Mechanical Door Repairers
49-9011.00
Bright Outlook Updated 2024

Install, service, or repair automatic door mechanisms and hydraulic doors. Includes garage door mechanics.

Sample of reported job titles: Commercial Door Installer, Commercial Installer, Door Installer, Door Technician, Garage Door Installer, Garage Door Technician, Installation Technician, Residential Door Installer, Service Technician

Occupation-Specific Information

Tasks

  • Wind large springs with upward motion of arm.
  • Adjust doors to open or close with the correct amount of effort, or make simple adjustments to electric openers.
  • Carry springs to tops of doors, using ladders or scaffolding, and attach springs to tracks to install spring systems.
  • Repair or replace worn or broken door parts, using hand tools.
  • Complete required paperwork, such as work orders, according to services performed or required.
  • Fasten angle iron back-hangers to ceilings and tracks, using fasteners or welding equipment.
  • Collect payment upon job completion.
  • Install door frames, rails, steel rolling curtains, electronic-eye mechanisms, or electric door openers and closers, using power tools, hand tools, and electronic test equipment.
  • Inspect job sites, assessing headroom, side room, or other conditions to determine appropriateness of door for a given location.
  • Assemble and fasten tracks to structures or bucks, using impact wrenches or welding equipment.
  • Set doors into place or stack hardware sections into openings after rail or track installation.
  • Operate lifts, winches, or chain falls to move heavy curtain doors.
  • Remove or disassemble defective automatic mechanical door closers, using hand tools.
  • Fabricate replacements for worn or broken parts, using welders, lathes, drill presses, or shaping or milling machines.
  • Prepare doors for hardware installation, such as drilling holes to install locks.
  • Run low voltage wiring on ceiling surfaces, using insulated staples.
  • Cut door stops or angle irons to fit openings.
  • Study blueprints and schematic diagrams to determine appropriate methods of installing or repairing automated door openers.
  • Install dock seals, bumpers, or shelters.
  • Order replacement springs, sections, or slats.
  • Lubricate door closer oil chambers, and pack spindles with leather washers.
  • Set in and secure floor treadles for door-activating mechanisms, and connect power packs and electrical panelboards to treadles.
  • Cover treadles with carpeting or other floor covering materials, and test systems by operating treadles.
  • Bore or cut holes in flooring as required for installation, using hand or power tools.
  • Clean door closer parts, using caustic soda, rotary brushes, or grinding wheels.
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Technology Skills

Hot technology
Hot Technologies are requirements most frequently included across all employer job postings.

Occupational Requirements

Work Activities

  • Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment — Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
  • Performing General Physical Activities — Performing general physical activities includes doing activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Handling and Moving Objects — Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
  • Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment — Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
  • Communicating with People Outside the Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
  • Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
  • Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
  • Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
  • Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
  • Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
  • Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
  • Controlling Machines and Processes — Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
  • Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
  • Scheduling Work and Activities — Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
  • Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment — Servicing, repairing, calibrating, regulating, fine-tuning, or testing machines, devices, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of electrical or electronic (not mechanical) principles.
  • Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information — Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
  • Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.

Detailed Work Activities

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Work Context

  • Telephone Conversations — 87% responded “Every day.”
  • In an Enclosed Vehicle or Operate Enclosed Equipment — 91% responded “Every day.”
  • Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets — 65% responded “Every day.”
  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams — 65% responded “Every day.”
  • Contact With Others — 59% responded “Constant contact with others.”
  • Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls — 61% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 58% responded “A lot of freedom.”
  • Exposed to Very Hot or Cold Temperatures — 49% responded “Every day.”
  • Frequency of Decision Making — 50% responded “Every day.”
  • Outdoors, Exposed to All Weather Conditions — 49% responded “Every day.”
  • Exposed to High Places — 54% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Exposed to Hazardous Equipment — 40% responded “Every day.”
  • Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — 47% responded “Important results.”
  • Spend Time Standing — 74% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals — 37% responded “Some freedom.”
  • Time Pressure — 47% responded “Every day.”
  • Duration of Typical Work Week — 52% responded “40 hours.”
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 46% responded “Very important.”
  • Physical Proximity — 77% responded “Moderately close (at arm's length).”
  • Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team — 50% responded “Very important.”
  • Deal With External Customers or the Public in General — 44% responded “Extremely important.”
  • Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled — 37% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Exposed to Contaminants — 40% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings — 59% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable — 46% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Outdoors, Under Cover — 46% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Spend Time Climbing Ladders, Scaffolds, or Poles — 43% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Exposed to Extremely Bright or Inadequate Lighting Conditions — 46% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
  • Spend Time Bending or Twisting Your Body — 40% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions — 39% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Exposed to Cramped Work Space, Awkward Positions — 46% responded “Once a month or more but not every week.”
  • Importance of Repeating Same Tasks — 48% responded “Important.”
  • Level of Competition — 34% responded “Highly competitive.”
  • Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers — 41% responded “Limited responsibility.”
  • Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities — 34% responded “Important.”
  • Spend Time Kneeling, Crouching, Stooping, or Crawling — 45% responded “More than half the time.”
  • Consequence of Error — 43% responded “Fairly serious.”
  • E-Mail — 33% responded “Every day.”

Experience Requirements

Job Zone

Title
Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma.
Related Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.
Job Training
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.
Job Zone Examples
These occupations often involve using your knowledge and skills to help others. Examples include orderlies, counter and rental clerks, customer service representatives, security guards, upholsterers, tellers, and dental laboratory technicians.
SVP Range
(4.0 to < 6.0)

Training & Credentials

State training
Local training
Certifications
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Apprenticeship Opportunities

Example apprenticeship titles for this occupation:

  • Automated Access Systems Technician
  • Door-Closer Mechanic

Specific title(s) listed above are vetted by industry and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor for use in a Registered Apprenticeship Program.

Start your career and build your skillset. Visit Apprenticeship.gov to learn about opportunities related to this occupation.

Worker Requirements

Skills

  • Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
  • Quality Control Analysis — Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
  • Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
  • Installation — Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
  • Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
  • Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
  • Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
  • Complex Problem Solving — Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
  • Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
  • Instructing — Teaching others how to do something.
  • Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
  • Operations Monitoring — Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
  • Repairing — Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
  • Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people.
  • Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Knowledge

  • Mechanical — Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
  • Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
  • Building and Construction — Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
  • Engineering and Technology — Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

Education

How much education does a new hire need to perform a job in this occupation? Respondents said:

  • 71%
     
    High school diploma or equivalent required
  • 17%
     
    Less than high school diploma required
  • 12%
     
    Post-secondary certificate required

Worker Characteristics

Abilities

  • Arm-Hand Steadiness — The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
  • Manual Dexterity — The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
  • Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
  • Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
  • Trunk Strength — The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
  • Extent Flexibility — The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
  • Finger Dexterity — The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
  • Static Strength — The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
  • Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
  • Control Precision — The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
  • Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
  • Multilimb Coordination — The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
  • Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
  • Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
  • Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
  • Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
  • Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
  • Depth Perception — The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
  • Gross Body Coordination — The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion.
  • Gross Body Equilibrium — The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
  • Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
  • Visual Color Discrimination — The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
  • Visualization — The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
  • Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

Interests

Interest code: RC
Want to discover your interests? Take the O*NET Interest Profiler at My Next Move.
  • Realistic — Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services.
  • Conventional — Work involves following procedures and regulations to organize information or data, typically in a business setting. Conventional occupations are often associated with office work, accounting, mathematics/statistics, information technology, finance, or human resources.

Work Values

  • Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
  • Support — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
  • Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.

Work Styles

  • Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
  • Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
  • Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
  • Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
  • Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical.
  • Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
  • Concern for Others — Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
  • Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
  • Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
  • Self-Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
  • Innovation — Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
  • Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
  • Analytical Thinking — Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
  • Leadership — Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
  • Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
  • Social Orientation — Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.

Workforce Characteristics

Wages & Employment Trends

Median wages (2023)
$23.39 hourly, $48,650 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2023)
27,700 employees
Projected growth (2023-2033)
Much faster than average (9% or higher)
Projected job openings (2023-2033)
2,700
State trends
Top industries (2023)

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2023 wage data and 2023-2033 employment projections . “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2023-2033). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.

Job Openings on the Web

State job openings
Local job openings

More Information

Professional Associations

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National Associations