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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 “Explosive Specialist”

Lower perforating guns into wells, using hoists; then use measuring devices and instrument panels to position guns in correct positions for taking samples.
Repair electrical instruments, using electricians' hand tools.
Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
Obtain samples of earth from sidewalls of well boreholes, using electrically exploding devices.
Connect gun chambers to electric detonating devices, and operate controls at panelboards, in order to detonate charges in guns or to ignite chemical charges.
Clean, gauge, and lubricate gun ports.
Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
Insert powder charges into chambers of sidewall sample-taking cylinders, and assemble cylinders, using special wrenches.
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.
Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, or drills, in order to bore charge holes.
Lay primacord between rows of charged blast holes, and tie cord into main lines to form blast patterns.
Mark patterns, locations, and depths of charge holes for drilling, and issue drilling instructions.
Observe odometers, weight indicators, and instrument panels in trucks in order to position guns at predetermined points in wells.
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.
Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
Repair and service blasting, shooting, and automotive equipment, and electrical wiring and instruments, using hand tools.
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.
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.
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.
Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
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.
Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
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.

Related Technology & Tools

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

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