Skip navigation

Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic - 51-4031.00

O*NET-SOC Description

Set up, operate, or tend machines to saw, cut, shear, slit, punch, crimp, notch, bend, or straighten metal or plastic material.

Sample of Reported Job Titles

  • Die Setter
  • Fabrication Operator
  • Machine Operator
  • Machine Setter
  • Press Operator
  • Punch Press Operator
  • Saw Operator
  • Set-Up Operator
  • Slitter Operator

SOC Occupation Groups

51-0000 Production Occupations
51-4000 Metal Workers and Plastic Workers
51-4030 Machine Tool Cutting Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
51-4031.00 Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Related Occupations

Tasks

  • Adjust ram strokes of presses to specified lengths, using hand tools.
  • Clean and lubricate machines.
  • Clean work area.
  • Examine completed workpieces for defects, such as chipped edges or marred surfaces and sort defective pieces according to types of flaws.
  • Grind out burrs or sharp edges, using portable grinders, speed lathes, or polishing jacks.
  • Hand-form, cut, or finish workpieces, using tools such as table saws, hand sledges, or anvils.
  • Hone cutters with oilstones to remove nicks.
  • Install, align, and lock specified punches, dies, cutting blades, or other fixtures in rams or beds of machines, using gauges, templates, feelers, shims, and hand tools.
  • Load workpieces, plastic material, or chemical solutions into machines.
  • Lubricate workpieces with oil.
  • Mark identifying data on workpieces.
  • Measure completed workpieces to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometers, gauges, calipers, templates, or rulers.
  • Operate forklifts to deliver materials.
  • Place workpieces on cutting tables, manually or using hoists, cranes, or sledges.
  • Plan sequences of operations, applying knowledge of physical properties of workpiece materials.
  • Position guides, stops, holding blocks, or other fixtures to secure and direct workpieces, using hand tools and measuring devices.
  • Position, align, and secure workpieces against fixtures or stops on machine beds or on dies.
  • Preheat workpieces, using heating furnaces or hand torches.
  • Read work orders or production schedules to determine specifications, such as materials to be used, locations of cutting lines, or dimensions and tolerances.
  • Remove housings, feed tubes, tool holders, or other accessories to replace worn or broken parts, such as springs or bushings.
  • Replace defective blades or wheels, using hand tools.
  • Scribe reference lines on workpieces as guides for cutting operations, according to blueprints, templates, sample parts, or specifications.
  • Select, clean, and install spacers, rubber sleeves, or cutters on arbors.
  • Set blade tensions, heights, and angles to perform prescribed cuts, using wrenches.
  • Set stops on machine beds, change dies, and adjust components, such as rams or power presses, when making multiple or successive passes.
  • Set up, operate, or tend machines to saw, cut, shear, slit, punch, crimp, notch, bend, or straighten metal or plastic material.
  • Sharpen dulled blades, using bench grinders, abrasive wheels, or lathes.
  • Start machines, monitor their operations, and record operational data.
  • Test and adjust machine speeds or actions, according to product specifications, using gauges and hand tools.
  • Thread ends of metal coils from reels through slitters and secure ends on recoilers.
  • Turn controls to set cutting speeds, feed rates, or table angles for specified operations.
  • Turn valves to start flow of coolant against cutting areas or to start airflow that blows cuttings away from kerfs.

Detailed Work Activities

  • Adjust equipment controls to regulate coolant flow.
  • Align parts or workpieces to ensure proper assembly.
  • Apply lubricants or coolants to workpieces.
  • Clean production equipment.
  • Clean work areas.
  • Cut industrial materials in preparation for fabrication or processing.
  • Disassemble equipment for maintenance or repair.
  • Draw guide lines or markings on materials or workpieces using patterns or other references.
  • Feed materials or products into or through equipment.
  • Heat material or workpieces to prepare for or complete production.
  • Inspect metal, plastic, or composite products.
  • Inspect production equipment.
  • Load materials into production equipment.
  • Lubricate production equipment.
  • Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information.
  • Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
  • Monitor equipment operation to ensure that products are not flawed.
  • Mount attachments or tools onto production equipment.
  • Mount materials or workpieces onto production equipment.
  • Operate cutting equipment.
  • Operate forklifts or other loaders.
  • Operate grinding equipment.
  • Operate metal or plastic forming equipment.
  • Plan production or operational procedures or sequences.
  • Read work orders or other instructions to determine product specifications or materials requirements.
  • Record operational or production data.
  • Remove accessories, tools, or other parts from equipment.
  • Replace worn equipment components.
  • Review blueprints or other instructions to determine operational methods or sequences.
  • Select production equipment according to product specifications.
  • Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
  • Set equipment guides, stops, spacers, or other fixtures.
  • Sharpen cutting or grinding tools.
  • Smooth metal surfaces or edges.
  • Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading.

Military Crosswalk Titles

  • Advanced Machinery Repairman (Navy - Enlisted)
  • Aircraft Structural Maintenance (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Aircraft Structural Maintenance Apprentice (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Aircraft Structural Maintenance Craftsman (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Aircraft Structural Maintenance Helper (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Aircraft Structural Maintenance Journeyman (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Allied Trades Specialist (Army - Enlisted)
  • Aviation Maintenance Technician (Coast Guard - Enlisted)
  • Low Observable Aircraft Structural Maintenance (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Low Observable Aircraft Structural Maintenance Apprentice (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Low Observable Aircraft Structural Maintenance Craftsman (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Low Observable Aircraft Structural Maintenance Helper (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Low Observable Aircraft Structural Maintenance Journeyman (Air Force - Enlisted)
  • Machinery Repairman (Navy - Enlisted)
  • Machinery Repairman Apprentice (Navy - Enlisted)
  • Machinery Repairman Journeyman (Navy - Enlisted)
  • Machinery Technician (Coast Guard - Enlisted)
  • Machinist (Marine Corps - Enlisted)
  • Marine Safety Specialist Engineer (Coast Guard - Warrant Officer only)
  • Naval Engineering Specialty (Coast Guard - Warrant Officer only)
  • Rubber and Plastics Worker (Navy - Enlisted)

Apprenticeship Crosswalk Titles

  • Press Operator Heavy Duty
  • Spring Coiling Machine Set

DOT Crosswalk Titles

  • Angle Shear Operator
  • Arbor-Press Operator I
  • Automobile-Bumper Straightener
  • Banding-Machine Operator
  • Bench-Shear Operator
  • Bending-Machine Operator I
  • Bending-Machine Operator II
  • Beveler
  • Brake Operator I
  • Brake Operator II
  • Center-Punch Operator
  • Clearance Cutter
  • Coil Shaper
  • Contour-Band-Saw Operator, Vertical
  • Corner Former
  • Cut-Off Saw Tender, Metal
  • Cut-Off-Machine Operator
  • Cut-Off-Saw Operator, Metal
  • Debridging-Machine Operator
  • Die Set-Up Operator, Printed Circuit Boards
  • Duplicator-Punch Operator
  • Flying-Shear Operator
  • Hammer Operator
  • Ironworker-Machine Operator
  • Jigsawyer
  • Kick Press Setter
  • Kick-Press Operator I
  • Last Sawyer
  • Metallic-Yarn-Slitting-Machine Operator
  • Mottle-Lay-Up Operator
  • Nibbler Operator
  • Planisher
  • Plate Slitter-And-Inspector
  • Power-Press Tender
  • Press Operator, Heavy Duty
  • Press Operator, Pierce And Shave
  • Press Setter
  • Profile Trimmer
  • Profile-Saw Operator
  • Punch-Press Operator I
  • Punch-Press Operator II
  • Punch-Press Operator III
  • Punch-Press Operator, Automatic
  • Punch-Press Setter
  • Rotary-Shear Operator
  • Saw Operator
  • Sawyer
  • Scraper
  • Screwmaker, Automatic
  • Shear Operator I
  • Shear Operator II
  • Shear Setter
  • Sintering-Press Operator
  • Slasher
  • Slat Twister
  • Slitter Service and Setter
  • Slitting-Machine Operator II
  • Spring Coiling Machine Setter
  • Spring Tester I
  • Straightening-Press Operator II
  • Strip-Metal-Punch-And-Straightener Operator
  • Swage Tender
  • Swaging-Machine Adjuster
  • Trim-Machine Adjuster
  • Trimmer, Printed Circuit Board Panels
  • Tube Bender, Brass-Wind Instruments
  • Tubing-Machine Tender
  • Turret-Punch-Press Operator
  • Turret-Punch-Press Operator, Tape-Control
  • Twisting-Machine Operator
  • Wire Coiner