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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 Worker”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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