DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA
51-4193 Plating and Coating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
Occupational Description:
Set up, operate, or tend plating or coating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces. Includes electrolytic processes.| Percentiles | |||||||||
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| Geography | Employment | Emp SE* | Mean | Mean SE* | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
| Minnesota | 1,200 | 168 | $16.52/hr | $1.32/hr | $9.50/hr | $11.92/hr | $14.78/hr | $19.57/hr | $26.12/hr |
| U S | 34,420 | 1,033 | $15.50/hr | $0.16/hr | $9.67/hr | $11.43/hr | $14.48/hr | $18.22/hr | $23.14/hr |
| *SE = Standard error, a measure of the statistical reliability of the estimate. | |||||||||
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Tasks for Plating and Coating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
- Moves controls to permit electrodeposition of metal on object or to regulate movement of wire strand to obtain specified thickness.
- Adjusts voltage and amperage, based on observations.
- Determines size and composition of object to be plated and amount of electrical current and time required, following work order.
- Suspends object, such as part or mold, from cathode rod (negative terminal) and immerses object in plating solution.
- Suspends stick or piece of plating metal from anode (positive terminal) and immerses metal in plating solution.
- Mixes chemical solutions, fills tanks and charges furnaces.
- Removes plated object from solution at periodic intervals and observes object to ensure conformance to specifications.
- Plates small objects, such as nuts or bolts, using motor-driven barrel.
- Immerses object in cleaning and rinsing baths to complete plating process.
- Examines object at end of process to determine thickness of metal deposit or measures thickness, using instruments, such as micrometers.
- Measures, marks, and masks areas excluded from plating.
- Grinds, polishes, or rinses object in water and dries object to maintain clean even surface.
- Measures or estimates amounts of electric current needed and time required to coat objects.
- Adjusts dials to regulate flow of current and voltage supplied to terminals to control plating process.
- Positions objects to be plated in frame or suspends them from positive or negative terminals of power supply.
- Removes object from plating solution after specified time or when desired thickness of metal is deposited on them.
- Mixes and tests plating solution to specified formula and turns valves to fill tank with solution.
- Monitors and measures thickness of electroplating on component part to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometer.
- Mixes forming acid solution, treats battery plates, and removes and rinses formed plates.
- Immerses objects to be coated or plated into cleaning solutions or sprays with conductive solution to prepare object for plating.
- Rinses coated object in cleansing liquids and dries with cloth, centrifugal driers, or by tumbling in sawdust filled barrels.
- Lubricates moving parts of plating conveyor and cleans plating and cleaning solution tanks.
- Measures and sets stops, rolls, brushes, and guides on automatic feeder and conveying equipment or coating machines, using micrometer, rule, and hand tools.
- Adjusts controls to set temperatures of coating substance, and adjusts speeds of machines and equipment.
- Attaches nozzle, positions gun, connects hoses, and threads wire to set up metal-spraying machine.
- Ignites gun and adjusts controls to regulate wire feed, air pressure, and flow of oxygen and fuel to operate metal-spraying machine.
- Installs gears and holding devices on conveyor equipment.
- Reads production schedule to determine setup of equipment and machines.
- Mixes alodize solution in tank of machine, according to formula, and verifies solution concentration, using gauge.
- Positions workpieces, starts operation of machines and conveyors, and feeds workpieces into machines to be coated.
- Adjusts controls to synchronize equipment speed with speed of coating or spraying machine.
- Operates hoist to place workpieces onto machine feed carriage or spindle.
- Inspects coated products for defects and specified color and coverage.
- Operates sandblasting equipment to roughen and clean surface of workpieces.
- Preheats workpieces in oven.
- Observes gauges and adjusts controls of machine to regulate functions, such as speed and temperature, according to specifications.
- Sprays coating in specified pattern according to instructions and inspects area for defects, such as air bubbles or uneven coverage.
- Presses or turns controls to activate and set equipment operation according to specifications.
- Positions and feeds materials on plate into machine, manually or automatically, for processing.
- Fills machine receptacle with coating material or solution.
- Immerses workpieces in coating solution for specified time.
- Mixes coating material or solution according to formula, or uses premixed solutions.
- Places materials on racks and transfers to oven to dry for a specified period of time.
- Removes excess material or impurities from objects, using airhose or grinding machine.
- Cuts metal or other materials, using shears or band saw.
- Measures or weighs materials, using ruler, calculator, and scale.
- Positions containers to receive parts, and loads or unloads materials in containers, using dolly or handtruck.
- Cleans and maintains equipment, using water hose and scraper.
- Solders equipment and visually examines for completeness.
- Cleans workpieces, using wire brush.
- Maintains production records.
- Replaces worn parts and adjusts equipment components, using hand tools.