Inspect mechanical equipment to locate damage, defects, or wear
Little of this can be handed to software today.
This happens in the physical world, so software agents do not touch it. Automation here means robotics and machinery, which is a different market from the one mapped on this site, on a much slower clock.
| How automatable | Barely automatable |
|---|---|
| Kind of work | Physical, manual and inspection work |
| Jobs that do it | 16 occupations |
| Tool categories that apply | None |
| O*NET activity | Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials (4.A.1.b.2) |
What this looks like on the job
Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 16 occupations that perform it.
- Inspect and test equipment to locate damage or worn parts and diagnose malfunctions, or read work orders or schematic drawings to determine required repairs.
- Measure the tension of control cables.
- Examine and listen to equipment, read inspection reports, and confer with customers to locate and diagnose malfunctions.
- Operate and inspect machines or heavy equipment to diagnose defects.
- Examine valves or mechanical control device parts for defects, dents, or loose attachments, and mark malfunctioning areas of defective units.
- Examine parts for defects, such as breakage or excessive wear.
- Inspect or test damaged machine parts, and mark defective areas or advise supervisors of repair needs.
- Examine cameras, equipment, processed film, or laboratory reports to diagnose malfunction, using work aids and specifications.
- Inspect, test, or troubleshoot malfunctioning medical or related equipment, following manufacturers' specifications and using test and analysis instruments.
- Inspect instruments to locate defects, and to determine their value or the level of restoration required.
- Disassemble timepieces and inspect them for defective, worn, misaligned, or rusty parts, using loupes.
- Inspect, operate, or test machinery or equipment to diagnose machine malfunctions.
- Inspect or repair fiberglass turbine blades.
- Inspect machines and meters to determine causes of malfunctions and fix minor problems such as jammed bills or stuck products.
- Install, inspect, maintain, and repair various railroad service equipment on the road or in the shop, including railroad signal systems.
- Examine and test machinery, equipment, components, and parts for defects to ensure proper functioning.
- Inspect switch-controlling mechanisms on trolley wires and in track beds, using hand tools and test equipment.
What we would actually use
Nothing in our landscape addresses this work. That is the honest answer rather than a padded list: this activity needs a person present, or a machine rather than a software agent.
Nothing on this site applies. Automation here is robotics and machinery, a different market on a much slower clock, and no software subscription moves it.
Chosen for the cheapest thing that does the job, not the best funded. Nothing on this site is sponsored, and the full landscape is there when you want to disagree with us.
How people actually do it
No workflow names this activity yet, but these automate the same kind of work, with the prompts to paste and what to keep for yourself.
Who does this work
16 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.
- Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians
- Camera and Photographic Equipment Repairers
- Coin, Vending, and Amusement Machine Servicers and Repairers
- Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door
- Electric Motor, Power Tool, and Related Repairers
- Farm Equipment Mechanics and Service Technicians
- Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers
- Industrial Machinery Mechanics
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General
- Maintenance Workers, Machinery
- Medical Equipment Repairers
- Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines
- Musical Instrument Repairers and Tuners
- Signal and Track Switch Repairers
- Watch and Clock Repairers
- Wind Turbine Service Technicians
Work that goes with it
O*NET groups these under “Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment”. In practice they tend to be done by the same person, in the same sitting.
Method. The activity, its taxonomy placement and the occupations that perform it come straight from the public-domain O*NET 30.3 database. The automatability band is ours: we map each of O*NET’s 41 generalized work activities to how much of its output current software can produce, assuming a person still reviews and owns the result. It is a coarse three-way judgment on purpose. A precise-looking percentage here would be invented.