Every day, we use and encounter metal tools, machines, and structures. You have probably never thought about how all of these are made or who is involved in making them. The truth of the matter is that these machines and structures are built from raw materials through a process called metal fabrication. And metal fabricators are the ones who help build them. These fabricators work from patterns and blueprints to prepare, fabricate, and weld various metal components and structures.
If you want to work as a metal fabricator, you'll need to be good at reading and interpreting engineering blueprints. Some of the other tasks you'll perform on the job include grinding and finishing completed products, setting up metalwork machinery, and performing quality checks on completed projects. Some of the tools that you'll use include shears, rollers, flame cutters, and drill presses.
If you want to get into this career field, you'll need advanced mathematical and engineering skills, the ability to lift and manipulate large metal objects, as well as the ability to stand for long periods of time. Also, a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering or a related field is required. Some employer may prefer candidates with welding certification and advanced welding experience
What is a Metal Fabricator?
What Does a Metal Fabricator Do
There are certain skills that many metal fabricators have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed color vision, math skills and computer skills.
How To Become a Metal Fabricator
If you're interested in becoming a metal fabricator, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 13.3% of metal fabricators have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 0.8% of metal fabricators have master's degrees. Even though some metal fabricators have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Metal Fabricator Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of forklift operator you might progress to a role such as driver eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title superintendent.
Average Salary for a Metal Fabricator
What Am I Worth?
Roles and Types of Metal Fabricator
The role of a metal fabricator includes a wide range of responsibilities. These responsibilities can vary based on an individual's specific job, company, or industry.Here are some general metal fabricator responsibilities:
- Perform loading and unloading of material by changing tools inspect
- Promote, market, sell and manage scaffold building services. Develop
- Weld together components, as specified by work instruction for each job, using gas metal, arc-welding equipment. Inspect welds to tack sizes
There are several types of metal fabricator, including:
Fabricator
Role:
Senior Contract Administrators/Contract Administrators handle the contract purchasing process from initial negotiations to the reception of the goods or services. They work in various types of organizations to ensure that employees have the equipment and supplies they need to be productive. Their duties may include buying, storing, and distributing supplies and offloading unused supplies. Contract administrators must also set goals for their department, develop and meet a budget, and may have to recommend changes in policies to improve efficiency.
Most employers require that contract administration professionals have a bachelor's degree, at minimum. Programs in the acquisition, finance, or business administration can prepare you for a career in contracts. Bachelor's degree programs offer courses in accounting, finance, economics, and management. To earn a master's degree, you take courses in managerial accounting, procurement, and contracting law.
The BLS reports that administrative services managers, including those employed in contract administration, earn an average of $106,050 per year. However, those in senior roles earn even more.
- Average Salary: $34,922
- Degree: High School Diploma
Saw Operator
Role:
Saw operators operate routine production machinery in line with the prints and specifications provided. They perform routine activities that produce the needed quantity of parts as stated in the specifications. They measure finished parts with precision tools to ensure adherence to function, quality, and established specifications. Besides that, they maintain logs and records of units produced. Likewise, they report any errors resulting in discarded pieces. Additionally, they check equipment before using it to ensure proper setup and alignment. Also, they perform basic and routine adjustments and maintenance.
Employers seek applicants with a high school diploma or its equivalent and up to two years of relevant work experience. You must be able to interpret and translate job specifications. You must possess multitasking, teamwork, attention to detail, communication, and coordination skills. Also, you must be comfortable with following directions. Saw operators earn an average salary of $33,741 annually. This varies from $26,000 to $44,000.
- Average Salary: $32,319
- Degree: High School Diploma
MIG Welder
Role:
Whether it's just a small fitting, or a big project of metal made by shaping different parts, it usually involves a gas welding technique. This must be performed by a MIG welder who is professionally trained for carrying out welding and electric arc processes.
All you need to become an MIG welder is a high school diploma, but having at least an associate's degree is common. Many high-rated professionals have joined the field after completing college. Apart from a degree, MIG welders must pass certain safety and technical courses before working.
There are many hazards in a welding workplace that could lead to serious accidents. MIG welders must follow all the proper safety procedures to avoid this. Welders are also required to go through physical fitness tests periodically, making good health a criteria for the job. Once you get through all these requirements, the profession can earn you more than $16 per hour.
- Average Salary: $35,476
- Degree: High School Diploma
States With The Most Metal Fabricator Jobs
Mouse over a state to see the number of active metal fabricator jobs in each state. The darker areas on the map show where metal fabricators earn the highest salaries across all 50 states.
Number Of Metal Fabricator Jobs By State
| Rank | State | Number of Jobs | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 113 | $42,484 |
| 2 | Texas | 113 | $36,216 |
| 3 | Florida | 111 | $35,090 |
| 4 | Wisconsin | 74 | $37,546 |
| 5 | Ohio | 74 | $36,894 |
| 6 | North Carolina | 68 | $36,614 |
| 7 | Pennsylvania | 62 | $40,475 |
| 8 | Georgia | 61 | $37,022 |
| 9 | Virginia | 56 | $44,063 |
| 10 | Massachusetts | 56 | $39,763 |
| 11 | Minnesota | 53 | $32,209 |
| 12 | Tennessee | 52 | $36,028 |
| 13 | Illinois | 47 | $37,515 |
| 14 | Indiana | 46 | $32,501 |
| 15 | South Carolina | 45 | $35,050 |
| 16 | Missouri | 39 | $35,963 |
| 17 | Michigan | 36 | $39,361 |
| 18 | Iowa | 34 | $37,027 |
| 19 | Washington | 32 | $39,873 |
| 20 | Kansas | 30 | $36,638 |
| 21 | Louisiana | 28 | $43,273 |
| 22 | Alabama | 28 | $35,113 |
| 23 | Oregon | 27 | $39,577 |
| 24 | New York | 26 | $40,380 |
| 25 | Colorado | 24 | $36,667 |
| 26 | Utah | 21 | $40,028 |
| 27 | Maryland | 16 | $38,780 |
| 28 | New Jersey | 15 | $45,040 |
| 29 | Arkansas | 15 | $35,872 |
| 30 | Kentucky | 14 | $36,846 |
| 31 | Arizona | 13 | $42,804 |
| 32 | Connecticut | 12 | $40,645 |
| 33 | Nebraska | 12 | $37,092 |
| 34 | Nevada | 11 | $45,796 |
| 35 | Maine | 10 | $35,574 |
| 36 | Idaho | 9 | $35,858 |
| 37 | Oklahoma | 8 | $31,277 |
| 38 | Mississippi | 5 | $40,737 |
| 39 | Vermont | 5 | $37,740 |
| 40 | South Dakota | 4 | $42,278 |
| 41 | Montana | 4 | $36,481 |
| 42 | Rhode Island | 4 | $36,937 |
| 43 | New Hampshire | 4 | $33,597 |
| 44 | West Virginia | 3 | $38,100 |
| 45 | North Dakota | 2 | $42,527 |
| 46 | Delaware | 2 | $44,270 |
| 47 | Alaska | 2 | $42,298 |
| 48 | Hawaii | 2 | $44,778 |
| 49 | New Mexico | 2 | $38,316 |
| 50 | Wyoming | 0 | $40,066 |
Top Skills For a Metal Fabricator
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 8.6% of metal fabricators listed mig on their resume, but soft skills such as color vision and math skills are important as well.
Choose From 10+ Customizable Metal Fabricator Resume templates
Zippia allows you to choose from different easy-to-use Metal Fabricator templates, and provides you with expert advice. Using the templates, you can rest assured that the structure and format of your Metal Fabricator resume is top notch. Choose a template with the colors, fonts & text sizes that are appropriate for your industry.
Metal Fabricator diversity
Metal Fabricator Gender Distribution
After extensive research and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
- Among metal fabricators, 5.9% of them are women, while 94.1% are men.
- The most common race/ethnicity among metal fabricators is White, which makes up 58.4% of all metal fabricators.
- The most common foreign language among metal fabricators is Spanish at 58.1%.
Online Courses For Metal Fabricator That You May Like
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Best States For a Metal Fabricator
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a metal fabricator. The best states for people in this position are Nevada, New Jersey, Hawaii, and Delaware. Metal fabricators make the most in Nevada with an average salary of $45,796. Whereas in New Jersey and Hawaii, they would average $45,040 and $44,778, respectively. While metal fabricators would only make an average of $44,270 in Delaware, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. Louisiana
$43,273
Avg. Salary
2. Nevada
$45,796
Avg. Salary
3. Virginia
$44,063
Avg. Salary
How Do Metal Fabricators Rate Their Jobs?
Top Metal Fabricator Employers
Most Common Employers For Metal Fabricator
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Halliburton | $49,431 | $23.76 | 6 |
| 2 | Oshkosh | $45,544 | $21.90 | 8 |
| 3 | Alstom | $42,857 | $20.60 | 4 |
| 4 | Eaton | $42,762 | $20.56 | 4 |
| 5 | LaForce | $41,629 | $20.01 | 5 |
| 6 | Trachte | $41,442 | $19.92 | 3 |
| 7 | Wabash National | $41,395 | $19.90 | 13 |
| 8 | US Air Conditioning Distributors | $41,096 | $19.76 | 4 |
| 9 | TIGHITCO | $40,996 | $19.71 | 7 |
| 10 | Habersham Metal Products | $40,862 | $19.65 | 4 |
Metal Fabricator Videos
