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Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing

	Median Wage (USD, 2024)	Projected Job Openings (2023-2033)	Projected Growth (2023-2033)
National Statistics	$40,440	6200	-2.2%
State Statistics	-	-	-
City Statistics	-	-	-

Statistics

National

State

City

State

City

$40,440

Median Wage (USD, 2023)

6200

Projected Job Openings (2023-2033)

-2.2%

Projected Growth (2023-2033)

Set up, operate, or tend woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, and wood nailing machines. May operate computer numerically controlled (CNC) equipment.

Experience Requirements Overview

Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.
These occupations usually require a high school diploma.
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Education, Training and Experience

Required Level of Education: High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)

Related Work Experience: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

On-Site or In-Plant Training: N.A.

On-the-Job Training: Anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month

Detailed Work Activities

Conduct test runs of production equipment.
Operate woodworking equipment.
Determine production equipment settings.
Select production input materials.
Feed materials or products into or through equipment.
Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
Monitor equipment operation to ensure that products are not flawed.
Operate woodworking equipment.
Select production equipment according to product specifications.
Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
Mount attachments or tools onto production equipment.
Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information.
Stack finished items for further processing or shipment.
Maneuver workpieces in equipment during production.
Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
Inspect production equipment.
Remove accessories, tools, or other parts from equipment.
Replace worn equipment components.
Load materials into production equipment.
Mount materials or workpieces onto production equipment.
Clean work areas.
Clean production equipment.
Maintain production or processing equipment.
Mount attachments or tools onto production equipment.
Set equipment guides, stops, spacers, or other fixtures.
Inspect lumber or raw woodstock.
Program equipment to perform production tasks.
Operate woodworking equipment.
Trim excess material from workpieces.
Remove products or workpieces from production equipment.
Operate woodworking equipment.
Operate cranes, hoists, or other moving or lifting equipment.
Lubricate production equipment.

Work Values

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions

Recognition

Relationships

Support

Independence

Tasks

Set up, program, operate, or tend computerized or manual woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, or wood-nailing machines.
Examine finished workpieces for smoothness, shape, angle, depth-of-cut, or conformity to specifications and verify dimensions, visually and using hands, rules, calipers, templates, or gauges.
Start machines, adjust controls, and make trial cuts to ensure that machinery is operating properly.
Monitor operation of machines and make adjustments to correct problems and ensure conformance to specifications.
Examine raw woodstock for defects and to ensure conformity to size and other specification standards.
Adjust machine tables or cutting devices and set controls on machines to produce specified cuts or operations.
Install and adjust blades, cutterheads, boring-bits, or sanding-belts, using hand tools and rules.
Change alignment and adjustment of sanding, cutting, or boring machine guides to prevent defects in finished products, using hand tools.
Determine product specifications and materials, work methods, and machine setup requirements, according to blueprints, oral or written instructions, drawings, or work orders.
Feed stock through feed mechanisms or conveyors into planing, shaping, boring, mortising, or sanding machines to produce desired components.
Push or hold workpieces against, under, or through cutting, boring, or shaping mechanisms.
Select knives, saws, blades, cutter heads, cams, bits, or belts, according to workpiece, machine functions, or product specifications.
Remove and replace worn parts, bits, belts, sandpaper, or shaping tools.
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.
Inspect and mark completed workpieces and stack them on pallets, in boxes, or on conveyors so that they can be moved to the next workstation.
Inspect pulleys, drive belts, guards, or fences on machines to ensure that machines will operate safely.
Clean or maintain products, machines, or work areas.
Attach and adjust guides, stops, clamps, chucks, or feed mechanisms, using hand tools.
Trim wood parts according to specifications, using planes, chisels, or wood files or sanders.
Grease or oil woodworking machines.
Unclamp workpieces and remove them from machines.
Start machines and move levers to engage hydraulic lifts that press woodstocks into desired forms and disengage lifts after appropriate drying times.
Operate gluing machines to glue pieces of wood together, or to press and affix wood veneer to wood surfaces.
Set up, program, or control computer-aided design (CAD) or computer numerical control (CNC) machines.
Control hoists to remove parts or products from work stations.

Work Styles

Achievement/Effort

Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Persistence

Initiative

Leadership

Cooperation

Concern for Others

Social Orientation

Self-Control

Stress Tolerance

Adaptability/Flexibility

Dependability

Attention to Detail

Integrity

Independence

Innovation

Analytical Thinking

Data Source: This page includes information from the O*NET 30.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This page includes Employment Projections program, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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