Metal Fabricator (Fabricator-Welder) CV Examples & Writing Guide
A metal fabricator CV is judged on four things: the welding processes and positions you are coded in, the machines you can set up alone (press brake, guillotine, plasma or laser table, steelworker), how well you read drawings and hold tolerance, and your scrap or weld reject rate. Show those and a workshop foreman will call.
Metal fabricator CV example
This sample is a fabricator-welder with about ten years across a steel stockholder, a sheet metal shop and a custom structural and equipment shop. The name and companies are invented. Keep the shape, change the processes, machines and tolerances to your own.
Ryan Kowalczyk
Metal Fabricator / Fabricator-Welder
Wolverhampton · 07700 900132 · r.kowalczyk@email.com
Summary
Metal fabricator with 10 years in structural and sheet metal shops. Coded welder to BS EN ISO 9606-1 on structural steel in 3G and 4G, running FCAW, MIG/MAG, TIG and MMA on carbon steel, stainless and aluminium. Reads fabrication drawings and weld symbols, develops flat patterns, and sets up press brakes, guillotines and a CNC plasma table without a setter. Holds ±1.5 mm on weldments and keeps scrap under 2%.
Experience
Fabricator / Welder · Custom structural steel and equipment shop (conveyors, platforms, machine bases)
Mar 2021–Present
- Build weldments from drawings for conveyor frames, mezzanine stairs and machine bases in S275 and S355, holding overall dimensions to ±1.5 mm.
- Run FCAW and MIG/MAG for structural work and TIG on 304 and 316 stainless food-grade frames; weld reject rate on visual and UT inspection has stayed at or under 1.5% for three years.
- Mark out, cut and fit complete assemblies solo, from drawing to paint prep, averaging 3 to 4 finished weldments a week depending on size.
- Program and cut parts on a CNC plasma table from DXF files, nesting to cut plate waste from 12% to 7% on repeat jobs.
- Fit and tack assemblies for two other welders and check first-off parts against the drawing before the run is released.
- Sling and move assemblies up to 1.8 tonnes with an overhead crane; no dropped loads or damage incidents in 5 years.
Sheet Metal Fabricator · Sheet metal shop (electrical enclosures, guards, ductwork transitions)
Sep 2018–Feb 2021
- Set up and ran an Amada press brake on 1 to 3 mm mild steel, 5251 aluminium and 304 stainless, holding bend angles within one degree and flange dimensions within ±0.5 mm.
- Developed flat patterns with bend allowance and K-factor from SolidWorks sheet metal models and corrected 15 to 20 drawing errors a year before they reached the laser.
- Ran a fibre laser and a turret punch, plus guillotine, notcher and steelworker for secondary operations.
- Cut shop scrap from 3.1% to 1.8% over 18 months by rebuilding the nest library and standardising bend sequences.
- Finished enclosures with fastener insertion, deburring and prep for powder coating; first-pass quality on the finishing line averaged 97%.
Fabrication Labourer / Material Handler · Steel stockholder and cut-to-length shop
Jun 2016–Aug 2018
- Pulled and staged 30 to 40 orders a day of plate, angle, channel and box section using an overhead crane and a 4.5-tonne counterbalance forklift.
- Ran a horizontal bandsaw and a steelworker for customer cut-to-length work, holding lengths to ±3 mm.
- Checked cast numbers and mill certificates against orders, catching about 1 wrong grade a month before it went out.
Education
Level 2 Diploma in Fabrication and Welding (two-year full-time course)
Further education college, Wolverhampton, 2016
GCSEs including English and maths
Secondary school, Wolverhampton, 2014
Certifications
- BS EN ISO 9606-1 coded welder, FCAW (136) and MMA (111), 3G and 4G plate, carbon steel; kept current with six-monthly confirmations
- Level 3 NVQ in fabrication and welding, 2020
- IOSH Working Safely, 2019
- Overhead crane and slinger/signaller training, 2022
- Counterbalance forklift (accredited course), 2024
Skills
What a workshop foreman looks for first
A fabrication shop hires because a job is late. The foreman reading your CV wants to know what you can be handed on Monday.
- Can you weld what we weld, and are you coded on it? Process, position and standard. "BS EN ISO 9606-1, 3G and 4G, FCAW" tells a foreman more than "experienced welder." Most shops will still weld-test you, but the coding gets you the test.
- Can you read a drawing alone? Fabricators are hired for marking out, not just for burning wire. Say that you work from drawings and weld symbols, develop flat patterns and check first-off parts.
- Which machines can you set up? There is a large pay difference between running a press brake somebody else set and doing your own setting and programming. Be honest about which one you are.
- How tight do you hold it, and how much do you scrap? A number like "±1.5 mm on weldments" or "scrap cut from 3.1% to 1.8%" is the single most convincing thing on the page.
“Tell me your process and position, what you can set up on your own, and how tight you hold a weldment. If those are on page one I will bring you in for a weld test. If all I see is "detail-oriented team player," the CV goes in the second pile.”
Metal fabrication personal statement and career objective examples
Three or four lines. Years, shop type, processes and coding, then a tolerance or a scrap figure. Use a career objective if you are new or switching from a pure welding job into fabrication.
Fabricator-welder with 8 years building structural weldments in S275 and S355. Coded to BS EN ISO 9606-1 in 3G and 4G, running FCAW and MMA. Works from drawings and weld symbols, marks out and fits complete assemblies solo, and holds ±1.5 mm with a weld reject rate under 2%.
Sheet metal fabricator with 6 years on press brake, laser and turret punch in a precision enclosure shop. Develops flat patterns with correct bend allowance, sets up an Amada brake without a setter and holds flange dimensions within ±0.5 mm. Cut shop scrap from 3.1% to 1.8% by rebuilding the nest library.
Fabricator with 5 years on 304 and 316 stainless for food and pharmaceutical equipment. TIG on thin-wall tube and sheet, hygienic weld finishing to Ra 0.8 µm, and passivation prep. Reads drawings, controls distortion on long frames and has passed every customer weld inspection for three years.
Production MIG welder with 4 years on a jig line, seeking a fabricator role with marking out and fit-up work. Reads drawings and weld symbols, has run guillotine, bandsaw and steelworker, and completed an evening course in drawing reading and flat pattern development. Coded to BS EN ISO 9606-1 in 3G and willing to test on 4G.
Fabrication and welding college leaver seeking an entry-level fabrication position. 600 workshop hours across MMA, MIG/MAG, FCAW and TIG on carbon steel and aluminium, plus drawing reading and marking out. Passed a 3G FCAW plate test at college, comfortable with grinders, bandsaws and pillar drills, available for back shift.
Fabricator job description for a CV: bullets you can copy
Write what you personally do at the bench, not the advert's duty list. Every bullet should carry a process, a machine, a material or a number, and ideally two of them.
Marked out weldments from shop drawings and weld symbols, developed flat patterns with bend allowance, and caught 15 to 20 drawing errors a year before parts were cut.
Programmed and cut parts on a CNC plasma table and fibre laser from DXF files, nesting to cut plate waste from 12% to 7% on repeat jobs.
Set up and ran an Amada press brake on 1 to 3 mm steel, aluminium and stainless, holding bend angles within one degree and flanges within ±0.5 mm on production runs of 50 to 400 pieces.
Fitted and tacked complete assemblies from drawings, squared and clamped in fixtures, and controlled distortion on 6 m frames by sequencing welds and back-stepping.
Welded structural assemblies with FCAW on 1.2 mm wire and TIG on 1.5 mm stainless, passing visual and ultrasonic inspection with a reject rate at or under 1.5%.
Ran guillotine, notcher, steelworker, turret punch and horizontal bandsaw, plus fastener insertion, drilling and tapping to drawing.
Checked first-off parts against the drawing with tape, square, callipers and a protractor, signed the first-off sheet, and stopped 4 jobs in a year before a full run went out of tolerance.
Ground, deburred and prepped assemblies for powder coating and paint, meeting a 97% first-pass rate at the finishing line.
Pulled and staged plate, box section, angle and channel with an overhead crane and forklift, checked cast numbers against mill certificates and slung assemblies up to 1.8 tonnes with no damage incidents in 5 years.
Trained 3 new fabricators a year on brake setting and fit-up sequence, and wrote one-page set-up sheets for the shop's 12 most repeated parts.
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Metal fabrication skills for a CV
Twelve to sixteen, processes and machines first. A foreman scans this block before the work history.
Welding and joining:
- FCAW (flux-cored, 136), MIG/MAG (135), TIG (141), MMA (111)
- Positions you are coded in: 1G to 4G (PA, PC, PF, PE), or 2F and 3F on fillet work
- Carbon steel, stainless (304, 316), aluminium (5251, 6082)
- Oxy-fuel and plasma cutting, arc air gouging
- Distortion control, weld sequencing, preheat where the WPS calls for it
- Spot and resistance welding, if you have run it
Machines and set-up:
- Press brake setting and programming (Amada, Trumpf, Bystronic)
- CNC plasma table, fibre laser, turret punch
- Guillotine, steelworker, notcher, plate rolls, tube bender
- Horizontal bandsaw, cold saw, pillar drill, mag drill
- Overhead crane, jib crane, slinging and lifting accessories; forklift
Marking out, measurement and drawings:
- Fabrication drawings, weld symbols (BS EN ISO 2553), section views and parts lists
- Flat pattern development, bend allowance and K-factor
- Tape, square, protractor, callipers, micrometer, height gauge
- GD&T basics and tolerance stack-up
- SolidWorks sheet metal, AutoCAD, DXF handling, nesting software
- First-off inspection and job cards
Welding qualifications and cards: what to list and how
Write qualifications exactly. Foremen know these documents and will ask to see the certificate or the welder qualification record.
- BS EN ISO 9606-1 coded welder certificate. Name the process number, the position, the material and the thickness range. The certificate stays valid only with six-monthly confirmations and revalidation every two or three years, so note that it is current.
- ASME Section IX qualifications, if you have welded pressure vessels or pipework. These are held by the employer against a specific welding procedure specification (WPS), so say which employer qualified you and when.
- API 1104, if you have done pipeline work.
- College and NVQ qualifications in fabrication and welding (Level 2 or 3 Diploma, NVQ, apprenticeship). They prove training rather than a current coded ticket, so list them with the year and keep them separate from your coding.
- IOSH Working Safely for shop work, and a CSCS card if you also do site installation.
- Overhead crane, slinger/signaller and forklift. In the UK forklift training is not a licence; list the accredited course (RTITB, ITSSAR or AITT) and the truck types.
- Any in-house weld tests you have passed for a customer or a shop, with the year. Shops respect these even when they are not formal coding.
Entry-level fabricator CV with little or no workshop time
Fabrication shops take on labourers and trainees and train them, especially when they can see you are good with your hands and will turn up. College hours count if you describe them like workshop hours.
- 1Put the shop's target title under your name: Trainee Fabricator, Entry-Level Fabricator, Fabricator-Welder.
- 2List your welding hours by process and material, and any plate test you have passed, even a college test.
- 3Turn college projects into deliverables: what you built, from what drawing, in what material, to what tolerance.
- 4Include any hands-on job that shows tool sense and reliability: vehicle repair, farm work, construction, small engine repair, machine operating.
- 5Add the short courses that make you useful on day one: IOSH Working Safely and a forklift certificate if a previous employer put you through one. State your shift availability.
| Weak line | Stronger line |
|---|---|
| Learned welding at college. | Completed 600 workshop hours across MMA, MIG/MAG, FCAW and TIG on carbon steel and aluminium, and passed a 3G FCAW plate test on 10 mm material. |
| Built projects in class. | Built a 1.8 m steel workbench from my own drawing in 50 x 50 mm box section and 5 mm plate, holding the top flat within 1.5 mm over the length. |
| Good with tools and hard working. | Rebuilt brakes, suspension and exhausts on 20+ vehicles as a side job, working from workshop manuals and torque settings. |
| Willing to learn anything. | Available for back shift and Saturdays, holds IOSH Working Safely and a current counterbalance forklift certificate. |
Format, length and words to mirror
- One page, two at most. Workshop foremen read on a clipboard, standing up.
- Order: name and target title, three-line personal statement, qualifications and coding, work history, skills, education. Coding goes high because it gates the weld test.
- Plain one-column layout, PDF. Sidebars and graphics are what get scrambled in the application system at larger manufacturers.
- No photo, no date of birth. UK employers do not expect them on a CV.
- If you also do site work or installation, say so and state whether you can work away from home. Structural shops care.
- Steel fabricator, sheet metal fabricator, fabricator-welder, plater and structural fabricator are different corners of the same trade. Aim your title at the shop: a precision enclosure shop and a bridge girder shop do not want the same person.
Words worth mirroring when they apply to you: fabrication, weldment, fit-up, marking out, drawing reading, weld symbols, BS EN ISO 9606-1, coded welder, FCAW, MIG/MAG, TIG, MMA, press brake, guillotine, steelworker, plasma, laser, turret punch, flat pattern, bend allowance, tolerance, first-off, GD&T, stainless, aluminium, mild steel, sheet, overhead crane, slinging, grinding, deburring, powder coating.
Frequently asked questions
What does a metal fabricator do?
A fabricator turns raw stock into finished parts and assemblies. That means reading the drawing, marking out and cutting the material, forming it on a press brake or rolls, fitting the pieces together and welding them, then grinding and prepping for finish. A welder joins metal; a fabricator builds the whole thing from the drawing.
How do I write a metal fabricator CV?
Open with a three-line personal statement naming your years, your welding processes and coding, and a tolerance you hold. List qualifications next, then each shop with bullets that name machines, materials and numbers. Finish with a skills block led by processes and machines. Keep it to one page, two at most.
What skills should be on a metal fabrication CV?
Welding processes and positions first (FCAW, MIG/MAG, TIG, MMA), then machines you can set up (press brake, guillotine, plasma or laser table, steelworker), then marking-out skills: drawing reading, weld symbols, flat pattern development, callipers and micrometers. Add slinging, crane and forklift, and the materials you have worked.
What is a good career objective for a fabricator-welder CV?
Two lines naming your coding and what you want next. For example: "Welder coded to BS EN ISO 9606-1 in 3G with 4 years on a production jig line, seeking a fabricator role with marking out and fit-up work; trained in drawing reading and flat pattern development." Skip generic lines about a challenging opportunity.
How do I list a coded welder certificate on a CV?
Name the standard, process, position and thickness, and say it is current. For example: "BS EN ISO 9606-1 coded welder, FCAW (136) and MMA (111), 3G and 4G plate, carbon steel, current, six-monthly confirmations up to date." Do not write just "coded welder." Foremen ask which standard, and a vague answer looks like a bluff.
Is a sheet metal fabricator CV different from a steel fabricator CV?
Yes, in emphasis. Sheet metal work is about press brake setting, flat patterns, bend allowance, thin sheet and tolerances around ±0.5 mm. Structural or steel fabrication is about heavy plate and sections, welding standards, fit-up, distortion control and tolerances closer to ±1.5 mm. Aim your bullets at the shop you are applying to.
Can I get a fabricator job with no experience?
Yes, as a labourer, trainee or entry-level fabricator. Shops train, but they want proof you can hold a tool and turn up. List your welding hours by process, any plate test you passed at college, projects you built from a drawing, and IOSH Working Safely. Back-shift availability helps a lot.
Ready to write yours?
The builder suggests a summary from your own experience, then checks it against the job posting.
How this page was made: a first draft was written with AI assistance from cvplex's example library, then edited and fact-checked by the cvplex Careers Team. Examples are fictional composites; numbers are illustrative. Report an error via the editorial policy page.