Repair electrical circuits or wiring
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 | 11 occupations |
| Tool categories that apply | None |
| O*NET activity | Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment (4.A.3.b.5) |
What this looks like on the job
Not our paraphrase. These are real task statements recorded against this activity, spread across the 11 occupations that perform it.
- Repair circuits, wiring, and soldering, using soldering irons and hand tools to install parts and adjust connections.
- Locate and remove or repair circuit defects such as blown fuses or malfunctioning transistors.
- Open and close switches to isolate defective relays, performing adjustments or repairs.
- Test and repair circuits and sensors, following wiring and system specifications.
- Adjust generators and replace faulty wiring, using hand tools and soldering irons.
- Locate and repair frayed wiring, broken connections, or incorrect wiring, using ohmmeters, soldering irons, tape, or hand tools.
- Trace and tag meters or house lines.
- Install, maintain, and repair electrical distribution and transmission systems, including conduits, cables, wires, and related equipment, such as transformers, circuit breakers, and switches.
- Assemble, install, or repair wiring, electrical or electronic components, pipe systems, plumbing, machinery, or equipment.
- Locate and repair frayed wiring, broken connections, or incorrect wiring, using ohmmeters, soldering irons, tape, and hand tools.
- Inspect electrical units of railroad grade crossing gates and repair loose bolts and defective electrical connections and parts.
- Adjust, repair, or replace defective wiring and relays in ignition, lighting, air-conditioning, and safety control systems, using electrician's 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
11 occupations in the O*NET database perform this activity. Each one has a full breakdown of its other tasks.
- Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door
- Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment
- Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay
- Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers
- Maintenance and Repair Workers, General
- Manufactured Building and Mobile Home Installers
- Motorboat Mechanics and Service Technicians
- Radio, Cellular, and Tower Equipment Installers and Repairers
- Recreational Vehicle Service Technicians
- Security and Fire Alarm Systems Installers
- Signal and Track Switch Repairers
Work that goes with it
O*NET groups these under “Repair electrical or electronic equipment”. In practice they tend to be done by the same person, in the same sitting.
| Activity | Jobs |
|---|---|
| Repair electronic equipment | 13 |
| Repair electrical components | 9 |
| Repair electrical 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.