A metal fabricator manipulates metal for construction and manufacturing companies. They are required to cut, shape, position and align different metals. They must also understand assembly instructions, ensure required parts are available, and ensure parts meet quality control standards. They attend product development meetings, test products for functionality, troubleshoot and stress test products to determine possible shortcomings, make detailed reports outlining product malfunctions, verify product dimensions, and maintain the product schedule.

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Metal Fabricator Responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real metal fabricator resumes representing typical tasks they are likely to perform in their roles.

  • Examine surface of metal to detect defects, such as dents, scratches, or breaks in metal.
  • Operate band see, chop see, MIG welder, stick welder, and grinders to cut to specifications.
  • Design and construct jigs, templates, and fixtures.
  • Test and troubleshoot electrical systems prior to shipment of modules.
  • Fabricate and erect structural, ornamental, and misc steel.
  • Apply knowledge of shop mathematics, metal properties, and layouts.
  • Apply math and physics principles in structure design and construction of sculptures.
  • Install steel railings, stairs, fences, gates and structural beams.
  • Interpret blueprints and schematics, TIG weld parts as defined in specification sheets.
  • Finish parts, using hacksaws or hand, rotary, or squaring shears.
  • Assemble snow blowers, lawn mowers, pressure washers on a daily basis.
  • Design and sketch components to be used in CNG operations and installations (i.e.
  • Fit and weld replacement parts into place, using wrenches, welding equipment, power grinders, and other tools.
  • Perform routine maintenance on all shop machines such as cutting blades, grinding wheels, ventilation motors welders and grinders.
  • Remove dents, using hammer and dolly block, and fills uneven surface with molten solder.

Metal Fabricator Job Description

Perhaps the hardest question to answer when deciding on a career as a metal fabricator is "should I become a metal fabricator?" You might find this info to be helpful. When compared to other jobs, metal fabricator careers are projected to have a growth rate described as "decline" at -11% from 2018 through 2028. This is in accordance with the Bureau of Labor Statistics. What's more, is that the projected number of opportunities that are predicted to become available for a metal fabricator by 2028 is -203,300.

Metal fabricators average about $18.29 an hour, which makes the metal fabricator annual salary $38,047. Additionally, metal fabricators are known to earn anywhere from $29,000 to $48,000 a year. This means that the top-earning metal fabricators make $14,000 more than the lowest earning ones.

It's hard work to become a metal fabricator, but even the most dedicated employees consider switching careers from time to time. Whether you're interested in a more challenging position or just looking for a fresh start, we've compiled extensive information on becoming a product builder, door assembler, warehouse assembler, and furniture assembler.

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Metal Fabricator Skills and Personality Traits

We calculated that 9% of Metal Fabricators are proficient in MIG, Hand Tools, and Aluminum. They’re also known for soft skills such as Color vision, Math skills, and Computer skills.

We break down the percentage of Metal Fabricators that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • MIG, 9%

    Weld metal using various techniques such as MIG, TIG and Stick.

  • Hand Tools, 8%

    Press sheet Metal, assembled, used small hand tools, cut metal, trim insulation, read blue prints

  • Aluminum, 6%

    Manufactured extruded aluminum evaporator coils, condenser coils, and other products for heat transfer applications.

  • Press Brake, 6%

    Job requires a wide variety of skills including operating punch presses, lasers, press brakes, welding and assembling.

  • Drill Press, 5%

    Metal fabrication, cut metal, ran lathe and mill, limited welding, used grinders, plasma cutters and drill press

  • Tape Measure, 5%

    Use of Micrometers, Calipers, and Tape measures.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Metal Fabricator Resume templates

Build a professional Metal Fabricator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Metal Fabricator resume.

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Metal Fabricator Resume

Some of the skills we found on metal fabricator resumes included "mig," "hand tools," and "aluminum." We have detailed the most important metal fabricator responsibilities below.

  • The most important skills for a metal fabricator to have in this position are color vision. In this excerpt that we gathered from a metal fabricator resume, you'll understand why: "assemblers and fabricators who make electrical and electronic products must distinguish different colors, because the wires they often work with are color coded." According to resumes we found, color vision can be used by a metal fabricator in order to "used math skills as needed: division, multiplication, addition, subtraction, and working with fractions.ged 2011"
  • Another commonly found skill for being able to perform metal fabricator duties is the following: math skills. According to a metal fabricator resume, "assemblers and fabricators must know basic math and be able to use computers, because the manufacturing process continues to advance technologically." Check out this example of how metal fabricators use math skills: "applied knowledge of shop mathematics, metal properties, and layouts. "
  • A thorough review of lots of resumes revealed to us that "dexterity" is important to completing metal fabricator responsibilities. This resume example shows just one way metal fabricators use this skill: "assemblers and fabricators should have a steady hand and good hand–eye coordination, as they must grasp, manipulate, or assemble parts and components that are often very small." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical metal fabricator tasks: "operate crane and forklift, in order to arrange finish goods to be shipped. "
  • As part of the metal fabricator description, you might find that one of the skills that might be helpful to the job is "mechanical skills." A metal fabricator resume included this snippet: "modern production systems require assemblers and fabricators to use programmable motion-control devices, computers, and robots on the factory floor." This skill could be useful in this scenario: "drill press, grinders, cut off saws, hydraulic and mechanical metal press, operating speed lathes. "
  • Another skill commonly found on metal fabricator resumes is "physical strength." This description of the skill was found on several metal fabricator resumes: "assemblers and fabricators must be strong enough to lift heavy components or pieces of machinery" Here's an example from a resume of how this skill could fit into the day-to-day metal fabricator responsibilities: "applied knowledge of trigonometry, stock allowances for thickness, machine and welding shrinkage, and physical properties of metal. "
  • See the full list of metal fabricator skills.

    Those metal fabricators who do attend college, typically earn either precision metal working degrees or business degrees. Less commonly earned degrees for metal fabricators include automotive technology degrees or general studies degrees.

    When you're ready to become a metal fabricator, you might wonder which companies hire metal fabricators. According to our research through metal fabricator resumes, metal fabricators are mostly hired by Express Employment Indy South, Paradigm Precision, and Brunswick. Now is a good time to apply as Express Employment Indy South has 15 metal fabricators job openings, and there are 8 at Paradigm Precision and 7 at Brunswick.

    But if you're interested in companies where you might earn a high salary, metal fabricators tend to earn the biggest salaries at Halliburton, Valmont Industries, and Arrowhead Products. Take Halliburton for example. The median metal fabricator salary is $49,431. At Valmont Industries, metal fabricators earn an average of $46,635, while the average at Arrowhead Products is $45,603. You should take into consideration how difficult it might be to secure a job with one of these companies.

    View more details on metal fabricator salaries across the United States.

    We also looked into companies who hire metal fabricators from the top 100 educational institutions in the U.S. The top three companies that hire the most from these institutions include ManpowerGroup, Boeing, and Wolf Coach.

    The industries that metal fabricators fulfill the most roles in are the manufacturing and professional industries. But the highest metal fabricator annual salary is in the automotive industry, averaging $45,267. In the construction industry they make $41,658 and average about $41,037 in the transportation industry. In conclusion, metal fabricators who work in the automotive industry earn a 12.3% higher salary than metal fabricators in the professional industry.

    The three companies that hire the most prestigious metal fabricators are:

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    What Product Builders Do

    A warehouse assembler takes on several responsibilities. They are responsible for preparing work that needs to be accomplished by studying and following assembly instructions to put together parts. They also interpret engineering blueprints and technical jargon. They are expected to verify accurate quantities of components and to check that the items are completed to ensure quality. They manage the inventory of parts and tools that are used in the process of assembly.

    In this section, we take a look at the annual salaries of other professions. Take product builder for example. On average, the product builders annual salary is $6,759 lower than what metal fabricators make on average every year.

    While the salaries between these two careers can be different, they do share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both metal fabricators and product builders positions are skilled in hand tools, basic math, and customer specifications.

    There are some key differences in responsibilities as well. For example, a metal fabricator responsibilities require skills like "mig," "aluminum," "press brake," and "drill press." Meanwhile a typical product builder has skills in areas such as "medical devices," "medical products," "safety policies," and "catheter." This difference in skills reveals how truly different these two careers really are.

    Product builders receive the highest salaries in the health care industry coming in with an average yearly salary of $33,660. But metal fabricators are paid more in the automotive industry with an average salary of $45,267.

    On average, product builders reach similar levels of education than metal fabricators. Product builders are 2.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    What Are The Duties Of a Door Assembler?

    The next role we're going to look at is the door assembler profession. Typically, this position earns a lower pay. In fact, they earn a $7,006 lower salary than metal fabricators per year.

    A similarity between the two careers of metal fabricators and door assemblers are a few of the skills associated with both roles. We used resumes from both professions to find that both use skills like "hand tools," "tape measure," and "fabricates. "

    But both careers also use different skills, according to real metal fabricator resumes. While metal fabricator responsibilities can utilize skills like "mig," "aluminum," "press brake," and "drill press," some door assemblers use skills like "assembly process," "safety rules," "osha," and "power saws."

    In general, door assemblers study at similar levels of education than metal fabricators. They're 0.8% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    How a Warehouse Assembler Compares

    The third profession we take a look at is warehouse assembler. On an average scale, these workers bring in lower salaries than metal fabricators. In fact, they make a $7,809 lower salary per year.

    Using metal fabricators and warehouse assemblers resumes, we found that both professions have similar skills such as "hand tools," "basic math," and "blueprint specifications," but the other skills required are very different.

    As mentioned, these two careers differ between other skills that are required for performing the work exceedingly well. For example, gathering from metal fabricators resumes, they are more likely to have skills like "mig," "aluminum," "press brake," and "drill press." But a warehouse assembler might have skills like "pallets," "part numbers," "pallet jack," and "safety regulations."

    Interestingly enough, warehouse assemblers earn the most pay in the manufacturing industry, where they command an average salary of $31,847. As mentioned previously, metal fabricators highest annual salary comes from the automotive industry with an average salary of $45,267.

    Warehouse assemblers typically study at similar levels compared with metal fabricators. For example, they're 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    Description Of a Furniture Assembler

    Furniture assemblers tend to earn a lower pay than metal fabricators by about $6,472 per year.

    While their salaries may vary, metal fabricators and furniture assemblers both use similar skills to perform their jobs. Resumes from both professions include skills like "hand tools," "tape measure," and "jigs. "

    Even though a few skill sets overlap, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a metal fabricator might have more use for skills like "mig," "aluminum," "press brake," and "drill press." Meanwhile, some furniture assemblers might include skills like "office furniture," "delivery truck," "safety procedures," and "sales floor" on their resume.

    In general, furniture assemblers make a higher salary in the manufacturing industry with an average of $34,228. The highest metal fabricator annual salary stems from the automotive industry.

    In general, furniture assemblers reach similar levels of education when compared to metal fabricators resumes. Furniture assemblers are 0.4% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.