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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 Technician”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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