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Rail Car Repairers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul railroad rolling stock, mine cars, or mass transit rail cars.

Related: Automotive Service Technicians & Mechanics Bus & Truck Mechanics & Diesel Engine Specialists Engine & Other Machine Assemblers Maintenance Workers, Machinery Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics

Industries: Transportation & Storage Government

Summary
Details

Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.
Disassemble units such as water pumps, control valves, and compressors so that repairs can be made.
Replace defective wiring and insulation, and tighten electrical connections, using hand tools.
Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
Install and repair interior flooring, fixtures, walls, plumbing, steps, and platforms.
Examine car roofs for wear and damage, and repair defective sections, using roofing material, cement, nails, and waterproof paint.
Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.
Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.
Paint car exteriors, interiors, and fixtures.
Install and repair interior flooring, fixtures, walls, plumbing, steps, and platforms.
Repair window sash frames, attach weather stripping and channels to frames, and replace window glass, using hand tools.
Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
Perform scheduled maintenance, and clean units and components.
Measure diameters of axle wheel seats, using micrometers, and mark dimensions on axles so that wheels can be bored to specified dimensions.
Adjust repaired or replaced units as needed to ensure proper operation.
Examine car roofs for wear and damage, and repair defective sections, using roofing material, cement, nails, and waterproof paint.
Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.
Perform scheduled maintenance, and clean units and components.
Repair and maintain electrical and electronic controls for propulsion and braking systems.
Repair, fabricate, and install steel or wood fittings, using blueprints, shop sketches, and instruction manuals.
Test electrical systems of cars by operating systems and using testing equipment such as ammeters.
Repair car upholstery.
Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.
Test units for operability before and after repairs.
Align car sides for installation of car ends and crossties, using width gauges, turnbuckles, and wrenches.
Repair window sash frames, attach weather stripping and channels to frames, and replace window glass, using hand tools.
Repair window sash frames, attach weather stripping and channels to frames, and replace window glass, using hand tools.

Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.

Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.

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.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
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.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
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.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

More than 1 year on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

58870/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

28.3/hr

Currently Employed

290

Yearly Projected Openings

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Dependability
Adaptability/Flexibility
Attention to Detail
Independence
Innovation
Cooperation

Adjustable wrenches
Automatic lathe or chucking machine
Ball peen hammer
Bearing fitting tool kits
Blow torch
Brake tester
Claw hammer
Cleaning scrapers
Cold chisels
Combination wrenches
Diagonal cut pliers
Forklifts
Hoists
Hydraulic press frames
Jacks
Jib crane
Levels
Needlenose pliers
Personal computers
Pipe wrenches
Pry bars
Pullers
Railway lift table for engine and component
Railway or tramway maintenance or service vehicle
Railway rolling stock lifting jack
Safety glasses
Screwdrivers
Shielded metal arc welding or stick welding machine
Skid steer loaders
Socket attachments and accessories
Sockets
Squares
Tablet computers
Tape measures
Torque wrenches
Tractor mounted crane
Train braking systems
Two way radios
Wheel alignment equipment
Wheel balancing equipment

Accounting software
Compiler and decompiler software
Data base user interface and query software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Internet browser software
Inventory management software
Office suite software
Operating system software
Presentation software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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