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48% Chance of Automation

“Explosives Handler” will probably not be replaced by robots.

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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 “Explosives Handler”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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