Hiring skilled people for CNC and precision machining shops: where to find them and how to test them

The advert says 'Wanted: experienced CNC operator'. Dozens of people call. The owner interviews on CVs, and hires the man who speaks most confidently about the machines he has run. In his first week it turns out he cannot find the revision letter on a drawing, has never touched a wear offset and calls every alarm a breakdown. His CV was not false. It just listed machines, not skills.

Hiring is where the thin skill ladder sketched on the machining and grinding hub either gets stronger or weaker. The answer is in two parts: fish where machinists are, and test what they can do.

• ITIs and polytechnics. Turner, machinist, grinder, fitter and tool and die courses produce trainees who know lathe basics, filing and marking out. Build a relationship with the instructors, not just the placement desk.
• Your own apprentices. Slower, but they learn your machines, controllers and standards from day one.
• Referrals from current staff. Good operators know other good operators. Use them, with the rules below.
• Former employees. People who parted on friendly terms sometimes want to return, with new skills from elsewhere.
• Supplier networks. Tooling and machine service engineers see many shops and know who is respected. Ask for names; never poach from your own customers.
• The local industrial estate. Notice boards, tea stalls and association meetings still carry word of who is looking.

Write the role card first. It should name the tasks done unassisted, the decisions allowed and the next grade. Then write the test from the card, so the advert, the interview and the trial all ask about the same skills. Our guide to job descriptions that define skill covers the card. Decide the pass marks now, before you meet anyone you like.

1. 1

   Drawing reading

   Hand over a real drawing. Ask for the revision, the datums, the tightest tolerance, the surface finish callouts and the material. Ask what they would check first on the first piece.

2. 2

   Tool choice

   For a bore, a pocket and a thread on that drawing, ask which tools, inserts or end mills they would pick and why.

3. 3

   Measurement on your gauges

   Give a finished part, your micrometer, vernier and bore gauge. Set their readings beside the inspector's. Notice whether the part gets cleaned, the anvils checked and the instrument zeroed.

4. 4

   Setup on an idle machine

   With a supervisor beside them, ask a setter applicant to locate a datum with the probe and touch off two tool lengths. Ask an operator applicant to load, run a proven job in single block and gauge the result.

5. 5

   Troubleshooting talk

   Describe a problem: chatter on a thin wall, a bore growing oversize through the shift, a torn finish on a face, a thread plug gauge that will not enter. Ask what they would check, and in what order.

6. 6

   Role-specific task

   A programmer writes or edits a short program for a simple part and explains cutter compensation. An inspector measures three features and fills in an inspection sheet.

Applicant name, date, role applied for, scorers' names.
Drawing reading: revision found, datums named, tightest tolerance found. Score and note.
Tool choice for bore, pocket and thread, with reasons. Score and note.
Measurement: readings against the inspector's, part cleaned, instrument zeroed. Score and note.
Setup: datum picked up, two tool lengths set, safe behaviour at the machine. Score and note.
Troubleshooting: order of checks for chatter and drifting size. Score and note.
Pass mark agreed before the test. Result: pass, pass with training needs, or not suitable.
Both scorers sign. Scores entered before the applicants are discussed.

• Look for the revision box and the title block before reading any dimension.
• Ask the material grade and hardness, and whether the part arrives as bar, forging or casting.
• Ask how the part will be held: soft jaws, a vice, a dedicated fixture or a tombstone.
• Mention deburring cross-holes and cleaning swarf out of blind threads without being asked.
• Wipe the T-slots or chuck face before clamping anything, and check the coolant nozzle points at the cut.
• Admit what they have not done, such as thread milling or a particular controller, instead of bluffing.

Two scorers, working separately, cut out the halo of a confident talker. A setter and the production head make a good pair. Fill the sheet during the test, not afterwards. Then call one or two former supervisors, with the applicant's consent, and ask what the person could do unassisted. An interview scorecard helps keep the conversational part consistent too.

• Expect a counter-offer. Ask early what might hold the applicant where he is.
• Agree a joining date that respects their notice, and keep in touch weekly until day one.
• Have the role card, grade and pay range ready to show, so your offer is easy to compare.
• Plan the first week before they arrive: safety induction, the machines he will begin on, and a named buddy.

One good hire is luck; a routine makes it repeatable. Recruitment process consulting sets up the sourcing, test and scoring steps so they run the same way each time. Job-work units adding machines faster than setters are discussed on the VMC recruitment page. What happens after joining matters just as much, as the VMC onboarding page explains. When the market is thin, talent acquisition support can widen the search.