Manual Machinist

Title: Mold Maker

Location: Chattanooga, TN

A well-established manufacturing organization is seeking an experienced **Mold Maker/Machinist **to join its tooling and maintenance team. This individual will be responsible for building, repairing, modifying, and maintaining precision tooling used in high-volume manufacturing operations. The ideal candidate has strong machining skills, experience working with production molds, and the ability to troubleshoot tooling issues to minimize downtime and support efficient production.

Responsibilities

• Build, repair, and modify tooling, molds, fixtures, and related components to support manufacturing operations.
• Operate conventional machining equipment including mills, lathes, grinders, drill presses, band saws, and EDM equipment to fabricate precision components.
• Interpret engineering drawings, blueprints, and technical specifications to manufacture or repair tooling within required tolerances.
• Perform preventative maintenance on molds and tooling to maximize performance and extend service life.
• Diagnose tooling failures and complete repairs to reduce production downtime.
• Troubleshoot mold-related issues while tooling is installed in production equipment and recommend corrective actions.
• Repair and maintain hot runner systems and other mold components as needed.
• Build tooling accessories including electrodes, fixtures, and work-holding devices to improve manufacturing efficiency.
• Support prototype tooling modifications and engineering changes.
• Verify finished components using precision measuring equipment such as calipers, micrometers, indicators, and gauges.
• Complete maintenance records, work orders, inspection documentation, and tooling history accurately.
• Participate in tooling reviews and collaborate with engineering on design improvements to increase reliability and manufacturability.
• Maintain a clean, organized, and safe work area while following established safety procedures.
• Assist with additional tooling and machining projects as assigned.

Qualifications

• Experience building, repairing, and maintaining production tooling or molds in a manufacturing environment.
• Strong knowledge of manual machining processes including milling, turning, grinding, drilling, and EDM machining.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, GD&T, and technical documentation.
• Experience using precision inspection equipment to verify dimensional accuracy.
• Hands-on troubleshooting experience with production tooling and mold-related issues.
• Understanding of preventative maintenance practices for tooling and molds.
• Welding experience is a plus.
• Experience with CAD software such as SolidWorks or similar is preferred.
• Strong mechanical aptitude with excellent problem-solving skills.

You should be proficient in:

• CNC Tooling
• Precision Measurement & Hand Metrology
• Manual Machining Skills
• Injection Molding Experience
• manual lathe
• manual mill
• Tool and die
• surface grinder

Machines & technologies you'll use:

• Surface Grinder
• Manual Grinder
• Manual Vertical Mill