Life As a Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender
Occupation Description Set up, operate, or tend woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, and wood nailing machines. May operate CNC equipment.
What Do Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Do On a Daily Basis?
- Trim wood parts according to specifications, using planes, chisels, or wood files or sanders.
- Push or hold workpieces against, under, or through cutting, boring, or shaping mechanisms.
- Secure woodstock against a guide or in a holding device, place woodstock on a conveyor, or dump woodstock in a hopper to feed woodstock into machines.
- Attach and adjust guides, stops, clamps, chucks, or feed mechanisms, using hand tools.
- Start machines and move levers to engage hydraulic lifts that press woodstocks into desired forms and disengage lifts after appropriate drying times.
- Grease or oil woodworking machines.
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Woodworking Machine Operator Required Skills
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders state the following job skills are important in their day-to-day work.
Operation Monitoring: Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Operation and Control: Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Quality Control Analysis: Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
Monitoring: Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Equipment Maintenance: Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Types of Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender
- Veneer Jointer
- Flooring Machine Operator
- Barrel Lathe Operator
- Router Operator
- Veneer Splicer
Job Demand for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
In 2016, there was an estimated number of 77,100 jobs in the United States for Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender. There is little to no growth in job opportunities for Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender. Due to new job openings and attrition, there will be an average of 8,400 job openings in this field each year.
The states with the most job growth for Woodworking Machine Operator are Utah, Florida, and Nevada. Watch out if you plan on working in Vermont, Kansas, or Maine. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Woodworking Machine Operator Salary
The typical yearly salary for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders is somewhere between $20,870 and $44,420.
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders who work in Wyoming, Connecticut, or Nevada, make the highest salaries.
How much do Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders make in each U.S. state?
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $28,600 |
Alaska | $36,660 |
Arizona | $27,500 |
Arkansas | $28,110 |
California | $32,360 |
Colorado | $37,050 |
Connecticut | $40,440 |
Florida | $29,150 |
Georgia | $27,650 |
Hawaii | $36,070 |
Idaho | $33,350 |
Illinois | $33,310 |
Indiana | $31,140 |
Iowa | $33,680 |
Kansas | $32,160 |
Kentucky | $27,700 |
Louisiana | $31,570 |
Maine | $30,240 |
Maryland | $32,160 |
Massachusetts | $37,660 |
Michigan | $30,870 |
Minnesota | $36,320 |
Mississippi | $29,660 |
Missouri | $28,940 |
Montana | $34,530 |
Nebraska | $30,160 |
Nevada | $38,300 |
New Hampshire | $35,240 |
New Jersey | $33,090 |
New Mexico | $36,440 |
New York | $35,300 |
North Carolina | $29,630 |
North Dakota | $33,570 |
Ohio | $31,500 |
Oklahoma | $31,190 |
Oregon | $35,950 |
Pennsylvania | $33,220 |
Rhode Island | $32,730 |
South Carolina | $29,360 |
South Dakota | $29,800 |
Tennessee | $28,800 |
Texas | $26,790 |
Utah | $31,160 |
Vermont | $31,650 |
Virginia | $28,730 |
Washington | $35,530 |
West Virginia | $29,430 |
Wisconsin | $31,510 |
Wyoming | $41,170 |
Tools & Technologies Used by Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
Although they’re not necessarily needed for all jobs, the following technologies are used by many Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Word
- Microsoft Office
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Outlook
- Word processing software
- Microsoft Windows
- Autodesk AutoCAD
- Adobe Systems Adobe Acrobat
- Adobe Systems Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe Systems Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe Systems Adobe InDesign
- Dassault Systemes CATIA
- Dassault Systemes SOLIDWORKS
- Enterprise resource planning ERP software
- YouTube
- Apple macOS
- Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
- Adobe Systems Adobe Creative Suite
- Computer aided design and drafting CADD software
How to Become a Woodworking Machine Operator
What education is needed to be a Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender?
What work experience do I need to become a Woodworking Machine Operator?
Who Employs Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders?
The table below shows the approximate number of Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders employed by various industries.
Similar Careers
Career changers with experience as a Woodworking Machine Setter, Operator, or Tender sometimes find work in one of the following fields:
References:
Image Credit: Airman 1st Class Sadie Colbert via Public domain
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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