Job Duties Custom List 51-4041.00 — Machinists
- Support metalworking projects from planning and fabrication through assembly, inspection, and testing, using knowledge of machine functions, metal properties, and mathematics.
Occupations with related tasks Save Table: XLSX CSV
| Closely Related Tasks | All Related Tasks | Job Zone | Code | Occupation |
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 51-6021.00 | Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials |
| 2 | 3 | 2 | 51-4191.00 | Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic |
| 2 | 2 | 2 | 51-6051.00 | Sewers, Hand |
| 1 | 6 | 2 | 51-4193.00 | Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic |
| 1 | 5 | 2 | 51-4121.00 | Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers |
| 1 | 2 | 1 | 51-6011.00 | Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers |
| 1 | 1 | 3 | 51-1011.00 | First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers |
| 1 | 1 | 2 | 51-6093.00 | Upholsterers |
| 1 | 1 | 2 | 51-6041.00 | Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers |
- Spray water over fabric to soften fibers when not using steam irons.
- Moisten materials to soften and smooth them.
- Use covering cloths to prevent equipment from damaging delicate fabrics.
- Hang, fold, package, and tag finished articles for delivery to customers.
- Operate steam, hydraulic, or other pressing machines to remove wrinkles from garments and flatwork items, or to shape, form, or patch articles.
- Straighten, smooth, or shape materials to prepare them for pressing.
- Remove finished pieces from pressing machines and hang or stack them for cooling, or forward them for additional processing.
- Finish pleated garments, determining sizes of pleats from evidence of old pleats or from work orders, using machine presses or hand irons.
- Lower irons, rams, or pressing heads of machines into position over material to be pressed.
- Identify and treat spots on garments.
- Shrink, stretch, or block articles by hand to conform to original measurements, using forms, blocks, and steam.
- Finish fancy garments such as evening gowns and costumes, using hand irons to produce high quality finishes.
- Push and pull irons over surfaces of articles to smooth or shape them.
- Finish pants, jackets, shirts, skirts and other dry-cleaned and laundered articles, using hand irons.
- Slide material back and forth over heated, metal, ball-shaped forms to smooth and press portions of garments that cannot be satisfactorily pressed with flat pressers or hand irons.
- Select appropriate pressing machines, based on garment properties such as heat tolerance.
- Position materials such as cloth garments, felt, or straw on tables, dies, or feeding mechanisms of pressing machines, or on ironing boards or work tables.
- Clean and maintain pressing machines, using cleaning solutions and lubricants.
- Press ties on small pressing machines.
- Block or shape knitted garments after cleaning.
- Activate and adjust machine controls to regulate temperature and pressure of rollers, ironing shoes, or plates, according to specifications.
- Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as tape measures and micrometers.
- Finish velvet garments by steaming them on bucks of hot-head presses or steam tables, and brushing pile (nap) with handbrushes.
- Measure fabric to specifications, cut uneven edges with shears, fold material, and press it with an iron to form a heading.
- Insert heated metal forms into ties and touch up rough places with hand irons.
- Brush materials made of suede, leather, or felt to remove spots or to raise and smooth naps.
- Sew ends of new material to leaders or to ends of material in pressing machines, using sewing machines.
- Select, install, and adjust machine components, including pressing forms, rollers, and guides, using hoists and hand tools.
- Spray water over fabric to soften fibers when not using steam irons.
- Moisten materials to soften and smooth them.
- Use covering cloths to prevent equipment from damaging delicate fabrics.
- Determine flame temperatures, current frequencies, heating cycles, and induction heating coils needed, based on degree of hardness required and properties of stock to be treated.
- Determine types and temperatures of baths and quenching media needed to attain specified part hardness, toughness, and ductility, using heat-treating charts and knowledge of methods, equipment, and metals.
- Heat billets, bars, plates, rods, and other stock to specified temperatures preparatory to forging, rolling, or processing, using oil, gas, or electrical furnaces.
- Read production schedules and work orders to determine processing sequences, furnace temperatures, and heat cycle requirements for objects to be heat-treated.
- Record times that parts are removed from furnaces to document that objects have attained specified temperatures for specified times.
- Adjust controls to maintain temperatures and heating times, using thermal instruments and charts, dials and gauges of furnaces, and color of stock in furnaces to make setting determinations.
- Start conveyors and open furnace doors to load stock, or signal crane operators to uncover soaking pits and lower ingots into them.
- Set up and operate or tend machines, such as furnaces, baths, flame-hardening machines, and electronic induction machines, that harden, anneal, and heat-treat metal.
- Remove parts from furnaces after specified times, and air dry or cool parts in water, oil brine, or other baths.
- Move controls to light gas burners and to adjust gas and water flow and flame temperature.
- Instruct new workers in machine operation.
- Set up and operate die-quenching machines to prevent parts from warping.
- Examine parts to ensure metal shades and colors conform to specifications, using knowledge of metal heat-treating.
- Set and adjust speeds of reels and conveyors for prescribed time cycles to pass parts through continuous furnaces.
- Load parts into containers and place containers on conveyors to be inserted into furnaces, or insert parts into furnaces.
- Test parts for hardness, using hardness testing equipment, or by examining and feeling samples.
- Place completed workpieces on conveyors, using cold rods, tongs, or chain hoists, or signal crane operators to transport them to subsequent stations.
- Signal forklift operators to deposit or extract containers of parts into and from furnaces and quenching rinse tanks.
- Mount workpieces in fixtures, on arbors, or between centers of machines.
- Reduce heat when processing is complete to allow parts to cool in furnaces or machinery.
- Mount fixtures and industrial coils on machines, using hand tools.
- Position stock in furnaces, using tongs, chain hoists, or pry bars.
- Repair, replace, and maintain furnace equipment as needed, using hand tools.
- Clean oxides and scales from parts or fittings, using steam sprays or chemical and water baths.
- Stamp heat-treatment identification marks on parts, using hammers and punches.
- Position parts in plastic bags, and seal bags with irons.
- Determine flame temperatures, current frequencies, heating cycles, and induction heating coils needed, based on degree of hardness required and properties of stock to be treated.
- Determine types and temperatures of baths and quenching media needed to attain specified part hardness, toughness, and ductility, using heat-treating charts and knowledge of methods, equipment, and metals.
- Heat billets, bars, plates, rods, and other stock to specified temperatures preparatory to forging, rolling, or processing, using oil, gas, or electrical furnaces.
- Wax thread by drawing it through a ball of wax.
- Soften leather or shoe material with water to prepare it for sewing.
- Sew, join, reinforce, or finish parts of articles, such as garments, books, mattresses, toys, and wigs, using needles and thread or other materials.
- Trim excess threads or edges of parts, using scissors or knives.
- Select thread, twine, cord, or yarn to be used, and thread needles.
- Draw and cut patterns according to specifications.
- Fold, twist, stretch, or drape material, and secure articles in preparation for sewing.
- Smooth seams with heated irons, flat bones, or rubbing sticks.
- Measure and align parts, fasteners, or trimmings, following seams, edges, or markings on parts.
- Use different sewing techniques such as felling, tacking, basting, embroidery, and fagoting.
- Sew buttonholes, or add lace or other trimming.
- Tie, knit, weave or knot ribbon, yarn, or decorative materials.
- Attach trimmings and labels to articles with cement, using brushes or cement guns.
- Wax thread by drawing it through a ball of wax.
- Soften leather or shoe material with water to prepare it for sewing.
- Determine sizes and compositions of objects to be plated, and amounts of electrical current and time required.
- Immerse workpieces in coating solutions or liquid metal or plastic for specified times.
- Immerse objects to be coated or plated into cleaning solutions, or spray objects with conductive solutions to prepare them for plating.
- Suspend objects, such as parts or molds from cathode rods, or negative terminals, and immerse objects in plating solutions.
- Suspend sticks or pieces of plating metal from anodes, or positive terminals, and immerse metal in plating solutions.
- Preheat workpieces in ovens.
- Adjust dials to regulate flow of current and voltage supplied to terminals to control plating processes.
- Inspect coated or plated areas for defects, such as air bubbles or uneven coverage.
- Set up, operate, or tend plating or coating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces.
- Observe gauges to ensure that machines are operating properly, making adjustments or stopping machines when problems occur.
- Remove objects from solutions at periodic intervals and observe objects to verify conformance to specifications.
- Maintain production records.
- Remove excess materials or impurities from objects, using air hoses or grinding machines.
- Examine completed objects to determine thicknesses of metal deposits, or measure thicknesses by using instruments such as micrometers.
- Rinse coated objects in cleansing liquids and dry them with cloths, centrifugal driers, or by tumbling in sawdust-filled barrels.
- Test machinery to ensure that it is operating properly.
- Measure or weigh materials, using rulers, calculators, and scales.
- Measure, mark, and mask areas to be excluded from plating.
- Read production schedules to determine setups of equipment and machines.
- Adjust controls to set temperatures of coating substances and speeds of machines and equipment.
- Monitor and measure thicknesses of electroplating on component parts to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometers.
- Operate hoists to place workpieces onto machine feed carriages or spindles.
- Position and feed materials into processing machines, by hand or by using automated equipment.
- Position objects to be plated in frames, or suspend them from positive or negative terminals of power supplies.
- Operate sandblasting equipment to roughen and clean surfaces of workpieces.
- Spray coating in specified patterns according to instructions.
- Clean and maintain equipment, using water hoses and scrapers.
- Plate small objects, such as nuts or bolts, using motor-driven barrels.
- Clean workpieces, using wire brushes.
- Mix and test solutions, and turn valves to fill tanks with solutions.
- Replace worn parts and adjust equipment components, using hand tools.
- Place plated or coated materials on racks and transfer them to ovens to dry for specified periods of time.
- Measure and set stops, rolls, brushes, and guides on automatic feeders and conveying equipment or coating machines, using micrometers, rules, and hand tools.
- Position containers to receive parts, and load or unload materials in containers, using dollies or handtrucks.
- Attach nozzles, position guns, connect hoses, and thread wire to set up metal-spraying machines.
- Perform equipment maintenance, such as cleaning tanks and lubricating moving parts of conveyors.
- Install gears and holding devices on conveyor equipment.
- Cut metal or other materials, using shears or band saws.
- Determine sizes and compositions of objects to be plated, and amounts of electrical current and time required.
- Immerse workpieces in coating solutions or liquid metal or plastic for specified times.
- Immerse objects to be coated or plated into cleaning solutions, or spray objects with conductive solutions to prepare them for plating.
- Suspend objects, such as parts or molds from cathode rods, or negative terminals, and immerse objects in plating solutions.
- Suspend sticks or pieces of plating metal from anodes, or positive terminals, and immerse metal in plating solutions.
- Preheat workpieces in ovens.
- Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
- Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.
- Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.
- Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
- Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.
- Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.
- Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure conformance with specifications.
- Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.
- Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.
- Recognize, set up, and operate hand and power tools common to the welding trade, such as shielded metal arc and gas metal arc welding equipment.
- Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.
- Mark or tag material with proper job number, piece marks, and other identifying marks as required.
- Prepare all material surfaces to be welded, ensuring that there is no loose or thick scale, slag, rust, moisture, grease, or other foreign matter.
- Align and clamp workpieces together, using rules, squares, or hand tools, or position items in fixtures, jigs, or vises.
- Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.
- Position and secure workpieces, using hoists, cranes, wire, and banding machines or hand tools.
- Monitor the fitting, burning, and welding processes to avoid overheating of parts or warping, shrinking, distortion, or expansion of material.
- Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.
- Weld separately or in combination, using aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron, and other alloys.
- Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
- Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.
- Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
- Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.
- Hammer out bulges or bends in metal workpieces.
- Check grooves, angles, or gap allowances, using micrometers, calipers, and precision measuring instruments.
- Guide and direct flames or electrodes on or across workpieces to straighten, bend, melt, or build up metal.
- Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies.
- Set up and use ladders and scaffolding as necessary to complete work.
- Operate metal shaping, straightening, and bending machines, such as brakes and shears.
- Analyze engineering drawings, blueprints, specifications, sketches, work orders, and material safety data sheets to plan layout, assembly, and operations.
- Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
- Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.
- Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.
- Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
- Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.
- Dye articles to change or restore their colors, using knowledge of textile compositions and the properties and effects of bleaches and dyes.
- Immerse articles in bleaching baths to strip colors.
- Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading.
- Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, or extractors, and turn valves or levers to regulate machine processes and the volume of soap, detergent, water, bleach, starch, and other additives.
- Operate extractors and driers, or direct their operation.
- Remove items from washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to do so.
- Sort and count articles removed from dryers, and fold, wrap, or hang them.
- Clean machine filters, and lubricate equipment.
- Examine and sort into lots articles to be cleaned, according to color, fabric, dirt content, and cleaning technique required.
- Receive and mark articles for laundry or dry cleaning with identifying code numbers or names, using hand or machine markers.
- Apply bleaching powders to spots and spray them with steam to remove stains from fabrics that do not respond to other cleaning solvents.
- Determine spotting procedures and proper solvents, based on fabric and stain types.
- Spray steam, water, or air over spots to flush out chemicals, dry material, raise naps, or brighten colors.
- Pre-soak, sterilize, scrub, spot-clean, and dry contaminated or stained articles, using neutralizer solutions and portable machines.
- Mix bleaching agents with hot water in vats, and soak material until it is bleached.
- Apply chemicals to neutralize the effects of solvents.
- Mix and add detergents, dyes, bleaches, starches, and other solutions and chemicals to clean, color, dry, or stiffen articles.
- Sprinkle chemical solvents over stains, and pat areas with brushes or sponges to remove stains.
- Match sample colors, applying knowledge of bleaching agent and dye properties, and types, construction, conditions, and colors of articles.
- Inspect soiled articles to determine sources of stains, to locate color imperfections, and to identify items requiring special treatment.
- Operate dry-cleaning machines to clean soiled articles.
- Operate machines that comb, dry and polish furs, clean, sterilize and fluff feathers and blankets, or roll and package towels.
- Iron or press articles, fabrics, and furs, using hand irons or pressing machines.
- Hang curtains, drapes, blankets, pants, and other garments on stretch frames to dry.
- Clean fabrics, using vacuums or air hoses.
- Test fabrics in inconspicuous places to determine whether solvents will damage dyes or fabrics.
- Rinse articles in water and acetic acid solutions to remove excess dye and to fix colors.
- Identify articles' fabrics and original dyes by sight and touch, or by testing samples with fire or chemical reagents.
- Start pumps to operate distilling systems that drain and reclaim dry cleaning solvents.
- Spread soiled articles on work tables, and position stained portions over vacuum heads or on marble slabs.
- Mend and sew articles, using hand stitching, adhesive patches, or sewing machines.
- Wash, dry-clean, or glaze delicate articles or fur garment linings by hand, using mild detergents or dry cleaning solutions.
- Dye articles to change or restore their colors, using knowledge of textile compositions and the properties and effects of bleaches and dyes.
- Immerse articles in bleaching baths to strip colors.
- Recommend or implement measures to motivate employees and to improve production methods, equipment performance, product quality, or efficiency.
- Enforce safety and sanitation regulations.
- Keep records of employees' attendance and hours worked.
- Inspect materials, products, or equipment to detect defects or malfunctions.
- Read and analyze charts, work orders, production schedules, and other records and reports to determine production requirements and to evaluate current production estimates and outputs.
- Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals.
- Confer with other supervisors to coordinate operations and activities within or between departments.
- Interpret specifications, blueprints, job orders, and company policies and procedures for workers.
- Observe work and monitor gauges, dials, and other indicators to ensure that operators conform to production or processing standards.
- Direct and coordinate the activities of employees engaged in the production or processing of goods, such as inspectors, machine setters, or fabricators.
- Conduct employee training in equipment operations or work and safety procedures, or assign employee training to experienced workers.
- Evaluate employee performance.
- Confer with management or subordinates to resolve worker problems, complaints, or grievances.
- Determine standards, budgets, production goals, and rates, based on company policies, equipment and labor availability, and workloads.
- Calculate labor and equipment requirements and production specifications, using standard formulas.
- Maintain operations data, such as time, production, and cost records, and prepare management reports of production results.
- Requisition materials, supplies, equipment parts, or repair services.
- Set up and adjust machines and equipment.
- Recommend or execute personnel actions, such as hirings, evaluations, or promotions.
- Plan and develop new products and production processes.
- Recommend or implement measures to motivate employees and to improve production methods, equipment performance, product quality, or efficiency.
- Attach bindings or apply solutions to edges of cut material to prevent raveling.
- Fit, install, and secure material on frames, using hand tools, power tools, glue, cement, or staples.
- Measure and cut new covering materials, using patterns and measuring and cutting instruments, following sketches and design specifications.
- Build furniture up with loose fiber stuffing, cotton, felt, or foam padding to form smooth, rounded surfaces.
- Make, restore, or create custom upholstered furniture, using hand tools and knowledge of fabrics and upholstery methods.
- Read work orders, and apply knowledge and experience with materials to determine types and amounts of materials required to cover workpieces.
- Examine furniture frames, upholstery, springs, and webbing to locate defects.
- Adjust or replace webbing, padding, or springs, and secure them in place.
- Sew rips or tears in material, or create tufting, using needles and thread.
- Remove covering, webbing, padding, or defective springs from workpieces, using hand tools such as hammers and tack pullers.
- Attach fasteners, grommets, buttons, buckles, ornamental trim, and other accessories to covers or frames, using hand tools.
- Repair furniture frames and refinish exposed wood.
- Interweave and fasten strips of webbing to the backs and undersides of furniture, using small hand tools and fasteners.
- Draw cutting lines on material following patterns, templates, sketches, or blueprints, using chalk, pencils, paint, or other methods.
- Stretch webbing and fabric, using webbing stretchers.
- Operate sewing machines or sew upholstery by hand to seam cushions and join various sections of covering material.
- Design upholstery cover patterns and cutting plans, based on sketches, customer descriptions, or blueprints.
- Maintain records of time required to perform each job.
- Discuss upholstery fabrics, colors, and styles with customers, and provide cost estimates.
- Pick up and deliver furniture.
- Collaborate with interior designers to decorate rooms and coordinate furnishing fabrics.
- Make, repair, or replace automobile upholstery and convertible and vinyl tops, using knowledge of fabric and upholstery methods.
- Attach bindings or apply solutions to edges of cut material to prevent raveling.
- Dye, soak, polish, paint, stamp, stitch, stain, buff, or engrave leather or other materials to obtain desired effects, decorations, or shapes.
- Cut out parts, following patterns or outlines, using knives, shears, scissors, or machine presses.
- Construct, decorate, or repair leather products according to specifications, using sewing machines, needles and thread, leather lacing, glue, clamps, hand tools, or rivets.
- Repair and recondition leather products such as trunks, luggage, shoes, saddles, belts, purses, and baseball gloves.
- Align and stitch or glue materials such as fabric, fleece, leather, or wood, to join parts.
- Inspect articles for defects, and remove damaged or worn parts, using hand tools.
- Drill or punch holes and insert or attach metal rings, handles, and fastening hardware, such as buckles.
- Prepare inserts, heel pads, and lifts from casts of customers' feet.
- Dress and otherwise finish boots or shoes, as by trimming the edges of new soles and heels to the shoe shape.
- Attach insoles to shoe lasts, affix shoe uppers, and apply heels and outsoles.
- Clean and polish shoes.
- Cement, nail, or sew soles and heels to shoes.
- Check the texture, color, and strength of leather to ensure that it is adequate for a particular purpose.
- Shape shoe heels with a knife, and sand them on a buffing wheel for smoothness.
- Place shoes on lasts to remove soles and heels, using knives or pliers.
- Repair or replace soles, heels, and other parts of footwear, using sewing, buffing and other shoe repair machines, materials, and equipment.
- Cut, insert, position, and secure paddings, cushioning, or linings, using stitches or glue.
- Estimate the costs of requested products or services such as custom footwear or footwear repair, and receive payment from customers.
- Draw patterns, using measurements, designs, plaster casts, or customer specifications, and position or outline patterns on work pieces.
- Nail heel and toe cleats onto shoes.
- Re-sew seams, and replace handles and linings of suitcases or handbags.
- Stretch shoes, dampening parts and inserting and twisting parts, using an adjustable stretcher.
- Read prescriptions or specifications, and take measurements to establish the type of product to be made, using calipers, tape measures, or rules.
- Attach accessories or ornamentation to decorate or protect products.
- Make, modify, and repair orthopedic or therapeutic footwear according to doctors' prescriptions, or modify existing footwear for people with foot problems and special needs.
- Select materials and patterns, and trace patterns onto materials to be cut out.
- Measure customers for fit, and discuss with them the type of footwear to be made, recommending details such as leather quality.
- Dye, soak, polish, paint, stamp, stitch, stain, buff, or engrave leather or other materials to obtain desired effects, decorations, or shapes.
