Blaster vs explosives engineer

The differences between blasters and explosives engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a blaster and an explosives engineer. Additionally, an explosives engineer has an average salary of $56,441, which is higher than the $41,789 average annual salary of a blaster.

The top three skills for a blaster include CDL, hand tools and ATF. The most important skills for an explosives engineer are safety guidelines, ATF, and .

Blaster vs explosives engineer overview

	Blaster	Explosives Engineer
Yearly salary	$41,789	$56,441
Hourly rate	$20.09	$27.14
Growth rate	1%	4%
Number of jobs	219	518
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Average age	28	28
Years of experience	4	4

Blaster vs explosives engineer salary

Blasters and explosives engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Blaster	Explosives Engineer
Average salary	$41,789	$56,441
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $67,000	Between $37,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	Newport News, VA	-
Highest paying state	Virginia	-
Best paying company	Siemens	-
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	-

Differences between blaster and explosives engineer education

There are a few differences between a blaster and an explosives engineer in terms of educational background:

	Blaster	Explosives Engineer
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Most common major	Business	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	-	-

Blaster vs explosives engineer demographics

Here are the differences between blasters' and explosives engineers' demographics:

	Blaster	Explosives Engineer
Average age	28	28
Gender ratio	Male, 95.3% Female, 4.7%	Male, 95.7% Female, 4.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 22.2% Asian, 1.1% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, -0.8%	Black or African American, 11.3% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.2% Asian, 0.9% White, 60.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	7%	7%

Differences between blaster and explosives engineer duties and responsibilities

Blaster example responsibilities.

Blast rail freight cars with steel grit to achieve require blast profile per paint specifications or customer's request.
Blast paint off of aluminum wheels in cabinet.
Lead foreman - run pipe sandblasting crew on site at oil field refineries.
Operate bobcat, emulsion, truck, and other equipment necessary to blasting.
Transport sand and run a three man crew to keep things on a tight schedule.
Mentore and train international employees on policies and regulations regarding ammunition and explosives resulting in expanding foreign networking.

Explosives engineer example responsibilities.

Blast rail freight cars with steel grit to achieve require blast profile per paint specifications or customer's request.
Require to know and follow OHSA, MSHA, ATF and state/Federal regulations.
Compile post blast report for ATF, MSHA to insure blasting guidelines are met.
Train personnel to perform basic demolition, mine clearing, combat construction operations, and treat wound soldiers.
Stabilize rock walls and slopes using rock bolts, split sets and blasting techniques for CDOT and various mines.
Operate and monitor light and heavy engineer combat vehicles and heavy equipment.

Blaster vs explosives engineer skills

Common blaster skills

CDL, 25%
Hand Tools, 14%
ATF, 8%
Fall Protection, 6%
Blast Equipment, 6%
Grit, 5%

Common explosives engineer skills

Safety Guidelines, 76%
ATF, 24%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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