Plastic technician vs composite technician

The differences between plastic technicians and composite technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a plastic technician has an average salary of $36,725, which is higher than the $33,380 average annual salary of a composite technician.

The top three skills for a plastic technician include hand tools, grinders and extrusion. The most important skills for a composite technician are hand tools, calipers, and composite materials.

Plastic technician vs composite technician overview

	Plastic Technician	Composite Technician
Yearly salary	$36,725	$33,380
Hourly rate	$17.66	$16.05
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	6,368	24,674
Job satisfaction	-	3.5
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	High School Diploma, 32%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Plastic technician vs composite technician salary

Plastic technicians and composite technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Plastic Technician	Composite Technician
Average salary	$36,725	$33,380
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $47,000	Between $25,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	-	Lincoln, NE
Highest paying state	-	Oregon
Best paying company	-	Aurora Flight Sciences
Best paying industry	-	Start-up

Differences between plastic technician and composite technician education

There are a few differences between a plastic technician and a composite technician in terms of educational background:

	Plastic Technician	Composite Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	High School Diploma, 32%
Most common major	Business	Aviation
Most common college	-	-

Plastic technician vs composite technician demographics

Here are the differences between plastic technicians' and composite technicians' demographics:

	Plastic Technician	Composite Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6%	Male, 84.0% Female, 16.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.3% Asian, 7.8% White, 58.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 22.9% Asian, 8.4% White, 54.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between plastic technician and composite technician duties and responsibilities

Plastic technician example responsibilities.

Manage utilization of LOTO procedures, GMP standards and OSHA safety standards.
Melt and apply solder along edges of work pieces to solder joints using soldering irons and gas torches.
Operate various plastic sheet extrusion machines to supply the thermoforming department.
Maintain ISO standards, training, meetings, and safety procedures.
Operate and maintain material dryers and resin systems to include regrind during the shift.
Perform and record require checks on dryers, material blending and resin systems and react to out of spec conditions.

Composite technician example responsibilities.

Manage utilization of LOTO procedures, GMP standards and OSHA safety standards.
Fabricate parts from stock maintaining alloy, heat treat, surface finish including aluminum, stainless steel and titanium.
Complete courses on OSHA requirements.
Maintain MSDS and other OSHA relate paperwork.
Be aware FOD and other hazards when working with chemicals.
Inspect every layer to ensure that they are all FOD free.

Plastic technician vs composite technician skills

Common plastic technician skills

Hand Tools, 21%
Grinders, 16%
Extrusion, 16%
Process Adjustments, 14%
Color Changes, 14%
ABS, 9%

Common composite technician skills

Hand Tools, 14%
Calipers, 9%
Composite Materials, 7%
Engineering Drawings, 6%
Grinders, 4%
Autoclaves, 4%

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Plastic Technician
Plastic Technician vs Composite Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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