RKT Editorial Team in collaboration with
Training Department
A Career with a Future: Plastics Technologist
Reading time: 12 min
According to an article in the plastics trade journal K-Zeitung, which cites a study by Prognos, skilled workers in plastics processing are in demand. In this interview, our head of training presents the future of plastics and rubber technologists.
Mr. Six, the plastics trade journal K-Zeitung cites a Prognos study commissioned by the German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA), which assumes that demand for plastics experts will rise, while jobs in other fields such as metalworking, production planning, or warehouse management are at risk. Can you confirm this trend in your area?
Max Six: Demand for plastics expertise will rise significantly – we expect that as well. There are several reasons for this. For one, components made of high-quality plastic are increasingly in demand. They are lightweight and compact, can be molded precisely, and are quite cost-efficient to manufacture in large quantities. For another, the tasks in plastics processing are becoming ever more specialized, which means skilled workers are needed. We are hiring considerably fewer unskilled production workers, because the depth of our value chain in manufacturing medical technology products requires many different process steps that can only be carried out with know-how and experience: design development, custom mold making, injection molding, filling and assembly, all the way to packaging and shipping. Within RKT, plastics processing is the largest and fastest-growing area.
Like many other companies that train apprentices, RKT struggles to attract young talent. But while many school leavers can picture what a body-and-vehicle-construction mechanic or an electronics technician does, the role of plastics and rubber technologist is perhaps less well known?
Max Six: That’s correct. When we present our field at career fairs, it’s new territory for young people. One reason is the strong metal industry here in the Cham region. Students planning to start an apprenticeship are familiar with the metalworking companies and their training opportunities, but less so with plastics processing. Once we get into conversation at our booth, however, the young people are often surprised at where plastic is used and at the parts and products we make. When we explain that we manufacture tools for producing mascara brushes or therapy-relevant components for cancer treatments, our injection molding work really resonates and sparks their interest.
Another reason our still fairly young profession isn’t well known is that its name has changed several times. The original Kunststoffformgeber (plastics molder) became, in the mid-1990s, the process mechanic for plastics and rubber technology, and that in turn became, in 2023, the plastics and rubber technologist.
What were the reasons for the name changes?
Max Six: As is the case at our company, the industry-wide trend is that the value chain in plastics processing keeps growing. Additional process steps—and with them, new training content—have been and continue to be added: robotics, machine control, programming, and currently digitalization and sustainability. The topic of digitalization, for example, is covered by the newly offered supplementary qualifications “additive manufacturing processes” and “process integration.” “Renewable raw materials” and “recycling” belong to the field of sustainability.
What specific tasks does a plastics and rubber technologist have?
Max Six: Our specialization at RKT is the production of molded parts – that is, we process thermoplastics using the injection molding method, primarily for medical technology. This is certainly the most widespread processing method for plastics.
A plastics technologist’s duties at our company include hands-on tasks such as setting up an injection molding machine or maintaining an injection mold, but also programming the machine control system, analyzing machine problems, and performing quality control on the molded parts – which include, for example, pens and insulin needles for diabetes therapy or test cartridges for detecting pathogens.
Overall, plastics processing offers a very diverse range of tasks, divided into seven different specializations that cover the entire spectrum of plastic as a material, from wind turbine blades to rubber compounds. These include compound and masterbatch production, fiber composite technology, molded parts, semi-finished products, plastic windows, multilayer rubber parts, and components.
What should a prospective apprentice bring to the role of plastics technologist?
Max Six: The wonderful thing about our profession is that we get to be versatile. Over the course of a work week, hands-on tasks alternate with operating or programming equipment, all the way through to quality management. Anyone with broad interests who can show a good qualifying secondary school certificate (“German Quali”) or an intermediate school-leaving certificate is well suited to training as a plastics technologist. And if school hasn’t always gone smoothly but the interest in our field is there, we still look forward to receiving an application.
What opportunities and prospects for advancement are there after successfully completing the apprenticeship? And how much does a plastics technologist earn on average?
Max Six: After being taken on by our company – which, given good performance, is the norm – many plastics technologists initially work in production, handling initial commissioning and running in machines and tools. Here they are the link between the mold maker, the design team, and the customer; they check the quality of the first parts produced, make adjustments, and thereby ensure a smoothly functioning operation. Leadership positions such as shift leader are possible here. Anyone wishing to gain further qualifications can add the further training to become a technician and later work, for example, in design, quality assurance, or sales.
At present, we employ 23 plastics and rubber technologists whom we trained ourselves, working in production, design, quality management, and sales. The most senior among them began his apprenticeship as a Kunststoffformgeber back in 1988. Going back to 2001, we have trained 58 men and women in this profession; currently there are two apprentices.
Pay for qualified plastics and rubber technologists follows the collective wage agreement of IG BCE (the Mining, Chemical and Energy Industrial Union).
Besides the formal apprenticeship, is a lateral entry into plastics manufacturing also possible at your company?
Max Six: Lateral entry is a good way to start at RKT—this applies especially to people coming from other technical trades, such as carpenters or mechanics. They can complete a shortened, two-year apprenticeship as a plastics technologist with us. That’s actually how I came to RKT myself. I was a trained agricultural machinery technician and in 1996 began retraining as what was then the process mechanic for plastics and rubber technology at RKT.
The number of jobs for unskilled workers, by contrast, is declining sharply; the complex processes simply require specialist knowledge.
How can young people apply for an apprenticeship with you?
Max Six: Our website has plenty of information about our various apprenticeship occupations: https://www.rkt.de/karriere/ausbildung/ .
Interested candidates can also apply directly online here. Anyone who would like to find out more in person is welcome to pick up the phone and ask for me, and we can also arrange an on-site appointment.
By the way, it’s always possible to get a taste of the profession through an internship – we’re completely flexible on that. Anyone unsure whether plastics technologist is the right career can simply spend a week with us, for example during the school holidays, and get to know the work and the processes.