People Team AI Ask about a date

How exposed to AI is a Structural Iron and Steel Worker?

Of the 20 tasks O*NET lists for structural iron and steel workers, 0 could be done in half the time with a chat window today. 20 cannot be sped up at all. Here is which.

Exposure means published research judged an AI could halve the time a task takes, at the same quality. It does not mean the task stops needing a person. How to read this

Also called
FitterIron WorkerIronworkerSteel FabricatorSteel WorkerStructural Steel ErectorTower Hand
Reachable today Needs software built first Cannot be sped up
20
tasks rated for this occupation
5%
hold a degree, from a survey of 31
69k
people do this job in the US
60 of 61
least protected in construction

Every task, and what AI can do with it

These are O*NET's task statements for this occupation, exactly as written, sorted into the three bands by the ratings behind this report. Nothing has been reworded.

Cannot be sped up

20
  • Read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required
  • Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors
  • Bolt aligned structural steel members in position for permanent riveting, bolting, or welding into place
  • Fasten structural steel members to hoist cables, using chains, cables, or rope
  • Hoist steel beams, girders, or columns into place, using cranes or signaling hoisting equipment operators to lift and position structural steel members
  • Verify vertical and horizontal alignment of structural steel members, using plumb bobs, laser equipment, transits, or levels
  • Cut, bend, or weld steel pieces, using metal shears, torches, or welding equipment
  • Erect metal or precast concrete components for structures, such as buildings, bridges, dams, towers, storage tanks, fences, or highway guard rails
  • Force structural steel members into final positions, using turnbuckles, crowbars, jacks, or hand tools
  • Pull, push, or pry structural steel members into approximate positions for bolting into place
  • Unload and position prefabricated steel units for hoisting, as needed
  • Drive drift pins through rivet holes to align rivet holes in structural steel members with corresponding holes in previously placed members
  • Assemble hoisting equipment or rigging, such as cables, pulleys, or hooks, to move heavy equipment or materials
  • Fabricate metal parts, such as steel frames, columns, beams, or girders, according to blueprints or instructions from supervisors
  • Dismantle structures or equipment
  • Ride on girders or other structural steel members to position them, or use rope to guide them into position
  • Hold rivets while riveters use air hammers to form heads on rivets
  • Insert sealing strips, wiring, insulating material, ladders, flanges, gauges, or valves, depending on types of structures being assembled
  • Place blocks under reinforcing bars used to reinforce floors
  • Catch hot rivets in buckets and insert rivets in holes, using tongs
What this does not say

This is not a prediction about your job

Nobody surveyed an employer. Tasks are counted equally, so a percentage here is a share of the list rather than a share of your week. And the ratings were made in 2023, which makes every figure a floor rather than a ceiling.

It must never be used to select anyone for redundancy. The full limits are here.

Where to go next

This is the standard task list for the title. The useful next question is which of the tasks you actually do should go near AI, and which should not.

Sort your own tasks Read the full report

Exposure ratings from Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock, GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs, Science 384, 1306–1308, 2024, used under the MIT licence. This page includes information from the O*NET Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. People Team AI has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Employment figures from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.