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What does a calibration specialist do?

Updated January 8, 2025
5 min read
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Calibration specialist responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real calibration specialist resumes:

  • Accomplish team sales of 464K in clinical chemistry and hematology instrumentation.
  • Develop and implement GMP compliant calibration program for the company.
  • Maintain compliance with FDA by practicing c-GMP/c-GLP.
  • Assure that all GMP equipment is calibrated and operate within their design specifications.
  • Assist a site team with remediation activities in response to an FDA directive.
  • Utilize various automate test equipment, including meters, oscilloscopes, frequency counters, spectrum analyzers, and signal generators.
  • Calibrate and repair a wide variety of electronic equipment including oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers
  • Perform equipment and instrumentation calibrations, qualifications and troubleshooting in a pharmaceutical testing laboratory setting following cGMP and GLP practices.
  • Calibrate equipment using SPC standards.
  • Review SPC data and identify out of control conditions.
  • Author and review equipment SOPs.Perform administrative functions for the equipment monitoring system.

Calibration specialist skills and personality traits

We calculated that 15% of Calibration Specialists are proficient in Test Equipment, Laboratory Equipment, and Calibration Procedures. They’re also known for soft skills such as Math skills, Mechanical skills, and Writing skills.

We break down the percentage of Calibration Specialists that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Test Equipment, 15%

    Maintained, repaired and managed current certifications of avionics and instrumentation test equipment.

  • Laboratory Equipment, 12%

    Schedule all outside vendor services, ensure proper documentation of maintenance and validation procedures including IQ/OQ/PQ of laboratory equipment.

  • Calibration Procedures, 9%

    Implemented calibration procedures and work instructions including the creation of calibration certificates and test data sheets.

  • ISO, 7%

    Follow ISO 17025:2005 standards, SOPs, Customer Procedures, and industry best standards.

  • GMP, 7%

    Assured that all GMP equipment is calibrated and operate within their design specifications.

  • RF, 6%

    Calibrate RF DC to 50 GHz, proficient with various manufacturers RF instrumentation both old and new.

Most calibration specialists use their skills in "test equipment," "laboratory equipment," and "calibration procedures" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential calibration specialist responsibilities here:

Math skills. One of the key soft skills for a calibration specialist to have is math skills. You can see how this relates to what calibration specialists do because "electrical and electronic engineering technologists and technicians use mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting tasks." Additionally, a calibration specialist resume shows how calibration specialists use math skills: "developed math models to create uncertainty errors in calibration measurements. "

Mechanical skills. Another essential skill to perform calibration specialist duties is mechanical skills. Calibration specialists responsibilities require that "electronic engineering technologists and technicians must use hand tools and soldering irons on small circuitry and electronic parts to build components by hand." Calibration specialists also use mechanical skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "set up test equipment and conduct safety calibration/test on performance and reliability of mechanical, structural, and electromechanical equipment/instruments. "

Writing skills. This is an important skill for calibration specialists to perform their duties. For an example of how calibration specialist responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "electrical and electronic engineering technologists and technicians write reports about onsite construction, design problems, or testing results." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a calibration specialist: "experience in writing sop for different laboratory equipment. ".

See the full list of calibration specialist skills

The three companies that hire the most calibration specialists are:

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Compare different calibration specialists

Calibration specialist vs. Instrument technician

An instrument technician is an individual who is responsible for testing, repairing, and inspecting all manufacturing equipment to ensure proper operations of the machines. Instrument technicians collaborate with engineers to develop and produce equipment design and provide advice to process technicians about equipment operation. They remove defective equipment so that they can decontaminate and replace the damaged ones with new machines. They are also required by their employer to obtain certification in the field of instrumentation technology.

We looked at the average calibration specialist salary and compared it with the wages of an instrument technician. Generally speaking, instrument technicians are paid $9,841 lower than calibration specialists per year.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both calibration specialist and instrument technician positions are skilled in test equipment, iso, and gmp.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between calibration specialists and instrument technician. For instance, calibration specialist responsibilities require skills such as "laboratory equipment," "calibration procedures," "rf," and "technical support." Whereas a instrument technician is skilled in "patients," "surgical instruments," "cleanliness," and "hand tools." This is part of what separates the two careers.

On average, instrument technicians reach similar levels of education than calibration specialists. Instrument technicians are 2.4% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Calibration specialist vs. Assembly & test technician

An assembly & test technician works at manufacturing facilities where they are in charge of assembling product components and subjecting them to various tests, ensuring compliance with standards and regulations. Although the extent of their responsibilities depends on their organization of employment, it usually includes understanding diagrams and project requirements, establishing and implementing test parameters, operating tools and equipment, maintaining records, and producing detailed reports. There are also times when they must coordinate with quality control teams, working together in a joint effort to improve production processes and results.

A career as a assembly & test technician brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a calibration specialist. In fact, assembly & test technicians salary is $27,985 lower than the salary of calibration specialists per year.While the salary may differ for these jobs, they share a few skills needed to perform their duties. Based on resume data, both calibration specialists and assembly & test technicians have skills such as "iso," "rf," and "calipers. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real calibration specialist resumes. While calibration specialist responsibilities can utilize skills like "test equipment," "laboratory equipment," "calibration procedures," and "gmp," assembly & test technicians use skills like "mechanical assembly," "aerospace," "dexterity," and "test results."

Average education levels between the two professions vary. Assembly & test technicians tend to reach similar levels of education than calibration specialists. In fact, they're 3.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Calibration specialist vs. Bench technician

A Bench Technician specializes in installing, maintaining, and repairing electronic equipment and machinery. Although the extent of their responsibilities primarily depends on their place or employment industry, it typically includes conducting inspections and assessments, programming and troubleshooting systems, replacing and fixing components, and producing progress reports as needed. Moreover, a Bench Technician must maintain an active communication line with co-workers while adhering to its safety standards and regulations for a safe and efficient work environment.

On average, bench technicians earn lower salaries than calibration specialists, with a $25,442 difference per year.Using the responsibilities included on calibration specialists and bench technicians resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "test equipment," "iso," and "rf.rdquo;

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a calibration specialist is likely to be skilled in "laboratory equipment," "calibration procedures," "gmp," and "technical support," while a typical bench technician is skilled in "troubleshoot," "pc," "windows," and "circuit boards."

Most bench technicians achieve a similar degree level compared to calibration specialists. For example, they're 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Calibration specialist vs. Test technician

A test technician is responsible for running multiple diagnostic tests on various tools and equipment to boost optimization and ensure its efficient performance on operations. Test technicians inspect system components and manage calibration, following clients' specifications or the business' needs. A test technician also analyzes the system's design processes and features to understand its complexities and identify necessary upgrades. Test technicians keep a record of system issues and resolutions for reference. A test technician must have excellent knowledge of the technical and mechanical industry to perform tasks and achieve the highest customer satisfaction.

Test technicians average a lower salary than the annual salary of calibration specialists. The difference is about $23,588 per year.While their salaries may vary, calibration specialists and test technicians both use similar skills to perform their duties. Resumes from both professions include skills like "iso," "rf," and "technical support. "While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "test equipment," "laboratory equipment," "calibration procedures," and "gmp" are skills that commonly show up on calibration specialist resumes. On the other hand, test technicians use skills like test procedures, test results, hand tools, and engineering drawings on their resumes.test technicians reach similar levels of education compared to calibration specialists, in general. The difference is that they're 1.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of calibration specialist

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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