Which jobs involve move materials, equipment, or supplies?

19 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity, including Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment, Conveyor Operators and Tenders, Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining, Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters, Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers.

What kind of work is this?

It is physical, manual and inspection work. O*NET files it under the work activity "Performing General Physical Activities" (element 4.A.3.a.1).

Move materials, equipment, or supplies

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.

Key facts about this work activity
How automatable	Barely automatable
Kind of work	Physical, manual and inspection work
Jobs that do it	19 occupations
Tool categories that apply	None
O*NET activity	Performing General Physical Activities (4.A.3.a.1)

What this looks like on the job

Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 19 occupations that perform it.

Deliver and retrieve items throughout the library by hand or using pushcart.
Carry linens, towels, toilet items, and cleaning supplies, using wheeled carts.
Move materials over short distances, such as around a construction site, factory, or warehouse.
Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
Pry off loose material from roofs and move it into the paths of machines, using crowbars.
Carry springs to tops of doors, using ladders or scaffolding, and attach springs to tracks to install spring systems.
Move machinery and equipment, using hoists, dollies, rollers, and trucks.
Tilt, dip, and turn suspended loads to maneuver over, under, or around obstacles, using multi-point suspension techniques.
Transfer tools, parts, equipment, and supplies to and from work stations and other areas.
Perform errands for customers or employers, such as delivering or picking up mail and packages.
Lift, position, and remove barricades to open or close parking areas.
Distribute materials, supplies, and equipment to work stations, using lifts and trucks.
Move or reposition hoists, winches, loads and materials, manually or using equipment and machines such as trucks, cars, and hand trucks.
Inspect product load for accuracy and safely move it around the warehouse or facility to ensure timely and complete delivery.
Transport materials, equipment, or supplies to or from work areas, using carts or hoists.
Move freight, stock, or other materials to and from storage or production areas, loading docks, delivery vehicles, ships, or containers, by hand or using trucks, tractors, or other equipment.
Transfer materials and products to and from machinery and equipment, using industrial trucks or hand trucks.
Obtain, move, and sort products, materials, containers, and orders, 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.

Our pickBuy nothing

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.

Research an account firstGenerate a one-page account brief before every call so you spend the meeting on what matters, not what Google already knows.Sales · 8 steps Answer inbound leads in a minuteAcknowledge every form submission in under sixty seconds and ask one qualifying question while you sleep.Sales · 9 steps

Who does this work

19 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.

Work that goes with it

O*NET groups these under “Move materials, equipment, or supplies”. In practice they tend to be done by the same person, in the same sitting.

Related work activities
Activity	Jobs
Deliver items	21
Move products, materials, or equipment between work areas	19
Move construction or extraction materials to locations where they are needed	13
Transport biological or other medical materials	9
Move large objects using heavy equipment	8
Move equipment, supplies or food to required locations	6
Handle luggage or other possessions for patrons	5
Transport animals, crops, or equipment	4

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.