Set up, operate, or tend woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, and wood nailing machines. May operate computer numerically controlled (CNC) equipment.
Work Activities
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Set up, program, operate, or tend computerized or manual woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, or wood-nailing machines.
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Examine finished workpieces for smoothness, shape, angle, depth-of-cut, or conformity to specifications and verify dimensions, visually and using hands, rules, calipers, templates, or gauges.
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Start machines, adjust controls, and make trial cuts to ensure that machinery is operating properly.
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Monitor operation of machines and make adjustments to correct problems and ensure conformance to specifications.
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Examine raw woodstock for defects and to ensure conformity to size and other specification standards.
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Adjust machine tables or cutting devices and set controls on machines to produce specified cuts or operations.
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Install and adjust blades, cutterheads, boring-bits, or sanding-belts, using hand tools and rules.
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Change alignment and adjustment of sanding, cutting, or boring machine guides to prevent defects in finished products, using hand tools.
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Determine product specifications and materials, work methods, and machine setup requirements, according to blueprints, oral or written instructions, drawings, or work orders.
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Feed stock through feed mechanisms or conveyors into planing, shaping, boring, mortising, or sanding machines to produce desired components.
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Select knives, saws, blades, cutter heads, cams, bits, or belts, according to workpiece, machine functions, or product specifications.
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Push or hold workpieces against, under, or through cutting, boring, or shaping mechanisms.
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Remove and replace worn parts, bits, belts, sandpaper, or shaping tools.
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Secure woodstock against a guide or in a holding device, place woodstock on a conveyor, or dump woodstock in a hopper to feed woodstock into machines.
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Inspect and mark completed workpieces and stack them on pallets, in boxes, or on conveyors so that they can be moved to the next workstation.
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Inspect pulleys, drive belts, guards, or fences on machines to ensure that machines will operate safely.
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Clean or maintain products, machines, or work areas.
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Attach and adjust guides, stops, clamps, chucks, or feed mechanisms, using hand tools.
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Trim wood parts according to specifications, using planes, chisels, or wood files or sanders.
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Unclamp workpieces and remove them from machines.
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Start machines and move levers to engage hydraulic lifts that press woodstocks into desired forms and disengage lifts after appropriate drying times.
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Operate gluing machines to glue pieces of wood together, or to press and affix wood veneer to wood surfaces.
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Set up, program, or control computer-aided design (CAD) or computer numerical control (CNC) machines.
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Grease or oil woodworking machines.
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Control hoists to remove parts or products from work stations.
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Sharpen knives, bits, or other cutting or shaping tools.
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Operations Monitoring
Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
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Operation and Control
Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
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Quality Control Analysis
Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
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Near Vision
The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
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Reaction Time
The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
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Control Precision
The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
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Mechanical
Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
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Production and Processing
Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
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Mathematics
Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Education High school diploma or equivalent
- Work Experience No work experience
- Training 1 to 12 months on-the-job training
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Looking for technical training programs?
Check out these programs:
Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
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Attention to Detail
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Dependability
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Adaptability/Flexibility
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Independence
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Integrity
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Cooperation
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Planing machines
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Planes
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Cutting machines
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Calipers
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Boring machines
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Word processing software
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Operating system software
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Graphics or photo imaging software
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Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
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Computer aided design CAD software