Plastic technician vs plastic machine operator

The differences between plastic technicians and plastic machine operators 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 $31,802 average annual salary of a plastic machine operator.

The top three skills for a plastic technician include hand tools, grinders and extrusion. The most important skills for a plastic machine operator are quality checks, CNC, and provide technical assistance.

Plastic technician vs plastic machine operator overview

	Plastic Technician	Plastic Machine Operator
Yearly salary	$36,725	$31,802
Hourly rate	$17.66	$15.29
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	6,368	58,108
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	High School Diploma, 50%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	-	-

Plastic technician vs plastic machine operator salary

Plastic technicians and plastic machine operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Plastic Technician	Plastic Machine Operator
Average salary	$36,725	$31,802
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $47,000	Between $24,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	-	Vancouver, WA
Highest paying state	-	Alaska
Best paying company	-	Dart Container
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between plastic technician and plastic machine operator education

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

	Plastic Technician	Plastic Machine Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	High School Diploma, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Plastic technician vs plastic machine operator demographics

Here are the differences between plastic technicians' and plastic machine operators' demographics:

	Plastic Technician	Plastic Machine Operator
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6%	Male, 69.1% Female, 30.9%
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, 8.7% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 6.9% White, 60.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	3%	3%

Differences between plastic technician and plastic machine operator 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.

Plastic machine operator example responsibilities.

Assist in color die changes for use in maintaining plastic extrusion machines.
Operate pallet jacks and heavy machinery assembling bolts and nuts into car parts for Honda.
Record statistics on ISO documentation, and coordinate with machine technicians and electrical technicians to keep machines operating at maximum efficiency.
Participate in technical support and assist validation and QA department during equipment validation.

Plastic technician vs plastic machine operator skills

Common plastic technician skills

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

Common plastic machine operator skills

Quality Checks, 19%
CNC, 12%
Provide Technical Assistance, 11%
Mold Components, 9%
Lean Manufacturing, 8%
Safety Procedures, 6%

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Production and Manufacturing Industry
Plastic Technician
Plastic Technician vs Plastic Machine Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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