Machine Feeders and Offbearers

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Inspect materials and products for defects, and to ensure conformance to specifications.
• Push dual control buttons and move controls to start, stop, or adjust machinery and equipment.
• Load materials and products into machines and equipment, or onto conveyors, using hand tools and moving devices.
• Shovel or scoop materials into containers, machines, or equipment for processing, storage, or transport.
• Add chemicals, solutions, or ingredients to machines or equipment as required by the manufacturing process.
• Open and close gates of belt and pneumatic conveyors on machines that are fed directly from preceding machines.
• Remove materials and products from machines and equipment, and place them in boxes, trucks or conveyors, using hand tools and moving devices.
• Clean and maintain machinery, equipment, and work areas to ensure proper functioning and safe working conditions.
• Fasten, package, or stack materials and products, using hand tools and fastening equipment.
• Transfer materials and products to and from machinery and equipment, using industrial trucks or hand trucks.
• Inspect materials and products for defects, and to ensure conformance to specifications.
• Identify and mark materials, products, and samples, following instructions.
• Weigh or measure materials or products to ensure conformance to specifications.
• Record production and operational data, such as amount of materials processed.
• Weigh or measure materials or products to ensure conformance to specifications.
• Clean and maintain machinery, equipment, and work areas to ensure proper functioning and safe working conditions.

Skills

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

Abilities

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

Knowledge

• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• 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.
• 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.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• 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.
• 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.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• 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.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Education

Education

No formal educational credential

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Less than 1 month on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

43810/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

21.06/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

1,630

Yearly Projected Openings

240

Personality

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

• Dependability
• Attention to Detail
• Cooperation
• Concern for Others
• Independence
• Integrity

Tools

• Air conveyors
• Batching plants or feeders
• Belt conveyors
• Ear plugs
• Electronic actuators
• Floor or platform scales
• Forklifts
• Glue roller spreader
• Grinding machines
• Hand trucks or accessories
• Hoists
• Label applying machines
• Milling machines
• Pallet trucks
• Personal computers
• Power feeder
• Safety glasses
• Strapping tensioners or sealers
• Track cranes
• Winches
• Wrapping machinery

Technology

• Electronic mail software
• Industrial control software
• Office suite software
• Spreadsheet software
• Time accounting software