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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
- 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
- Powderman
- Powder Worker
- 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 “Powderman”
- 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.
- Compile and keep gun and explosives records in compliance with local and federal laws.
- Repair and service blasting, shooting, and automotive equipment, and electrical wiring and instruments, using hand tools.
- Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
- Lower perforating guns into wells, using hoists; then use measuring devices and instrument panels to position guns in correct positions for taking samples.
- Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, or drills, in order to bore charge holes.
- Signal hoist operators to lower torpedoes or sample-taking guns into wells and to raise equipment for sampling from blast holes after detonation.
- Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
- Clean, gauge, and lubricate gun ports.
- Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
- Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
- 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.
- Connect gun chambers to electric detonating devices, and operate controls at panelboards, in order to detonate charges in guns or to ignite chemical charges.
- 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.
- Mark patterns, locations, and depths of charge holes for drilling, and issue drilling instructions.
- Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
- Insert powder charges into chambers of sidewall sample-taking cylinders, and assemble cylinders, using special wrenches.
- 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.
- Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
- Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material.
- Obtain samples of earth from sidewalls of well boreholes, using electrically exploding devices.
- Repair electrical instruments, using electricians' 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.
- Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
- 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.
- Cut specified lengths of primacord and attach primers to cord ends.
- Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
Related Technology & Tools
- Precision tweezers
- Wheeled wire dispensers
- Hand chisels
- Laser rangefinders
- Right angle prisms
- Spring scales
- Electrical circuit testers
- Tractor-trailer trucks
- Portable signal generators
- Safety goggles
- Coated gloves
- Rubber mallets
- Equipment dollies
- Conduit bending tools
- Padded gloves
- Surface connector blocks
- Resistance testers
- Mobile radios
- Pneumatic drilling equipment
- Fixed blade knives
- Digital ammeters
- Bore hole thermometers
- Tongue and groove pliers
- Phase rotation meters
- Temperature data loggers
- Loading poles
- Warning sirens
- Avalaunchers
- Crescent wrenches
- Forklifts
- Hole savers
- Depth measurement gauges
- Ammonium nitrate fuel oil ANFO loaders
- Protective safety glasses
- Discharge hoses
- Insulated pliers
- End cutting pliers
- Non-electric delay detonators
- Personal computers
- Hoisting equipment
- Digital micrometers
- Perforating capsule guns
- Plumb bobs
- Surveyors leveling rods
- Transport trucks
- Explosives funnels
- Blasthole drills
- Wire cleaning brushes
- Long period delay detonators
- Protective respirators
- Hand shears
- Explosive blasting caps
- Millivoltmeters
- Wire loop pullers
- Pallet jacks
- Seismic activity recorders
- Remote firing devices
- Folding knives
- Digital ohmmeters
- Ring gauges
- Instantaneous electrical detonators
- Wire strippers
- Protective ear plugs
- Explosives handling robots
- Explosives time delay fuses
- Non-contact voltage testers
- Balance scales
- Stake flags
- Test lamps
- Extension ladders
- Electronic shock tube initiators
- Shock tube detonators
- Dewatering pumps
- Flashing warning lights
- Portable cranes
- Hacksaws
- Harpoon retrievers
- Digital multimeters
- Tie-down equipment
- Jackhammers
- Torpedo levels
- Clinometers
- Remote blasting systems
- Weighted tape measures
- Overhead cranes
- Digital voltmeters
- Short-wave radios
- Digital calculators
- Detonating cords
- Galvanometers
- Longnose pliers
- Hydraulic pressure gauges
- Safety fuses
- Wire cutting tools
- Blasting cap crimpers
- Short period delay detonators
- Stakebed trucks
- Phillips head screwdrivers
- Hard hats
- Fuse testers
- Lowering hooks
- Electricians' knives
- Tamping rods
- Wood wedges
- Safety cones
- Fuse cutters
- Safety harnesses
- Vernier calipers
- Plastic plugs
- Blast hole tubing
- Grappling hooks
- Day boxes
- Meggers
- Digital wattmeters
- Laptop computers
- Perforating casing guns
- Blasting machines
- Portable air compressors
- Blaster's Tool and Supply Company Blaster's Calculator
- Autodesk AutoCAD
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Office
- Microsoft Word
- DetNet ViewShot
- Global Positioning System GPS software
- ESRI ArcGIS software
- Microsoft Excel
- Datavis DBS Designer