Boilermakers
Construction and Extraction Occupations- O*NET-SOC code
- 47-2011.00
Construct, assemble, maintain, and repair stationary steam boilers and boiler house auxiliaries. Align structures or plate sections to assemble boiler frame tanks or vats, following blueprints. Work involves use of hand and power tools, plumb bobs, levels, wedges, dogs, or turnbuckles. Assist in testing assembled vessels. Direct cleaning of boilers and boiler furnaces. Inspect and repair boiler fittings, such as safety valves, regulators, automatic-control mechanisms, water columns, and auxiliary machines.
- Data source: BLSPublished: 2026-08
Low· relative
LowFour relative bandsVery highGroup-level value
Scale, basis and source
Four relative bands (Low / Moderate / High / Very high)
831 detailed occupations in the BLS Employment Projections table. Assigned per National Employment Matrix (NEM) code, so occupations sharing a NEM code carry the same band
- Data source: AnthropicPublished: 2026-03
0.000
0.000Range of values carried here0.745Scale, basis and source
Observed exposure index, 0–1 as published
Mapped onto O*NET tasks
Published per SOC 2018 occupation; every O*NET occupation with the same SOC 2018 code carries this value
- Data source: ILOPublished: 2025
0.21
0.09Range of values carried here0.70Group-level value
Scale, basis and source
Generative AI exposure index, 0–1 as published
Published per ISCO-08 unit group. Linked to this occupation, wholly or in part, by applying U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (ISCO-08 to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to 2018 SOC) as published
What kind of figure this source publishes
The BLS category is a relative rank, not an absolute level, and it is not a first-hand measurement: it groups an occupation's percentile ranks across several published studies into four bands. It is not an employment or wage forecast, not a probability of adoption, and it does not separate automation from augmentation.
Task-level exposure
Exposed tasks only17 rated tasks · 1 tasks with β ≥ 0.5 (5.9%)
β = direct exposure (E1) + 0.5 × exposure when tools are available (E2), per the source repository's definition.
- Source unit: O*NET 27.2 tasks → O*NET 31.0 occupation code
- All rated tasks are in the O*NET 31.0 task list.
- Source
- OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" exposure rubric
- Release
- gh-main-0471612
- License
- MIT License, Copyright (c) 2024 OpenAI
Values in this tab are predicted labels, not observations. Eloundou et al. (2023) published two rating regimes — human raters and GPT-4 — and the β shown here is derived from the GPT-4 rater basis alone; the same task can take a different value under the other regime. The unit and the meaning differ from the observed shares (%) in the other tabs, so do not place them on the same axis.
| Task (O*NET 27.2) | βE1 + 0.5 × E2 |
|---|---|
Study blueprints to determine locations, relationships, or dimensions of parts.O*NET Task ID 11446 | 0.5 |
Examine boilers, pressure vessels, tanks, or vats to locate defects, such as leaks, weak spots, or defective sections, so that they can be repaired.O*NET Task ID 11438 | 0.0 |
Bolt or arc weld pressure vessel structures and parts together, using wrenches or welding equipment.O*NET Task ID 11439 | 0.0 |
Inspect assembled vessels or individual components, such as tubes, fittings, valves, controls, or auxiliary mechanisms, to locate any defects.O*NET Task ID 11440 | 0.0 |
Repair or replace defective pressure vessel parts, such as safety valves or regulators, using torches, jacks, caulking hammers, power saws, threading dies, welding equipment, or metalworking machinery.O*NET Task ID 11441 | 0.0 |
Attach rigging and signal crane or hoist operators to lift heavy frame and plate sections or other parts into place.O*NET Task ID 11442 | 0.0 |
Bell, bead with power hammers, or weld pressure vessel tube ends to ensure leakproof joints.O*NET Task ID 11443 | 0.0 |
Lay out plate, sheet steel, or other heavy metal and locate and mark bending and cutting lines, using protractors, compasses, and drawing instruments or templates.O*NET Task ID 11444 | 0.0 |
Install manholes, handholes, taps, tubes, valves, gauges, or feedwater connections in drums of water tube boilers, using hand tools.O*NET Task ID 11445 | 0.0 |
Straighten or reshape bent pressure vessel plates or structure parts, using hammers, jacks, or torches.O*NET Task ID 11447 | 0.0 |
Shape seams, joints, or irregular edges of pressure vessel sections or structural parts to attain specified fit of parts, using cutting torches, hammers, files, or metalworking machines.O*NET Task ID 11448 | 0.0 |
Position, align, and secure structural parts or related assemblies to boiler frames, tanks, or vats of pressure vessels, following blueprints.O*NET Task ID 11449 | 0.0 |
Locate and mark reference points for columns or plates on boiler foundations, following blueprints and using straightedges, squares, transits, or measuring instruments.O*NET Task ID 11450 | 0.0 |
Shape or fabricate parts, such as stacks, uptakes, or chutes, to adapt pressure vessels, heat exchangers, or piping to premises, using heavy-metalworking machines such as brakes, rolls, or drill presses.O*NET Task ID 11451 | 0.0 |
Clean pressure vessel equipment, using scrapers, wire brushes, and cleaning solvents.O*NET Task ID 11452 | 0.0 |
Install refractory bricks or other heat-resistant materials in fireboxes of pressure vessels.O*NET Task ID 11453 | 0.0 |
Assemble large vessels in an on-site fabrication shop prior to installation to ensure proper fit.O*NET Task ID 11454 | 0.0 |
β = E1 + 0.5 × E2 · E1 = tasks where direct LLM access alone cuts time by at least 50%, E2 = tasks where software built on top of an LLM cuts time by at least 50%. Values take only 0 / 0.5 / 1.0.
Data sources & licenses — O*NET®, Eloundou et al. (2023): see full notices on the Credits page
All O*NET 31.0 task statements (18)
All O*NET 31.0 task statements for this occupation (English, as published; task type core or supplemental). Exposure values are not listed here; they are in the table above, next to each task statement as worded in the O*NET version each source used.
| Task (O*NET 31.0) | Type |
|---|---|
| Examine boilers, pressure vessels, tanks, or vats to locate defects, such as leaks, weak spots, or defective sections, so that they can be repaired. | Core |
| Bolt or arc weld pressure vessel structures and parts together, using wrenches or welding equipment. | Core |
| Inspect assembled vessels or individual components, such as tubes, fittings, valves, controls, or auxiliary mechanisms, to locate any defects. | Core |
| Repair or replace defective pressure vessel parts, such as safety valves or regulators, using torches, jacks, caulking hammers, power saws, threading dies, welding equipment, or metalworking machinery. | Core |
| Attach rigging and signal crane or hoist operators to lift heavy frame and plate sections or other parts into place. | Core |
| Bell, bead with power hammers, or weld pressure vessel tube ends to ensure leakproof joints. | Core |
| Lay out plate, sheet steel, or other heavy metal and locate and mark bending and cutting lines, using protractors, compasses, and drawing instruments or templates. | Core |
| Install manholes, handholes, taps, tubes, valves, gauges, or feedwater connections in drums of water tube boilers, using hand tools. | Core |
| Study blueprints to determine locations, relationships, or dimensions of parts. | Core |
| Straighten or reshape bent pressure vessel plates or structure parts, using hammers, jacks, or torches. | Core |
| Shape seams, joints, or irregular edges of pressure vessel sections or structural parts to attain specified fit of parts, using cutting torches, hammers, files, or metalworking machines. | Core |
| Position, align, and secure structural parts or related assemblies to boiler frames, tanks, or vats of pressure vessels, following blueprints. | Core |
| Locate and mark reference points for columns or plates on boiler foundations, following blueprints and using straightedges, squares, transits, or measuring instruments. | Core |
| Shape or fabricate parts, such as stacks, uptakes, or chutes, to adapt pressure vessels, heat exchangers, or piping to premises, using heavy-metalworking machines such as brakes, rolls, or drill presses. | Core |
| Clean pressure vessel equipment, using scrapers, wire brushes, and cleaning solvents. | Core |
| Conduct pressure tests on vessels, such as boilers. | Core |
| Install refractory bricks or other heat-resistant materials in fireboxes of pressure vessels. | Supplemental |
| Assemble large vessels in an on-site fabrication shop prior to installation to ensure proper fit. | Supplemental |
0.88/ 3· Robot exposure index
Scale, basis and source
Each physical task is graded 0–3 by the setting in which robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated could do it (0 none · 1 purpose-built robot settings such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line · 2 structured facilities such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port · 3 unstructured settings such as a private home or a construction site), and the grades are averaged by share of working time
Physical tasks among this occupation's O*NET 29.3 tasks
Anthropic estimated the grades and time shares with Claude Opus 5 using web search, as of 2026.
The robot exposure index is a different measure from the AI exposure figures on this site and cannot be added to or compared with them. It does not measure actual adoption or cost, and 0 also covers occupations with no physical tasks.
Tier of each physical task
Robot environment tiers (E0–E3)
E0 noneDetails
Rated not doable by robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated, even in a purpose-built setting
E1 purpose-built robot settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting built around the machine, such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line
E2 structured facilitiesDetails
Rated doable in a human work facility that an institution keeps to a working standard, such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port
E3 unstructured settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting that no institution keeps to a working standard, such as a private home or a construction site
Only tasks classified as physical are listed; other tasks have no tier in the source.
| Task (O*NET 29.3) | Robot environment tier |
|---|---|
| Examine boilers, pressure vessels, tanks, or vats to locate defects, such as leaks, weak spots, or defective sections, so that they can be repaired. | E2 structured facilities |
| Bolt or arc weld pressure vessel structures and parts together, using wrenches or welding equipment. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Inspect assembled vessels or individual components, such as tubes, fittings, valves, controls, or auxiliary mechanisms, to locate any defects. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Repair or replace defective pressure vessel parts, such as safety valves or regulators, using torches, jacks, caulking hammers, power saws, threading dies, welding equipment, or metalworking machinery. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Attach rigging and signal crane or hoist operators to lift heavy frame and plate sections or other parts into place. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Lay out plate, sheet steel, or other heavy metal and locate and mark bending and cutting lines, using protractors, compasses, and drawing instruments or templates. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Install manholes, handholes, taps, tubes, valves, gauges, or feedwater connections in drums of water tube boilers, using hand tools. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Straighten or reshape bent pressure vessel plates or structure parts, using hammers, jacks, or torches. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Shape seams, joints, or irregular edges of pressure vessel sections or structural parts to attain specified fit of parts, using cutting torches, hammers, files, or metalworking machines. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Position, align, and secure structural parts or related assemblies to boiler frames, tanks, or vats of pressure vessels, following blueprints. | E0 none |
| Locate and mark reference points for columns or plates on boiler foundations, following blueprints and using straightedges, squares, transits, or measuring instruments. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Shape or fabricate parts, such as stacks, uptakes, or chutes, to adapt pressure vessels, heat exchangers, or piping to premises, using heavy-metalworking machines such as brakes, rolls, or drill presses. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Clean pressure vessel equipment, using scrapers, wire brushes, and cleaning solvents. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Install refractory bricks or other heat-resistant materials in fireboxes of pressure vessels. | E0 none |
| Assemble large vessels in an on-site fabrication shop prior to installation to ensure proper fit. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Bell, bead with power hammers, or weld pressure vessel tube ends to ensure leakproof joints. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
Occupation information
Employment outlook (BLS)
- Employment, 2025
- 10K
- Projected employment, 2035
- 10K
- Change (2025–35)
- -1.8%
- Median annual wage, 2025
- $76,410
- Typical education needed for entry
- High school diploma or equivalent
Korea classification links (KSCO)
Links from the current release of the Korea Occupation Direct Crosswalk v1.1, made by AI Changing Work. Relation values are read from the O*NET-SOC occupation side.
| KSCO code | KSCO title | Relation | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 75369 | 그 외 보일러 설치 및 정비원 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 84160 | 제관기 조작원 | Overlapping, not the same | confirmed |
| 74040 | 제관원 | Related, not a match | confirmed |
Relation and status definitions(kr-direct v1.1)
ILO occupational description
AI Changing Work links the ISCO-08 unit groups below to this occupation by applying the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (2018 SOC to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to ISCO-08) as published, without case-by-case selection; each link may be whole or partial.
- ISCO-08 7213Sheet Metal Workers
The definition, tasks and examples below are the ILO's description of that unit group, not of this occupation.
Sheet metal workers make, install and repair articles and parts of articles made out of sheet metal such as sheet steel, copper, tin, brass, aluminium, zinc or galvanised iron.
Tasks
- (a) marking sheet metal for cutting and shaping;
- (b) making and repairing household utensils and other articles in tin, copper and light alloys, or ornamental articles and fittings;
- (c) making and repairing boilers, tanks, vats and similar containers;
- (d) installing and repairing sheet-metal parts of vehicles and aircraft;
- (e) converting blueprints into shop drawings to be followed in the construction and assembly of sheet metal products;
- (f) determining project requirements, including scope, assembly sequences, and required methods and materials, according to blueprints, drawings, and written or verbal instructions;
- (g) inspecting product quality and installation to ensure conformance to specifications.
Example occupations
Boilersmith · Coppersmith · Panel beater · Tinsmith
Sources: ILO ISCO-08 — details: Credits
ESCO occupational vocabulary
Each entry below is matched to this occupation in the published ESCO-O*NET Crosswalk (version 1, 2022). The match types are that crosswalk's; the wording is AI Changing Work's.
- boilermakerESCO 7213.1Same scope
Boilermakers operate a variety of equipment and machinery to create, repipe and retube hot water and steam boilers, producing them in all steps of the production process. They cut, gouge and shape the metal sheets and tubes for the boilers to size, using oxy-acetylene gas torches, assemble them by shielded metal arc welding, gas metal arc welding or gas tungsten arc welding, and finish them by the approprate machine tools, power tools and coating.
- container equipment assemblerESCO 7213.2This occupation is narrower
Container equipment assemblers manufacture containers such as boilers or pressure vessels. They read blueprints and technical drawings to assemble parts and to build piping and fittings.
- boiler operatorESCO 8182.1Overlapping, not the same
Boiler operators maintain heating systems such as low-pressure boilers, high-pressure boilers and power boilers. They work mostly in large buildings like power plants or boiler rooms and ensure a safe and environmentally friendly operation of boiler systems.
Source: European Commission, DG EMPL — ESCO API 2026-08-08 (bridge v1.2.1)
License: CC BY 4.0 (EU Reuse Notice)
ESCO reuse terms and the modification notice are in Credits.
France classification links (ROME)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and ROME 4.0 job profiles, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side. Links marked “provisional” were adopted on the judgments of two judges from the same model family (Claude) alone, or by an operator rule applied to their judgments, so they rest on weaker evidence than confirmed links.
| ROME code | ROME title (French) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| H2902 | Chaudronnier / Chaudronnière | This occupation is narrowerprovisional |
| H2914 | Tuyauteur / Tuyauteuse | Related, not a matchprovisional |
| I1308 | Chauffagiste | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: France Travail — Répertoire Opérationnel des Métiers et des Emplois (ROME 4.0), version 61, last updated 15 June 2026 (https://www.data.gouv.fr/datasets/repertoire-operationnel-des-metiers-et-des-emplois-rome). Licence Ouverte 2.0.
ROME codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET-SOC occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a France Travail correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: fr-direct v1)
Spain classification links (CNO-11)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and CNO-11 occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| CNO-11 code | CNO-11 title (Spanish) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 7313 | Chapistas y caldereros | This occupation is narrower |
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), National Classification of Occupations 2011 (CNO-11, Royal Decree 1591/2010) — www.ine.es · Licensed CC BY 4.0. CNO-11 codes and Spanish titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not an INE correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: es-direct v1)
Germany classification links (KldB)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and KldB occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| KldB code | KldB title (German) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 34342 | Berufe im Anlagen-, Behälter- und Apparatebau - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten | This occupation is narrower |
| 24422 | Berufe in der Schweiß- und Verbindungstechnik - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten | Related, not a match |
| 34343 | Berufe im Anlagen-, Behälter- und Apparatebau - komplexe Spezialistentätigkeiten | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: © Statistik der Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Klassifikation der Berufe 2010 – überarbeitete Fassung 2020, https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. KldB codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own mapping (eigene Zuordnung) and are not a Bundesagentur für Arbeit correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: de-direct v1)
Japan classification links (JSCO)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and JSCO occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| JSCO code | JSCO title (Japanese) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 525 | 鉄工，製缶従事者 | This occupation is narrowerprovisional |
| 551 | はん用・生産用・業務用機械器具整備・修理従事者 | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), Japan Standard Occupational Classification (Dec. 2009, MIC Notification No. 555). JSCO codes and Japanese titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a MIC correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: jp-direct v1)
Sources, licenses and AI Changing Work's modification and translation notices for this page: Credits & sources