Glossary
Paper Machine Operator Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential paper machine operator terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key paper machine operator vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in paper machine operator training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Caliper
- Board thickness.
- Converting
- Turning rolls into products.
- Corrugator
- Makes corrugated board.
- Die cut
- Cuts shapes.
- First article
- First part checked before a run.
- Flute
- Wavy middle layer.
- Folder-gluer
- Folds and glues boxes.
- Liner
- Flat outer layer.
- Lockout/tagout
- Energy isolation before servicing.
- PPE
- Personal protective equipment.
- Roll clamp
- Forklift attachment.
- Score
- Fold line.
- Scrap
- Parts that fail inspection.
- SOP
- Standard operating procedure.
- Warp
- Curled board.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Paper Machine Operator practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Paper Machine Operator training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.