Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators

People in this career often have these skills:

• Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

People in this career often know a lot about:

• Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

People in this career often have talent in:

• Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
• Depth Perception - The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
• Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.

• Rate Control - The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
• Reaction Time - The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.

People in this career often do these activities:

• Update job related knowledge or skills.
• Position construction or extraction equipment.
• Monitor construction operations.
• Operate equipment or vehicles to clear construction sites or move materials.
• Move construction or extraction materials to locations where they are needed.

• Locate equipment or materials in need of repair or replacement.
• Signal equipment operators to indicate proper equipment positioning.
• Maintain construction tools or equipment.
• Load or unload materials used in construction or extraction.
• Operate heavy-duty construction or installation equipment.
• Review blueprints or specifications to determine work requirements.
• Communicate with clients about products, procedures, and policies.
• Install equipment attachments or components.
• Select construction equipment.
• Remove debris or vegetation from work sites.
• Record operational or environmental data.
• Drive trucks or truck-mounted equipment.
• Assist skilled construction or extraction personnel.
• Operate road-surfacing equipment.
• Compact materials to create level bases.
• Test air quality at work sites.
• Estimate construction project costs.
• Operate pumps or compressors.

• Crane and Tower Operators

• Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining

• Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

• Pile Driver Operators

• Highway Maintenance Workers

• Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining

• Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door

• Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators

• Drilling and Boring Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

• Pipelayers