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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…
- Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters
- Unexploded Ordnance Quality Control Officer
- Powderman
- Explosive Technician
- Blaster
- Zinc Miner, Blasting
- Well Shooter
- Well Blower
- Velocity Shooter
- Unexploded Ordnance Quality Control Worker
- Tunnel Worker
- Tunnel Man
- Torpedo Worker
- Torpedo Shooter
- Torpedo Man
- Tier and Detonator
- Stump Shooter
- Stump Blower
- Skip Miner, Blasting
- Silver Miner, Blasting
- Shotblaster
- Shot Man
- Shot Lighter
- Shot Hole Shooter
- Shot Firer
- Shot Fireman
- Shooter
- Shale Miner, Blasting
- Shaft Sinker
- Seismograph Shooter
- Sample Taker Operator
- Robber
- Quartz Miner, Blasting
- Powder Loader
- Pillar Worker
- Pillar Man
- Perforator Operator
- Perforator Loader
- Perforator
- Ore Miner, Blasting
- Ordnance Keeper
- Ordnance Handler
- Ordnance Artificer
- Oil Well Shooter
- Oil Well Perforator Operator
- Oil Well Gun Perforator Operator
- Nitro Worker
- Nitro Man
- Muck Miner, Blasting
- Miner
- Mica Miner, Blasting
- Metal Miner, Blasting
- Lode Miner, Blasting
- Lead Miner, Blasting
- Iron Miner, Blasting
- Hydraulic Miner, Blasting
- High Scaler
- Hard Rock Miner, Blasting
- Gun Perforator Loader
- Gun Perforator
- Gold Miner, Blasting
- Fuse Cutter
- Firer
- Explosives Worker
- Explosives Handler
- Explosives Detonator
- Explosive Specialist
- Explosive Ordnance Technician
- Explosive Ordnance Specialist
- Explosive Ordnance Manager
- Explosive Ordnance Handler
- Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician
- Explosive Ordnance Disposal Specialist
- Explosive Ordnance Disposal Manager
- Explosive Man
- Explosive Expert
- Efficiency Miner, Blasting
- Dynamiter
- Dynamite Shooter
- Driftman
- Dobie Worker
- Dobie Man
- Demolitionist
- Demolition Worker
- Demolition Expert
- Copper Miner, Blasting
- Company Miner, Blasting
- Coal Shooter
- Charger
- Bomb Technician
- Blasting Miner
- Blasting Gang Miner
- Blasting Entryman
- Blasting Entry Specialist
- Blasting Contract Miner
- Blasting Contract Man
- Blasting Coal Miner
- Blasting Clay Miner
- Blast Setter
- Ammunition and Explosives Handler
- Aircraft Ordnance Technician
Tasks for “Powder Worker”
- Insert waterproof sealers, bullets, and/or powder charges into guns, and screw gun ports back into place.
- Connect gun chambers to electric detonating devices, and operate controls at panelboards, in order to detonate charges in guns or to ignite chemical charges.
- 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.
- Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
- 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.
- 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.
- Insert powder charges into chambers of sidewall sample-taking cylinders, and assemble cylinders, using special wrenches.
- Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
- Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, or drills, in order to bore charge holes.
- Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
- Cut specified lengths of primacord and attach primers to cord ends.
- Clean, gauge, and lubricate gun ports.
- 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.
- Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
- Obtain samples of earth from sidewalls of well boreholes, using electrically exploding devices.
- Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
- 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.
- Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
- Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
- Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
- Repair electrical instruments, using electricians' hand tools.
- Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
- Observe odometers, weight indicators, and instrument panels in trucks in order to position guns at predetermined points in wells.
- 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.
- Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material.
Related Technology & Tools
- Hoisting equipment
- Digital multimeters
- Hand shears
- Digital ammeters
- Insulated pliers
- Blasting machines
- Flashing warning lights
- Avalaunchers
- Temperature data loggers
- Stake flags
- Vernier calipers
- Coated gloves
- Hydraulic pressure gauges
- Digital voltmeters
- Fuse cutters
- Padded gloves
- Non-contact voltage testers
- Phillips head screwdrivers
- Resistance testers
- Safety fuses
- Personal computers
- Blast hole tubing
- Hacksaws
- Protective respirators
- Protective ear plugs
- Dewatering pumps
- Perforating casing guns
- Digital calculators
- Galvanometers
- Warning sirens
- Protective safety glasses
- Weighted tape measures
- Wire cleaning brushes
- Long period delay detonators
- Short-wave radios
- Depth measurement gauges
- Overhead cranes
- Torpedo levels
- Digital wattmeters
- Right angle prisms
- Wire strippers
- Explosive blasting caps
- Mobile radios
- Explosives handling robots
- Shock tube detonators
- Hard hats
- Lowering hooks
- Bore hole thermometers
- Explosives funnels
- Stakebed trucks
- Wire loop pullers
- Electrical circuit testers
- Pallet jacks
- Tongue and groove pliers
- Seismic activity recorders
- Harpoon retrievers
- Pneumatic drilling equipment
- Clinometers
- Ring gauges
- End cutting pliers
- Plastic plugs
- Detonating cords
- Grappling hooks
- Test lamps
- Surveyors leveling rods
- Ammonium nitrate fuel oil ANFO loaders
- Balance scales
- Hole savers
- Hand chisels
- Crescent wrenches
- Precision tweezers
- Wheeled wire dispensers
- Portable cranes
- Transport trucks
- Rubber mallets
- Spring scales
- Meggers
- Conduit bending tools
- Discharge hoses
- Day boxes
- Extension ladders
- Plumb bobs
- Tamping rods
- Laptop computers
- Fixed blade knives
- Tractor-trailer trucks
- Safety cones
- Wood wedges
- Longnose pliers
- Jackhammers
- Laser rangefinders
- Portable air compressors
- Remote blasting systems
- Digital ohmmeters
- Surface connector blocks
- Short period delay detonators
- Tie-down equipment
- Folding knives
- Blasting cap crimpers
- Safety harnesses
- Loading poles
- Millivoltmeters
- Explosives time delay fuses
- Fuse testers
- Blasthole drills
- Safety goggles
- Phase rotation meters
- Forklifts
- Electricians' knives
- Equipment dollies
- Wire cutting tools
- Electronic shock tube initiators
- Instantaneous electrical detonators
- Digital micrometers
- Non-electric delay detonators
- Portable signal generators
- Perforating capsule guns
- Remote firing devices
- Autodesk AutoCAD
- Microsoft Office
- Global Positioning System GPS software
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- DetNet ViewShot
- Microsoft Excel
- ESRI ArcGIS software
- Datavis DBS Designer
- Microsoft Word
- Blaster's Tool and Supply Company Blaster's Calculator