Fabrication technician vs general machine operator

The differences between fabrication technicians and general machine operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a fabrication technician has an average salary of $35,582, which is higher than the $32,414 average annual salary of a general machine operator.

The top three skills for a fabrication technician include hand tools, math and customer service. The most important skills for a general machine operator are math, CNC, and safety procedures.

Fabrication technician vs general machine operator overview

	Fabrication Technician	General Machine Operator
Yearly salary	$35,582	$32,414
Hourly rate	$17.11	$15.58
Growth rate	14%	7%
Number of jobs	109,734	138,111
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 29%	High School Diploma, 50%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Fabrication technician vs general machine operator salary

Fabrication technicians and general machine operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Fabrication Technician	General Machine Operator
Average salary	$35,582	$32,414
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $47,000	Between $26,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	San Jose, CA	Oshkosh, WI
Highest paying state	North Dakota	Wisconsin
Best paying company	Westinghouse Appliances Australia	Reckitt Benckiser
Best paying industry	Finance	Finance

Differences between fabrication technician and general machine operator education

There are a few differences between a fabrication technician and a general machine operator in terms of educational background:

	Fabrication Technician	General Machine Operator
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 29%	High School Diploma, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Fabrication technician vs general machine operator demographics

Here are the differences between fabrication technicians' and general machine operators' demographics:

	Fabrication Technician	General Machine Operator
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9%	Male, 81.2% Female, 18.8%
Race ratio	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%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 7.3% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between fabrication technician and general machine operator duties and responsibilities

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.

General machine operator example responsibilities.

Lift work pieces to machines using hoists.
Control & troubleshoot automate extrusion line adjusting speed & feed, monitoring temperature, & finish material specification per customers order.
Overlook daily operations of single/twin screw extruders and packaging of finish product.

Fabrication technician vs general machine operator skills

Common fabrication technician skills

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

Common general machine operator skills

Math, 12%
CNC, 10%
Safety Procedures, 10%
Troubleshoot, 9%
Production Process, 8%
Machine Operation, 6%

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Fabrication Technician
Fabrication Technician vs General Machine Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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