A professional who tends machine that draws out and combines wool, synthetic, or blended sliver and aligns fibers preparatory to further processing. Responsibilities include:

• Places balls of sliver on holders or positions cans of sliver at feeding end of machine.
• Threads sliver through guides, gathering eye, rollers, and under fallers. Starts machine and guides sliver into receiving can, or wraps end around spindle that winds it into ball.
• Observes operation of machine to detect breaks and pieces up ends together by hand.
• Replaces exhausted supply cans or balls of sliver.
• Doffs can or balls of processed sliver.
• May weigh cans or balls of sliver and record weight.
• May weigh sample of sliver to determine quality of sliver produced by machine.