Fabrication supervisor vs fabrication technician

The differences between fabrication supervisors and fabrication technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a fabrication supervisor has an average salary of $60,478, which is higher than the $35,582 average annual salary of a fabrication technician.

The top three skills for a fabrication supervisor include continuous improvement, lean manufacturing and employee development. The most important skills for a fabrication technician are hand tools, math, and customer service.

Fabrication supervisor vs fabrication technician overview

	Fabrication Supervisor	Fabrication Technician
Yearly salary	$60,478	$35,582
Hourly rate	$29.08	$17.11
Growth rate	-	14%
Number of jobs	41,404	109,734
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Associate Degree, 29%
Average age	46	44
Years of experience	2	-

What does a fabrication supervisor do?

A fabrication supervisor coordinates a team that fabricates materials such as structural steel. They oversee workflow, supervise employees, assign duties, order materials, ensure a safe workplace, improve employee efficiency, and provide leadership. Having production experience, good written and oral communication, decisiveness, computer literacy, time management skills, compassion, negotiation abilities, and an industrial degree are all needed to become a fabrication supervisor.

What does a fabrication technician do?

Fabrication technicians are skilled employees who are responsible for using specialized equipment to assemble components for a variety of products or finished products. These technicians are required to perform inspections on the tools and mechanical equipment as well as provide maintenance and repair. They are required to complete the assembly of equipment by following the engineering drawings and specifications. Fabrication technicians must also follow established safety procedures when maintaining work areas and troubleshooting problems with machinery.

Fabrication supervisor vs fabrication technician salary

Fabrication supervisors and fabrication technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Fabrication Supervisor	Fabrication Technician
Average salary	$60,478	$35,582
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $90,000	Between $26,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	-	San Jose, CA
Highest paying state	-	North Dakota
Best paying company	-	Westinghouse Appliances Australia
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between fabrication supervisor and fabrication technician education

There are a few differences between a fabrication supervisor and a fabrication technician in terms of educational background:

	Fabrication Supervisor	Fabrication Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 36%	Associate Degree, 29%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	-

Fabrication supervisor vs fabrication technician demographics

Here are the differences between fabrication supervisors' and fabrication technicians' demographics:

	Fabrication Supervisor	Fabrication Technician
Average age	46	44
Gender ratio	Male, 92.9% Female, 7.1%	Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 5.2% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.9% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 9.6% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	6%	5%

Differences between fabrication supervisor and fabrication technician duties and responsibilities

Fabrication supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage manufacturing department operations to ensure compliance with establish quality specifications, production levels, and FDA regulations.
Lead fabric team to update and prepare FDS, BOM, PLM.
Implement adopt fabrications each season into PLM system.
Create drawings in both AutoCAD 2004 and Solidworks 2002.
Train each welder to obtain various AWS and ASME welding certifications.
Utilize MIG and FCAW welding processes to fabricate roofs for mobile classrooms.

Fabrication technician example responsibilities.

Use of mig and tig welders, plasma cutter, chop see, band see and drill press.
Lift or move material and finish products using large over head cranes or hoists.
Weld with stick mig flux cor stainless rods.
Form, fabricate and assemble commercial HVAC duct work systems.
Train and operate several pieces of fab equipment, i.e.
Operate laser and turret machines to cut hoods for transformers.

Fabrication supervisor vs fabrication technician skills

Common fabrication supervisor skills

Continuous Improvement, 10%
Lean Manufacturing, 9%
Employee Development, 8%
Safety Procedures, 6%
Quality Standards, 6%
Safety Standards, 4%

Common fabrication technician skills

Hand Tools, 10%
Math, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
CNC, 5%
Calipers, 5%
OSHA, 5%

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Fabrication Supervisor
Fabrication Supervisor vs Fabrication Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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