Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, & Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, & Tenders, Metal & Plastic

Also Called:

Centerless Grinder Operator,

Grinder,

Grinder Operator,

Grinding Machine Operator

What they do: Set up, operate, or tend grinding and related tools that remove excess material or burrs from surfaces, sharpen edges or corners, or buff, hone, or polish metal or plastic work pieces.

Advanced Manufacturing icon

Advanced Manufacturing

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Inspect or measure finished workpieces to determine conformance to specifications, using measuring instruments, such as gauges or micrometers.
  • Measure workpieces and lay out work, using precision measuring devices.
  • Observe machine operations to detect any problems, making necessary adjustments to correct problems.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Cautiousness

Interests

Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.

Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz

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Realistic

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Conventional

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Investigative

Abilities

Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.

Hand and Finger Use

  • Hold or move items with your hands

  • Keep your arm or hand steady

Controlled Movement

  • Quickly change the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat

  • Use your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down

Visual Understanding

  • Quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things

  • See hidden patterns

Reaction Time and Speed

  • Quickly move your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command

Skills

People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.

Basic Skills

  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements

  • Reading work related information

Problem Solving

  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

Does this sound like something you'd like to do?

1. Do some research

  • Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
  • Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
  • Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career

2. Plan your next move

  • Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
  • Visit Idaho Launch
  • Search for available Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, & Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, & Tenders, Metal & Plastic jobs on Idaho Works

Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop