Operational test mechanic vs lead inspector

The differences between operational test mechanics and lead inspectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a lead inspector has an average salary of $51,148, which is higher than the $42,957 average annual salary of an operational test mechanic.

The top three skills for an operational test mechanic include R, functional test and QC. The most important skills for a lead inspector are NDT, API, and NDE.

Operational test mechanic vs lead inspector overview

	Operational Test Mechanic	Lead Inspector
Yearly salary	$42,957	$51,148
Hourly rate	$20.65	$24.59
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	51,939	17,734
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 30%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Operational test mechanic vs lead inspector salary

Operational test mechanics and lead inspectors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Operational Test Mechanic	Lead Inspector
Average salary	$42,957	$51,148
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $64,000	Between $35,000 And $73,000
Highest paying City	North Kingstown, RI	West Hartford, CT
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Connecticut
Best paying company	Bristol-Myers Squibb	Parsons
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between operational test mechanic and lead inspector education

There are a few differences between an operational test mechanic and a lead inspector in terms of educational background:

	Operational Test Mechanic	Lead Inspector
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 50%	Bachelor's Degree, 30%
Most common major	Mechanical Engineering	Business
Most common college	-	-

Operational test mechanic vs lead inspector demographics

Here are the differences between operational test mechanics' and lead inspectors' demographics:

	Operational Test Mechanic	Lead Inspector
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 92.1% Female, 7.9%	Male, 76.9% Female, 23.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 7.6% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between operational test mechanic and lead inspector duties and responsibilities

Operational test mechanic example responsibilities.

Box build sub-assembly level by solder wire into connector, lead, and fan according to MPI and visuals aid.
Perform basic QC for components and complete system.
Provide construction and testing of electro-mechanical sub-assemblies for high quality medical equipment build from blueprints and schematics.
Ensure that daily automate regression testing is running and completing successfully.

Lead inspector example responsibilities.

Manage survey crews on prelim route survey, and HDD core sample crews.
Coordinate joint surveys with SATORP inspectors and manage clearance of all issue active LBE and NCR.
Authore numerous new corporate NDT procedures, update procedures and administer all NDE corporate activities.
Comply with all AS9100 and NADCAP requirements.
Inspect articles to correct design, tooling and jigs.
Total of 7 HDD crossings and 2 major highway crossings.

Operational test mechanic vs lead inspector skills

Common operational test mechanic skills

R, 44%
Functional Test, 38%
QC, 18%

Common lead inspector skills

NDT, 7%
API, 6%
NDE, 5%
Inspection Reports, 5%
III, 5%
Corrective Action, 4%

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Operational Test Mechanic
Operational Test Mechanic vs Lead Inspector

Updated January 8, 2025

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