Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Set up, operate, or tend machines to extrude or draw thermoplastic or metal materials into tubes, rods, hoses, wire, bars, or structural shapes.

What you'd actually do

• Measure and examine extruded products to locate defects and to check for conformance to specifications, adjusting controls as necessary to alter products.
• Determine setup procedures and select machine dies and parts, according to specifications.
• Start machines and set controls to regulate vacuum, air pressure, sizing rings, and temperature, and to synchronize speed of extrusion.
• Reel extruded products into rolls of specified lengths and weights.
• Install dies, machine screws, and sizing rings on machines that extrude thermoplastic or metal materials.
• Change dies on extruding machines, according to production line changes.

How you get there

Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

The feel of the work

Much of the day is spent working solo; time pressure is a real part of the job. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)

Working for yourself

About 0% of extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic are self-employed.

Who it tends to fit

This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.

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Quick questions

How much does a extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic make?

The median pay is $22.94 per hour — roughly $47,500 a year, with the real range running from about $17.65/hr (10th percentile) to $30.63/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Do you need a degree to be a extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic?

The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).

What does a extruding and drawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic actually do all day?

Measure and examine extruded products to locate defects and to check for conformance to specifications, adjusting controls as necessary to alter products. Determine setup procedures and select machine dies and parts, according to specifications. Start machines and set controls to regulate vacuum, air pressure, sizing rings, and temperature, and to synchronize speed of extrusion.