Lumber inspector vs test operator

The differences between lumber inspectors and test operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a lumber inspector has an average salary of $43,538, which is higher than the $35,591 average annual salary of a test operator.

The top three skills for a lumber inspector include equipment maintenance, shop safety and hardwood. The most important skills for a test operator are test equipment, hand tools, and test procedures.

Lumber inspector vs test operator overview

	Lumber Inspector	Test Operator
Yearly salary	$43,538	$35,591
Hourly rate	$20.93	$17.11
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	16,889	63,674
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	Associate Degree, 31%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Lumber inspector vs test operator salary

Lumber inspectors and test operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Lumber Inspector	Test Operator
Average salary	$43,538	$35,591
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $67,000	Between $25,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	-	Stratford, CT
Highest paying state	-	Connecticut
Best paying company	-	Qorvo
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between lumber inspector and test operator education

There are a few differences between a lumber inspector and a test operator in terms of educational background:

	Lumber Inspector	Test Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 47%	Associate Degree, 31%
Most common major	Property Management	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	-	-

Lumber inspector vs test operator demographics

Here are the differences between lumber inspectors' and test operators' demographics:

	Lumber Inspector	Test Operator
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 96.6% Female, 3.4%	Male, 72.0% Female, 28.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.8% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 6.6% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 22.6% Asian, 10.2% White, 53.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between lumber inspector and test operator duties and responsibilities

Lumber inspector example responsibilities.

Operate and maintain planers, saws, and kiln dryers.
Contract with local hardwood lumber production facilities to grade and upgrade rough green lumber to be sell.
Supervise 5 people (green chain) / inspecting & grading multiple hardwood species, segregation by dimension/species, up to 40Kbf/day
Conduct dimensional and visual inspections procedures on CMM machines to ensure geometrical characteristics of the product are in specification.
Inspect, monitor and GPS recording of all water installations to ensure compliance with requirements and specifications.

Test operator example responsibilities.

Box build sub-assembly level by solder wire into connector, lead, and fan according to MPI and visuals aid.
Experience following procedures and managing GMP documentation.
Work include new lay, tie-ins, repairs, CTS stations, ETS stations.
Install the new version software operation windows.
Complete NDT inspections using multiple inspection methods.
Trouble shoots and repair ICT failures to component level.

Lumber inspector vs test operator skills

Common lumber inspector skills

Equipment Maintenance, 32%
Shop Safety, 27%
Hardwood, 21%
Quality Standards, 10%
Band Saws, 6%
Customer Specifications, 5%

Common test operator skills

Test Equipment, 9%
Hand Tools, 7%
Test Procedures, 6%
Test Results, 5%
Safety Rules, 4%
Circuit Boards, 4%