Occupation Profile for Plating and Coating Machine Operators
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.
Signficant Points
- Manufacturing industries employ more than 90 percent of workers.
- A few weeks of on-the-job training is sufficient for most workers to learn basic machine operations, but a year or more is required to become a highly skilled operator or setter.
- Overall employment of machine setters, operators, and tenders is projected to decline rapidly over the 2006-16 period as a result of productivity improvements and competition for jobs from abroad.
- Those who can operate multiple machines will have the best opportunities for advancement and for gaining jobs with more long-term potential.