Will “Heat Treat Technician” be Replaced By Robots? 🤔

91% Chance of Automation

“Heat Treat Technician” will probably be replaced by robots.

This job is ranked #556 out of #702. A higher ranking (i.e., a lower number) means the job is less likely to be replaced.

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Job Description

Set up, operate, or tend heating equipment, such as heat-treating furnaces, flame-hardening machines, induction machines, soaking pits, or vacuum equipment to temper, harden, anneal, or heat-treat metal or plastic objects.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 51-4191.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 39,010.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 18.00
Currently, there are 19,780 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Heat Treat Technician”

Repair, replace, and maintain furnace equipment as needed, using hand tools.
Set up and operate or tend machines, such as furnaces, baths, flame-hardening machines, and electronic induction machines, that harden, anneal, and heat-treat metal.
Mount workpieces in fixtures, on arbors, or between centers of machines.
Heat billets, bars, plates, rods, and other stock to specified temperatures preparatory to forging, rolling, or processing, using oil, gas, or electrical furnaces.
Position parts in plastic bags, and seal bags with irons.
Test parts for hardness, using hardness testing equipment, or by examining and feeling samples.
Determine flame temperatures, current frequencies, heating cycles, and induction heating coils needed, based on degree of hardness required and properties of stock to be treated.
Instruct new workers in machine operation.
Record times that parts are removed from furnaces to document that objects have attained specified temperatures for specified times.
Position stock in furnaces, using tongs, chain hoists, or pry bars.
Place completed workpieces on conveyors, using cold rods, tongs, or chain hoists, or signal crane operators to transport them to subsequent stations.
Clean oxides and scales from parts or fittings, using steam sprays or chemical and water baths.
Start conveyors and open furnace doors to load stock, or signal crane operators to uncover soaking pits and lower ingots into them.
Examine parts to ensure metal shades and colors conform to specifications, using knowledge of metal heat-treating.
Load parts into containers and place containers on conveyors to be inserted into furnaces, or insert parts into furnaces.
Reduce heat when processing is complete to allow parts to cool in furnaces or machinery.
Signal forklift operators to deposit or extract containers of parts into and from furnaces and quenching rinse tanks.
Adjust controls to maintain temperatures and heating times, using thermal instruments and charts, dials and gauges of furnaces, and color of stock in furnaces to make setting determinations.
Determine types and temperatures of baths and quenching media needed to attain specified part hardness, toughness, and ductility, using heat-treating charts and knowledge of methods, equipment, and metals.
Set up and operate die-quenching machines to prevent parts from warping.
Stamp heat-treatment identification marks on parts, using hammers and punches.
Move controls to light gas burners and to adjust gas and water flow and flame temperature.
Mount fixtures and industrial coils on machines, using hand tools.
Read production schedules and work orders to determine processing sequences, furnace temperatures, and heat cycle requirements for objects to be heat-treated.
Remove parts from furnaces after specified times, and air dry or cool parts in water, oil brine, or other baths.
Set and adjust speeds of reels and conveyors for prescribed time cycles to pass parts through continuous furnaces.

Related Technology & Tools

Quench presses
Order pickers
Electronic hand trucks
Fiberglass gloves
Tempering furnaces
Chain hoists
Suction hoods
Claw hammers
Soaking pits
Industrial furnace tongs
Automated salt bath furnaces
Atmosphere furnaces
Shaker hearth furnaces
Vacuum leak detectors
Exhaust gas collection systems
Shot blasters
Gas powered generators
Heat resistant face masks
Lubricant guns
Continuous hardening furnaces
Protective clothing
Wheeled forklifts
Bridge cranes
Conductivity testers
Shock freezers
Free-standing jib cranes
Personal computers
Annealing furnaces
Vacuum heat treating furnaces
Finger protection gloves
Power grinding tools
Pallet jacks
Steel hardness testers
Pallet riders
Mechanical vacuum pumps
Kevlar gloves
Flame-hardening machines
Digital thermocouples
Slotted screwdrivers
Sand blasters
Winch stackers
Open end hand wrenches
Steel hardness scopes
Pry bars
Batch type hardening furnaces
Induction hardening furnaces
Carbonitriding equipment

Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Outlook
Data entry software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software