Proskills: Making Skills Work

Typical Tasks

General Skills required

Experience requested

Qualifications

• Prepare and treat wood to give it a smooth finish and bring out the natural look of the timber.
• Finishing items ensuring they are ready for sale.
• May work on fixed timbers such as doors or wall fittings.
• May work using a mechanised spray-painting method or by hand polishing.
• Colour match paint and stains.
• Spray on lacquers, two pack finishes and hot lacquers.
• Remove old finishes by stripping, scraping sanding or applying solvents or paint strippers.
• Apply varnish and polish with French polish, wax or lacquer.
• Bleach timber though application of lime finishes.
• Maintain furniture polishing equipment.
• Work within environmental, health and safety regulations.

• Ability to perform manual tasks.
• Normal colour vision.
• Good communication skills.
• Capable of understanding written instructions.
• Have an eye for quality and attention to detail.
• Knowledge of stains, sanding, timber based surfaces, metals and plastics would also be useful.

• Before starting a career in Polishing, you will need to have gained a number of years of experience in Furniture Making, Upholstery and French Polishing.
• An understanding about the history of furniture would be useful.
• Knowledge of specialist techniques used within the restoration industry would also be an advantage.

There are no fixed entry level requirements.

Qualifications valued by employers may include:

• GCSE’s, ideally grade A to C
• A Level’s
• NVQ L2/L3 in Furniture Production.
• NVQ L2/L3 Making & Installing Furniture.
• NVQ L2/L3 in Furniture Restoration.
• HNC/HND Furniture Making.
• Furniture Apprenticeship and Advanced Apprenticeship.