Maintain material moving equipment in good working condition
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 | 8 occupations |
| Tool categories that apply | None |
| O*NET activity | Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment (4.A.3.b.4) |
What this looks like on the job
Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 8 occupations that perform it.
- Lubricate, adjust, or repair machinery and replace parts, such as gears, bearings, or bucket teeth.
- Oil, lubricate, and adjust conveyors, crushers, and other equipment, using hand tools and lubricating equipment.
- Operate, maintain, or repair ship equipment, such as winches, cranes, derricks, or weapons system.
- Clean, sterilize, and maintain equipment, machinery, and work stations, using hand tools, shovels, brooms, chemicals, hoses, and lubricants.
- Clean, lubricate, and maintain mechanisms such as cables, pulleys, or grappling devices, making repairs, as necessary.
- Oil winch drums so that cables will wind smoothly.
- Clean, lubricate, and repair pumps and vessels, using hand tools and equipment.
- Test vessels for leaks, damage, and defects, and repair or replace defective parts as necessary.
- Replace hydraulic hoses, headlight bulbs, and gathering-arm teeth.
- Splice and repair ropes, wire cables, or cordage, using marlinespikes, wire cutters, twine, and hand tools.
- Repair or replace equipment components or parts such as blades, rolls, and pumps.
- Inspect and adjust crane mechanisms or lifting accessories to prevent malfunctions or damage.
- Repair, maintain, and adjust equipment, using hand tools.
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
8 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.
- Conveyor Operators and Tenders
- Crane and Tower Operators
- Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining
- Hoist and Winch Operators
- Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining
- Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers
- Sailors and Marine Oilers
- Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders
Work that goes with it
O*NET groups these under “Maintain vehicles in working condition”. 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.