting edge to obtain clean cutting edge to conform to geometric requirements without defects and burns

3.7. Coolant is applied in line with manufacturer specifications

3.8. Blade or knife is inspected after sharpening for accuracy and remaining burrs are honed to obtain a sharp cutting edge

3.9. Blades and knives that cannot be sharpened or are damaged in the sharpening process are dealt with in line with site procedures, manufacturer recommendations and environmental requirements

3.10. Sharpening and equipment faults are recorded and reported to the appropriate personnel

4. Align blades and knives

4.1. Babbitts are inspected to assess the requirement for reconditioning

4.2. Babbitt material is heated to required pouring temperature

4.3. Blade or knife is set up in pouring jig to required dimensions and babbitt is poured without excessive material wastage and avoiding cavities and shrinkage

4.4. Assembly is cooled and excess material removed to allow correct positioning in machinery

4.5. Set screws are inspected in line with standard operating procedures, and bent or broken screws are replaced

4.6. Set screws are adjusted to position knife or blade at the correct depth

4.7. Set screws are locked into position to avoid knife or blade movement

This describes the essential skills and knowledge and their level required for this unit.

Required skills

Technical skills sufficient to use and maintain relevant tools, machinery and equipment; set up grinder and all attachments to suit knife or blade type; efficiently and safely sharpen blades and knives to enterprise requirements

Communication skills sufficient to use appropriate communication and interpersonal techniques with colleagues and others

Literacy skills sufficient to record and report workplace information; maintain documentation

Numeracy skills sufficient to measure, estimate and calculate time required to complete a task

Problem solving skills sufficient to identify problems and equipment faults; demonstrate appropriate response procedures

Required knowledge

Applicable commonwealth, state or territory legislation, regulations, standards, codes of practice and established safe practices relevant to the full range of processes for sharpening and aligning blades and knives

Environmental protection requirements, including the safe disposal of waste material, and the cleaning of plant, tools and equipment

Organisational and site standards, requirements, policies and procedures for sharpening and aligning blades and knives

Environmental risks and hazards

Characteristics of metal, blades and knives

Sharpening methods and geometry

Aligning methods and settings

Established communication channels and protocols

Problem identification and resolution strategies, and common fault finding techniques

Types of tools and equipment, and procedures for their safe use and maintenance

Appropriate mathematical procedures for estimating and measuring, including calculating time to complete tasks

Procedures for recording and reporting workplace information

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package.

Overview of assessment

A person who demonstrates competency in this unit must be able to provide evidence that they can safely and efficiently sharpen and align blades and knives in line with organisational requirements

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit

The evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit must be relevant to, and satisfy, all of the requirements of the elements of this unit and include demonstration of:

following applicable commonwealth, state or territory legislative and regulatory requirements and codes of practice relevant to sharpening and aligning blades and knives

following organisational policies and procedures relevant to sharpening and aligning blades and knives

removing and replacing babbitts and set screws in line with standard operating procedures and machine settings

pouring babbitts to site procedures and finishing standard

removing and replacing set screws in line with site procedures and machine requirements

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Competency is to be assessed in the workplace or realistically simulated workplace

Assessment is to occur under standard and authorised work practices, safety requirements and environmental constraints

Assessment of required knowledge, other than confirmatory questions, will usually be conducted in an off-site context

Assessment is to follow relevant regulatory or Australian Standards requirements

The following resources should be made available:

workplace location or simulated workplace

materials and equipment relevant to undertaking work applicable to this unit

specifications and work instructions

Method of assessment

Assessment must satisfy the endorsed Assessment Guidelines of the FPI11 Training Package

Assessment methods must confirm consistency and accuracy of performance (over time and in a range of workplace relevant contexts) together with application of required knowledge

Assessment must be by direct observation of tasks, with questioning on required knowledge and it must also reinforce the integration of employability skills

Assessment methods must confirm the ability to access and correctly interpret and apply the required knowledge

Assessment may be applied under project-related conditions (real or simulated) and require evidence of process

Assessment must confirm a reasonable inference that competency is able not only to be satisfied under the particular circumstance, but is able to be transferred to other circumstances

Assessment may be in conjunction with assessment of other units of competency

The assessment environment should not disadvantage the candidate

Assessment practices should take into account any relevant language or cultural issues related to Aboriginality, gender or language backgrounds other than English

Where the participant has a disability, reasonable adjustment may be applied during assessment

Language and literacy demands of the assessment task should not be higher than those of the work role

The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included.

OHS requirements:

are to be in line with applicable commonwealth, state or territory legislation and regulations, and organisational safety policies and procedures, and may include:

personal protective equipment and clothing

safety equipment

first aid equipment

fire fighting equipment

hazard and risk control

fatigue management

elimination of hazardous materials and substances

safe forest practices, including required actions relating to forest fire

manual handling including shifting, lifting and carrying

Environmental requirements may include:

legislation

organisational policies and procedures

workplace practices

Legislative requirements:

are to be in line with applicable commonwealth, state or territory legislation, regulations, certification requirements and codes of practice and may include:

award and enterprise agreements

industrial relations

Australian Standards

confidentiality and privacy

OHS

the environment

equal opportunity

anti-discrimination

relevant industry codes of practice

duty of care

Organisational requirements may include:

legal

organisational and site guidelines

policies and procedures relating to own role and responsibility

quality assurance

procedural manuals

quality and continuous improvement processes and standards

OHS, emergency and evacuation procedures

ethical standards

recording and reporting requirements

equipment use, maintenance and storage requirements

environmental management requirements (waste minimisation and disposal, recycling and re-use guidelines)

Blades and knives may include:

chipper and canter/reducer knives

planer and thicknesser blades

spindle moulder knives

guillotine blades

all other types of blades or knives that can be sharpened through a parallel grinding process

Work order is to include:

instructions for sharpening and aligning blades and knives in designated equipment

and may also include:

instructions for the environmental monitoring of work and procedures

environmental care requirements relevant to the work

Appropriate personnel may include:

supervisors

suppliers

clients

colleagues

managers

Sharpening

is the angle, depth of cut, and speed that the knife or blade passes over the grinding wheel to obtain a sharp edge and required surface finish

Equipment is to include:

procedures for equipment lock-out, such as protecting operators and co-workers from accidental injury by isolating the machine from the power source

and may include:

grinding machines and babbitt making equipment, such as melting pots

Alignment

is the process of setting blades or knives so that all blades and knives sit at the same angle and height in relation to the abrasive wheel

Communication may include:

verbal and non-verbal language

constructive feedback

active listening

questioning to clarify and confirm understanding

use of positive, confident and cooperative language

use of language and concepts appropriate to individual social and cultural differences

control of tone of voice

Cutting performance

is how the knife or blade performs in relation to production expectations

Knife holder

is the assembly that houses the knife when positioned on the machine chuck during sharpening

Pre-startup checks

are conducted to ensure:

machine has been set up correctly

systems are performing accurately

machine is operating to optimum performance

Babbitts

are the spacers that extend from the backs of knives and blades to determine knife extension and position in relation to the disc or knife holder in the machine

Defects may include cutting edges with:

burrs

burns

chips

splits

dents

Geometry is to include:

angle that a knife or blade is sharpened at allowing for the device the knives or blades are in and the material they will be cutting

Grinder attachments are to include:

grinder mounted tables or blade holders:

with or without clamps

with or without automatic feed

Wheel speed

is the speed at which the grinding wheel rotates - too fast and it may burn the metal, too slow and it may produce a rough finish or grab the knife or blade

Coolant

is used in conjunction with grinding operations to cool the metal blade or knife as it generates heat from the sharpening process

Burrs

are thin raised sections of metal that extend from the cutting edge

must be removed through a honing process before the knife or blade commences cutting

Dealing with may include:

recycling blades and knives that cannot be sharpened or are damaged in the process and cannot be repaired

sending blades and knives that cannot be sharpened or are damaged in the process and cannot be repaired to waste

Records and reports may include:

knife or blade type and size

inspection information

grading and labelling outcomes

storage locations

quality outcomes

hazards

incidents

equipment malfunctions

and may be:

manual

a computer-based system

other appropriate organisational communication system

Reconditioning

is the process of removing, melting and re-pouring babbitt material to the correct width, length and thickness

Pouring temperature

is the temperature at which the molten babbitt metal can be poured into a mould without solidifying at an early stage of the babbitt forming process

Set screws

are the spacers that extend from the backs of knives and blades to determine knife and blade extension and position in relation to the disc or knife holder in the machine

Common Technical

This unit contains employability skills