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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”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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