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Billet Provider
Steel is provided in the form of metal bars called billets. The person responsible for supplying steel billets to the reheating furnace and the roller mills is called a billet provider.

Billet providers receive roll-release notes with the number, quality, and lengths of billets required for manufacturing a specific product. The required billets are then ordered by telephone and supplied to the roller mills.

Billet providers also check reports of shift mill recorders on the numbers and quality of billets unloaded, those stacked in the billet yard and those supplied to the reheating furnace during each shift. They compile stock reports indicating the tonnage of billets available in the billet yard. They receive reports on analyses from the laboratory and record this information.

Satisfying Aspects
- working with your hands initially
- opportunities for advancement

Demanding aspects
- frustrations in using the telephone and ensuring the correct amounts of billets are in stock
- repetitive work

Requirements
A billet provider should;
- be reliable and responsible;
- communicate well in speech and writing;
- maintain good human relations;
- have technical inclination;
- have mathematical ability;
- be physically fit.

School Subjects
Grade 10 Certificate or N1.

COMPULSORY SUBJECTS: None
RECOMMENDED SUBJECTS: Metalwork

Training
Mostly training is undertaken on the job. Candidates must progress through the following stages: billet yardsman; first control driver; first heater; third roller; and finally shift mill recorder.

There are three ways to qualify as a registered artisan:

1. An apprenticeship is a 4-year contract between company and apprentice, comprising a 12-week theoretical training, which includes 4 subjects at national exam level.

2. A learnership is a structured learning programme that leads to a qualification in a certain field. The learnership programme includes a theoretical and a practical component. It usually takes about a year to complete. The training takes place on-site (on the premises of the organisation). This has the advantage that the learner gets on-the-job experience whilst training.

3. FET colleges offer theoretical training to prospective artisans via the new National Certificate Vocational (NCV). During this 3-year programme (levels 2 to 4), learners complete a school-leaving certificate (this NCV) similar to the
new National Senior Certificate (NSC) in schools. They are also exposed to a practical workshop component.

All learners are required to complete a practical internship under the supervision of an experienced artisan. As an alternative to doing the full qualification, a learner can apply to do a skills programme at a FET College. Skills programmes are short practical hands-on courses.

For more information about qualifications and skills programmes, contact your nearest FET College. FET Colleges are accredited and funded by a SETA (Sector Education and Training Authority) such as MERSETA or CHIETA. They also receive bursary funding through the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) for the NCV programme.

Learners must all receive training in occupational safety and first aid, fire-fighting and preventative security measures. Learners study everything about the installation, maintenance and repair of all electrical equipment. They must also become familiar with municipal legislation relevant to electricity supply and consumption.

Employer
- Mittal Steel
- Highveld Steel
- USCO