Observe equipment in operation to detect potential problems
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 | 9 occupations |
| Tool categories that apply | None |
| O*NET activity | Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings (4.A.1.a.2) |
What this looks like on the job
Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 9 occupations that perform it.
- Listen to operating engines to detect and diagnose malfunctions, such as sticking or burned valves.
- Inspect, test, and listen to defective equipment to diagnose malfunctions, using test instruments such as handheld computers, motor analyzers, chassis charts, or pressure gauges.
- Start motors and monitor performance for signs of malfunctioning, such as smoke, excessive vibration, or misfiring.
- Listen to engines, examine vehicle frames, or confer with customers to determine nature and extent of malfunction or damage.
- Observe and examine appliances during operation to detect specific malfunctions such as loose parts or leaking fluid.
- Observe and test the operation of machinery or equipment to diagnose malfunctions, using voltmeters or other testing devices.
- Start machines and observe mechanical operation to determine efficiency and to detect problems.
- Tend and observe equipment and machinery to verify efficient and safe operation.
- Monitor trains as they go around curves to detect dragging equipment and smoking journal boxes.
- Idle motors and observe thermometers to determine the effectiveness of cooling systems.
- Observe and test operation of appliances following installation, and make any initial installation adjustments that are necessary.
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
9 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.
- Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians
- Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists
- Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers
- Home Appliance Repairers
- Industrial Machinery Mechanics
- Maintenance Workers, Machinery
- Motorboat Mechanics and Service Technicians
- Motorcycle Mechanics
- Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers
Work that goes with it
O*NET groups these under “Monitor equipment operation”. 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.