Instrument operator vs chainman

The differences between instrument operators and chainmen can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a chainman has an average salary of $67,333, which is higher than the $43,179 average annual salary of an instrument operator.

The top three skills for an instrument operator include GPS, survey equipment and data collection. The most important skills for a chainman are GPS, construction sites, and autocad.

Instrument operator vs chainman overview

	Instrument Operator	Chainman
Yearly salary	$43,179	$67,333
Hourly rate	$20.76	$32.37
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	29,503	374
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Associate Degree, 34%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Instrument operator vs chainman salary

Instrument operators and chainmen have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Instrument Operator	Chainman
Average salary	$43,179	$67,333
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $62,000	Between $42,000 And $106,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between instrument operator and chainman education

There are a few differences between an instrument operator and a chainman in terms of educational background:

	Instrument Operator	Chainman
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 42%	Associate Degree, 34%
Most common major	Business	Surveying, Mapping, And Hydraulic Technologies
Most common college	-	-

Instrument operator vs chainman demographics

Here are the differences between instrument operators' and chainmen' demographics:

	Instrument Operator	Chainman
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 93.0% Female, 7.0%	Male, 97.1% Female, 2.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.2% Asian, 3.2% White, 74.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%	Black or African American, 4.5% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 13.0% Asian, 3.2% White, 74.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between instrument operator and chainman duties and responsibilities

Instrument operator example responsibilities.

Train in Carlson, TDS, and EFB.
Experience with static, RTK, and DGPS using Trimble R8 or Leica systems.
Experience with TDS and Carlson survey programs.
Measure distance between survey points using a steel tape or using an EDM.
Perform physical layouts using GPS, total station, and robotic units on large and small scale civil projects.
Used robotics and Nikon total stations.

Chainman example responsibilities.

Perform GPS staking of property corners and layouts for new construction, involving complex math and data collection.
Prepare and operate electronic distance-measuring instruments and GPS receivers.
Support ordnance excavations by mapping out anomalies within survey areas.

Instrument operator vs chainman skills

Common instrument operator skills

GPS, 19%
Survey Equipment, 12%
Data Collection, 9%
Work Ethic, 6%
Robotic, 4%
Construction Surveys, 4%

Common chainman skills

GPS, 27%
Construction Sites, 12%
Autocad, 7%
Boundary Surveys, 6%
Survey Equipment, 6%
Topo, 6%