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How exposed to AI is a Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing?

Of the 26 tasks O*NET lists for woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing, 0 could be done in half the time with a chat window today. 24 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
Boring Machine OperatorCabinet MakerKnot Saw OperatorLathe OperatorMachine OperatorMolder OperatorRouter OperatorSanderSander Operator
Reachable today Needs software built first Cannot be sped up
26
tasks rated for this occupation
2%
hold a degree, from a survey of 29
67k
people do this job in the US
74 of 107
least protected in production

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.

Only with software built on top

2
  • Determine product specifications and materials, work methods, and machine setup requirements, according to blueprints, oral or written instructions, drawings, or work orders
  • Set up, program, or control computer-aided design (CAD) or computer numerical control (CNC) machines

Cannot be sped up

24
  • Set up, program, operate, or tend computerized or manual woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, or wood-nailing machines
  • Examine finished workpieces for smoothness, shape, angle, depth-of-cut, or conformity to specifications and verify dimensions, visually and using hands, rules, calipers, templates, or gauges
  • Start machines, adjust controls, and make trial cuts to ensure that machinery is operating properly
  • Monitor operation of machines and make adjustments to correct problems and ensure conformance to specifications
  • Examine raw woodstock for defects and to ensure conformity to size and other specification standards
  • Adjust machine tables or cutting devices and set controls on machines to produce specified cuts or operations
  • Install and adjust blades, cutterheads, boring-bits, or sanding-belts, using hand tools and rules
  • Change alignment and adjustment of sanding, cutting, or boring machine guides to prevent defects in finished products, using hand tools
  • Feed stock through feed mechanisms or conveyors into planing, shaping, boring, mortising, or sanding machines to produce desired components
  • Push or hold workpieces against, under, or through cutting, boring, or shaping mechanisms
  • Select knives, saws, blades, cutter heads, cams, bits, or belts, according to workpiece, machine functions, or product specifications
  • Remove and replace worn parts, bits, belts, sandpaper, or shaping tools
  • Secure woodstock against a guide or in a holding device, place woodstock on a conveyor, or dump woodstock in a hopper to feed woodstock into machines
  • Inspect and mark completed workpieces and stack them on pallets, in boxes, or on conveyors so that they can be moved to the next workstation
  • Inspect pulleys, drive belts, guards, or fences on machines to ensure that machines will operate safely
  • Clean or maintain products, machines, or work areas
  • Attach and adjust guides, stops, clamps, chucks, or feed mechanisms, using hand tools
  • Trim wood parts according to specifications, using planes, chisels, or wood files or sanders
  • Grease or oil woodworking machines
  • Unclamp workpieces and remove them from machines
  • Start machines and move levers to engage hydraulic lifts that press woodstocks into desired forms and disengage lifts after appropriate drying times
  • Operate gluing machines to glue pieces of wood together, or to press and affix wood veneer to wood surfaces
  • Control hoists to remove parts or products from work stations
  • Sharpen knives, bits, or other cutting or shaping tools
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.