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Insulation Workers, Mechanical

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Apply insulating materials to pipes or ductwork, or other mechanical systems in order to help control and maintain temperature.

Related: Drywall & Ceiling Tile Installers Floor Layers Insulation Workers, Floor, Ceiling, & Wall Roofers Sheet Metal Workers

Industries: Construction

Summary
Details

Read blueprints and specifications to determine job requirements.
Prepare surfaces for insulation application by brushing or spreading on adhesives, cement, or asphalt, or by attaching metal pins to surfaces.
Apply, remove, and repair insulation on industrial equipment, pipes, ductwork, or other mechanical systems such as heat exchangers, tanks, and vessels, to help control noise and maintain temperatures.
Select appropriate insulation, such as fiberglass, Styrofoam, or cork, based on the heat retaining or excluding characteristics of the material.
Prepare surfaces for insulation application by brushing or spreading on adhesives, cement, or asphalt, or by attaching metal pins to surfaces.
Measure and cut insulation for covering surfaces, using tape measures, handsaws, knives, and scissors.
Measure and cut insulation for covering surfaces, using tape measures, handsaws, knives, and scissors.
Cover, seal, or finish insulated surfaces or access holes with plastic covers, canvas strips, sealants, tape, cement, or asphalt mastic.
Cover, seal, or finish insulated surfaces or access holes with plastic covers, canvas strips, sealants, tape, cement, or asphalt mastic.
Install sheet metal around insulated pipes with screws to protect the insulation from weather conditions or physical damage.
Fit insulation around obstructions, and shape insulating materials and protective coverings as required.
Determine the amounts and types of insulation needed, and methods of installation, based on factors such as location, surface shape, and equipment use.

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

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

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.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
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.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
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.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
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.
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.
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.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
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.
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.
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.
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.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Apprenticeship

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

81440/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

39.16/hr

Currently Employed

1,540

Yearly Projected Openings

140

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

Attention to Detail
Cooperation
Integrity
Dependability
Self Control
Initiative

Adjustable widemouth pliers
Air compressors
Blow torch
Caulking guns
Chalk lines
Conduit benders
Desktop computers
Drop cloths
Filtering machinery
Hacksaw
Hazardous material protective apparel
Hole saws
Ladders
Metal cutters
Notebook computers
Pipe bending tools
Pipe or tube cutter
Power buffers
Power drills
Power saws
Protective coveralls
Respirators
Safety glasses
Saws
Scaffolding
Screwdrivers
Sewing machines
Shears
Staple guns
Tape measures
Thickness measuring devices
Tool template sets
Trowels
Utility knives
Wire lug crimping tool

Analytical or scientific software
Data base user interface and query software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Project management software

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

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Statewide occupation search

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Insulation Workers, Mechanical

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