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MEM08020 Current

Application

This unit of competency defines the skills and knowledge required to apply decorative finishes to household fittings, hardware, artefacts and accessories made from a range of ferrous and non-ferrous materials.

It includes pre-treatment, use of plating techniques, solutions and compositions for decorative finishes, recognition and assessment of impurities and imperfections and associated corrective actions.

Processing may be manual, semi or fully automatic still or barrel plating environments and may include volume production and ‘one-off’ components.

Where straightforward operation/monitoring of electroplating processes are required unit MEM08003 Perform electroplating operations should be selected.

Where surface preparation operations are required unit MEM08011 Prepare surfaces using solvents and/or mechanical means and unit MEM08012 Prepare surfaces by abrasive blasting (basic), should also be selected as appropriate.

Where the interpretation of technical drawings is required unit MEM09002 Interpret technical drawing should also be selected.

Where the selection and use of engineering measurement is required unit MEM12023 Perform engineering measurements should also be selected.

Where basic inspection of completed or partly completed products produced by others is required unit MEM15004 Perform inspection should also be selected.

Where the selection and use of power tools/hand held operations is required unit MEM18002 Use power tools/hand held operations should also be selected.

Where construction of anodes, shields/robbers is required appropriate fabrication units should also be selected.

Where dogging/lifting is required appropriate materials handling units to suit regulatory requirements should also be selected.

No licensing, legislative or certification requirements apply to this unit at the time of publication.

What You'll Learn

1. Determine job requirements

  • 1.1 Follow standard operating procedures (SOPs)
  • 1.2 Comply with work health and safety (WHS) requirements at all times
  • 1.3 Use appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) in accordance with SOPs
  • 1.4 Identify job requirements from specifications, job sheets or work instructions

2. Select treatments and processes/ equipment for producing decorative finishes

  • 2.1 Select appropriate treatment processes relevant job specifications
  • 2.2 Select mass treatment processes and carry out, where applicable
  • 2.3 Identify pre-plating treatments
  • 2.4 Select process parameters to achieve required coating
  • 2.5 Select appropriate equipment

3. Monitor and control decorative finish processes and operating conditions

  • 3.1 Set operating parameters to produce required decorative finish/specifications
  • 3.2 Monitor and confirm plate appearance and final finish and identify abnormalities
  • 3.3 Take corrective actions to rectify non-conforming conditions
  • 3.4 Carry out pre-treatment processes, where applicable
  • 3.5 Check racks, jigs and barrels for correct loading

4. Maintain solutions for decorative finishes

  • 4.1 Check solution compositions and confirm to specification/operating range
  • 4.2 Identify adjustment requirements/additions
  • 4.3 Make additions to adjust solution composition to correct operating range
  • 4.4 Carry out purification procedures, as appropriate
  • 4.5 Maintain anodes to ensure correct operation

5. Maintain equipment for decorative finishes

  • 5.1 Check performance of ancillary equipment and take remedial action, as necessary
  • 5.2 Maintain electrical contacts, anode condition and process transfer equipment

Assessment Requirements

Performance Evidence

Evidence required to demonstrate competence in this unit must be relevant to and satisfy the requirements of the elements and performance criteria on at least two (2) occasions and include:

following work instructions, standard operating procedures (SOPs) and safe work practices

determining the correct decorative finish electroplating treatment, method and process for a range of ferrous and non-ferrous components

selecting, setting up and using electroplating equipment for decorative finishes and applying surface pre-treatment, as required

carrying out the electroplating process, monitoring solutions and other parameters, adjusting as necessary to meet the specified surface finish

cleaning and maintaining electroplating equipment, reporting any faults.

Knowledge Evidence

Evidence required to demonstrate the required knowledge for this unit must be relevant to and satisfy the requirements of the elements and performance criteria and include knowledge of:

safe work practices and procedures and use of personal protective equipment (PPE)

specific decorative electroplating pre-treatment processes (common base metals/soils and chemical/mechanical)

effect of decorative treatment on different metals

functions of strikes/activation treatment

process parameters for decorative electroplating, including current computations

effects of process parameters on performance

post treatment processes

relevant Australian standards for electroplating work

application of different equipment to the type of work processed

acceptable appearances including final specification/quality

abnormalities in electroplating including types of defects and requirements for post treatment

factors affecting plate distribution

purpose and application of simple control tests

calculations for additions/adjustments to decorative electroplating solutions

effects of adding chemicals too quickly

purification procedures/treatments

operation of anodes, arrangements and remedial action

effects of build-up on cathode contacts, damage to rack coatings

effect of maintenance schedules on plant performance and performance requirements and basic maintenance checks for rectifier, bus bars, agitation, heating/cooling, extraction and tank linings.

Assessment Conditions

Assessors must:

have vocational competency in electroplating decorative finishes at least to the level being assessed with relevant industry knowledge and experience

satisfy the assessor requirements in the Standards for Registered Training Organisations 2015 or its replacement and comply with the National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Act 2011, its replacement or equivalent legislation covering VET regulation in a non-referring state/territory as the case requires

Where possible assessment must occur in operational workplace situations. Where this is not possible or where personal safety or environmental damage are limiting factors, assessment must occur in a sufficiently rigorous simulated environment that reflects realistic operational workplace conditions. This must cover all aspects of workplace performance, including environment, task skills, task management skills, contingency management skills and job role environment skills

Conditions for assessment must include access to all tools, equipment, materials and documentation required, including relevant workplace procedures, product and manufacturing specifications

Assessment processes and techniques must be appropriate to the language, literacy and numeracy requirements of the work being performed and the needs of the candidate.

Foundation Skills

  • text: This section describes those required skills (reading, writing, oral communication and numeracy) that are essential to workplace performance in this unit of competency. Foundation skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency.

Prerequisite Units

Parent Qualifications

Related Units

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Last updated from training.gov.au: 25 February 2026