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Job Description

Place and detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials. May perform specialized handling, storage, and accounting procedures. Includes seismograph shooters.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 47-5031.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 54,580.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 26.00
Currently, there are 6,310 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Ammunition and Explosives Handler”

Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, or drills, in order to bore charge holes.
Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
Light fuses, drop detonating devices into wells or boreholes, or activate firing devices with plungers, dials, or buttons, in order to set off single or multiple blasts.
Compile and keep gun and explosives records in compliance with local and federal laws.
Cut specified lengths of primacord and attach primers to cord ends.
Insert, pack, and pour explosives, such as dynamite, ammonium nitrate, black powder, or slurries into blast holes; then shovel drill cuttings, admit water into boreholes, and tamp material to compact charges.
Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
Insert waterproof sealers, bullets, and/or powder charges into guns, and screw gun ports back into place.
Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
Observe odometers, weight indicators, and instrument panels in trucks in order to position guns at predetermined points in wells.
Insert powder charges into chambers of sidewall sample-taking cylinders, and assemble cylinders, using special wrenches.
Repair electrical instruments, using electricians' hand tools.
Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
Connect gun chambers to electric detonating devices, and operate controls at panelboards, in order to detonate charges in guns or to ignite chemical charges.
Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
Place safety cones around blast areas to alert other workers of danger zones, and signal workers as necessary to ensure that they clear blast sites prior to explosions.
Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material.
Signal hoist operators to lower torpedoes or sample-taking guns into wells and to raise equipment for sampling from blast holes after detonation.
Clean, gauge, and lubricate gun ports.
Lay primacord between rows of charged blast holes, and tie cord into main lines to form blast patterns.
Obtain samples of earth from sidewalls of well boreholes, using electrically exploding devices.
Mark patterns, locations, and depths of charge holes for drilling, and issue drilling instructions.
Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
Lower perforating guns into wells, using hoists; then use measuring devices and instrument panels to position guns in correct positions for taking samples.
Repair and service blasting, shooting, and automotive equipment, and electrical wiring and instruments, using hand tools.
Place explosive charges in holes or other spots; then detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials.

Related Technology & Tools

Ring gauges
Day boxes
Blast hole tubing
Safety fuses
Electricians' knives
Short period delay detonators
Equipment dollies
Clinometers
Portable cranes
Short-wave radios
Portable signal generators
Pallet jacks
Discharge hoses
Wood wedges
Rubber mallets
Precision tweezers
Fixed blade knives
Fuse testers
Weighted tape measures
Avalaunchers
Fuse cutters
Phase rotation meters
Hoisting equipment
Explosives time delay fuses
Digital ohmmeters
Coated gloves
Resistance testers
Wheeled wire dispensers
Tractor-trailer trucks
Grappling hooks
Protective safety glasses
Protective respirators
Plumb bobs
Laptop computers
Tamping rods
Overhead cranes
Blasthole drills
Safety harnesses
Insulated pliers
Non-electric delay detonators
Digital multimeters
Surveyors leveling rods
Forklifts
End cutting pliers
Non-contact voltage testers
Shock tube detonators
Digital calculators
Extension ladders
Remote blasting systems
Blasting cap crimpers
Long period delay detonators
Remote firing devices
Folding knives
Wire strippers
Seismic activity recorders
Balance scales
Vernier calipers
Tongue and groove pliers
Temperature data loggers
Depth measurement gauges
Digital micrometers
Mobile radios
Safety cones
Transport trucks
Millivoltmeters
Hard hats
Electrical circuit testers
Jackhammers
Explosive blasting caps
Dewatering pumps
Safety goggles
Right angle prisms
Hand shears
Blasting machines
Padded gloves
Detonating cords
Hacksaws
Meggers
Laser rangefinders
Spring scales
Perforating casing guns
Perforating capsule guns
Test lamps
Bore hole thermometers
Warning sirens
Personal computers
Protective ear plugs
Phillips head screwdrivers
Instantaneous electrical detonators
Wire cutting tools
Stake flags
Ammonium nitrate fuel oil ANFO loaders
Torpedo levels
Hydraulic pressure gauges
Pneumatic drilling equipment
Crescent wrenches
Lowering hooks
Stakebed trucks
Surface connector blocks
Loading poles
Digital wattmeters
Portable air compressors
Hole savers
Flashing warning lights
Tie-down equipment
Digital voltmeters
Explosives handling robots
Galvanometers
Conduit bending tools
Electronic shock tube initiators
Explosives funnels
Plastic plugs
Digital ammeters
Hand chisels
Wire cleaning brushes
Harpoon retrievers
Longnose pliers
Wire loop pullers

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