Will “Operator” be Replaced By Robots? 🤔

85% Chance of Automation

“Operator” will probably be replaced by robots.

This job is ranked #487 out of #702. A higher ranking (i.e., a lower number) means the job is less likely to be replaced.

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Job Description

Control or operate entire chemical processes or system of machines.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 51-8091.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 59,430.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 28.00
Currently, there are 33,300 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Chemical Plant and System Operators”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Operator”

Notify maintenance, stationary-engineering, or other auxiliary personnel to correct equipment malfunctions or to adjust power, steam, water, or air supplies.
Gauge tank levels, using calibrated rods.
Draw samples of products and conduct quality control tests to monitor processing and to ensure that standards are met.
Record operating data, such as process conditions, test results, or instrument readings.
Calculate material requirements or yields according to formulas.
Defrost frozen valves, using steam hoses.
Confer with technical and supervisory personnel to report or resolve conditions affecting safety, efficiency, or product quality.
Regulate or shut down equipment during emergency situations, as directed by supervisory personnel.
Supervise the cleaning of towers, strainers, or spray tips.
Inspect operating units, such as towers, soap-spray storage tanks, scrubbers, collectors, or driers to ensure that all are functioning and to maintain maximum efficiency.
Monitor recording instruments, flowmeters, panel lights, or other indicators and listen for warning signals, to verify conformity of process conditions.
Patrol work areas to ensure that solutions in tanks or troughs are not in danger of overflowing.
Turn valves to regulate flow of products or byproducts through agitator tanks, storage drums, or neutralizer tanks.
Repair or replace damaged equipment.
Control or operate chemical processes or systems of machines, using panelboards, control boards, or semi-automatic equipment.
Interpret chemical reactions visible through sight glasses or on television monitors and review laboratory test reports for process adjustments.
Direct workers engaged in operating machinery that regulates the flow of materials and products.
Move control settings to make necessary adjustments on equipment units affecting speeds of chemical reactions, quality, or yields.
Start pumps to wash and rinse reactor vessels, to exhaust gases or vapors, to regulate the flow of oil, steam, air, or perfume to towers, or to add products to converter or blending vessels.

Related Technology & Tools

Control boards
Rotary pumps
Digital surface thermometers
Barometers
Display screens
Agitator tanks
Effluent treatment systems
Fire extinguishers
Thermocouple temperature probes
Bourdon tubes
Manometers
Industrial fans
Calibrated rods
Steam hoses
Centrifugal fans
Hydraulic accumulators
Humidifiers
Centrifugal compressors
Conveyor feeders
Reciprocating compressors
Wet scrubbers
Recording calorimeters
Storage drums
Industrial dryers
Distillation columns
Boilers
Pressure gauges
Viscometers
Soap-spray storage tanks
Screw conveyors
Panelboards
Blending vessels
Thermocouples
Heating vessels
Capacitance probes
Cooling towers
Tensometers
Positive displacement pumps
Centrifugal pumps
Mixing tanks
Reciprocating pumps
Industrial liquid flowmeters
Bucket elevators
Neutralizer tanks
Chain conveyors
Collectors
Converter vessels
Belt conveyors
Refrigeration systems
Chemical reactor vessels
Gas analyzers
Panel lights
Air conditioning systems
Personal protective equipment
Steam turbines
Radiographic detecting instruments
Silencers
Hoppers
Desktop computers
Axial flow fans

Interlock shutdown systems
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Word
Alarm management system software
Microsoft Excel
Distributed control system DCS
Coordinated incident management system CIMS software