Set up technician vs fabrication technician

The differences between set up technicians and fabrication technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a set up technician has an average salary of $36,486, which is higher than the $35,582 average annual salary of a fabrication technician.

The top three skills for a set up technician include hand tools, CNC and safety procedures. The most important skills for a fabrication technician are hand tools, math, and customer service.

Set up technician vs fabrication technician overview

	Set Up Technician	Fabrication Technician
Yearly salary	$36,486	$35,582
Hourly rate	$17.54	$17.11
Growth rate	10%	14%
Number of jobs	53,072	109,734
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	Associate Degree, 29%
Average age	42	44
Years of experience	2	-

What does a set up technician do?

Set up technicians are skilled employees who assemble and disassemble manufacturing machines as well as perform preventative maintenance to ensure that the manufacturing firm can produce high-quality products. These technicians must inspect products so that they can locate malfunctions in machine operations and then inform their supervisor about the repairs needed. They must observe production equipment to ensure its correct operation and collaborate with the engineering team to adjust the equipment when needed. Set up technicians must also assist in teaching new operators about the firm's standard operating procedures of production equipment.

What does a fabrication technician do?

Fabrication technicians are skilled employees who are responsible for using specialized equipment to assemble components for a variety of products or finished products. These technicians are required to perform inspections on the tools and mechanical equipment as well as provide maintenance and repair. They are required to complete the assembly of equipment by following the engineering drawings and specifications. Fabrication technicians must also follow established safety procedures when maintaining work areas and troubleshooting problems with machinery.

Set up technician vs fabrication technician salary

Set up technicians and fabrication technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Set Up Technician	Fabrication Technician
Average salary	$36,486	$35,582
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $46,000	Between $26,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	Manchester, NH	San Jose, CA
Highest paying state	New York	North Dakota
Best paying company	Zoetis	Westinghouse Appliances Australia
Best paying industry	Professional	Finance

Differences between set up technician and fabrication technician education

There are a few differences between a set up technician and a fabrication technician in terms of educational background:

	Set Up Technician	Fabrication Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 39%	Associate Degree, 29%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Set up technician vs fabrication technician demographics

Here are the differences between set up technicians' and fabrication technicians' demographics:

	Set Up Technician	Fabrication Technician
Average age	42	44
Gender ratio	Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9%	Male, 85.1% Female, 14.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 8.9% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 12.9% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 9.6% White, 55.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	11%	5%

Differences between set up technician and fabrication technician duties and responsibilities

Set up technician example responsibilities.

Manage daily scheduling of production workload to be setup and run on machinery.
Follow OSHA, ISO, and FDA requirement and standards
Core team member in SPC and QSI introductions.
Set up machine and facilities for UV screen coating.
Maintain running UV press, flip paper, unload orders.
Set up and maintain extrusion equipment to run at maximum efficiency.

Fabrication technician example responsibilities.

Use of mig and tig welders, plasma cutter, chop see, band see and drill press.
Lift or move material and finish products using large over head cranes or hoists.
Weld with stick mig flux cor stainless rods.
Form, fabricate and assemble commercial HVAC duct work systems.
Train and operate several pieces of fab equipment, i.e.
Operate laser and turret machines to cut hoods for transformers.

Set up technician vs fabrication technician skills

Common set up technician skills

Hand Tools, 8%
CNC, 6%
Safety Procedures, 5%
Quality Standards, 5%
Preventative Maintenance, 5%
Math, 4%

Common fabrication technician skills

Hand Tools, 10%
Math, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
CNC, 5%
Calipers, 5%
OSHA, 5%

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Set Up Technician vs Fabrication Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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