Polishing machine operator vs set-up operator

The differences between polishing machine operators and set-up operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a polishing machine operator and a set-up operator. Additionally, a set-up operator has an average salary of $39,269, which is higher than the $33,810 average annual salary of a polishing machine operator.

The top three skills for a polishing machine operator include safety policies, grinding wheels and machine operation. The most important skills for a set-up operator are calipers, cnc machines, and hand tools.

Polishing machine operator vs set-up operator overview

	Polishing Machine Operator	Set-Up Operator
Yearly salary	$33,810	$39,269
Hourly rate	$16.25	$18.88
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	58,159	55,670
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 51%	High School Diploma, 44%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

Polishing machine operator vs set-up operator salary

Polishing machine operators and set-up operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Polishing Machine Operator	Set-Up Operator
Average salary	$33,810	$39,269
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $43,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	-	Rochester, NY
Highest paying state	-	New York
Best paying company	-	Schneider Electric Industrial Services
Best paying industry	-	Automotive

Differences between polishing machine operator and set-up operator education

There are a few differences between a polishing machine operator and a set-up operator in terms of educational background:

	Polishing Machine Operator	Set-Up Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 51%	High School Diploma, 44%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Polishing machine operator vs set-up operator demographics

Here are the differences between polishing machine operators' and set-up operators' demographics:

	Polishing Machine Operator	Set-Up Operator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 88.9% Female, 11.1%	Male, 85.6% Female, 14.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 6.0% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 6.0% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between polishing machine operator and set-up operator duties and responsibilities

Polishing machine operator example responsibilities.

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.

Set-up operator example responsibilities.

Manage daily scheduling of production workload to be setup and run on machinery.
Use and replacement of drills, taps, broaches, and reamers.
Manufacture parts according to blueprints, work with stainless steel aluminum, brass and plastics.
Machine parts to specifications, using machine tools, such as lathes, milling machines, or grinders.
Use of exact measuring instruments as CMM, optical comparators, mics, bore gauges and many other tools.
Produce parts from different materials such as cold roll steel, stainless steel, no lead brass and regular brass.

Polishing machine operator vs set-up operator skills

Common polishing machine operator skills

Safety Policies, 41%
Grinding Wheels, 18%
Machine Operation, 16%
Safety Standards, 11%
Stainless Steel, 6%
Load Trucks, 3%

Common set-up operator skills

Calipers, 9%
CNC Machines, 7%
Hand Tools, 7%
Math, 6%
Quality Checks, 6%
Preventative Maintenance, 6%

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Production and Manufacturing Industry
Polishing Machine Operator
Polishing Machine Operator vs Set-Up Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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