Career summary

Details for Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators


Description

Operate equipment used for applying concrete, asphalt, or other materials to road beds, parking lots, or airport runways and taxiways, or equipment used for tamping gravel, dirt, or other materials. Includes concrete and asphalt paving machine operators, form tampers, tamping machine operators, and stone spreader operators.

Tasks

  • Start machine, engage clutch, and push and move levers to guide machine along forms or guidelines and to control the operation of machine attachments.
  • Inspect, clean, maintain, and repair equipment, using mechanics' hand tools, or report malfunctions to supervisors.
  • Operate machines to spread, smooth, level, or steel-reinforce stone, concrete, or asphalt on road beds.
  • Operate oil distributors, loaders, chip spreaders, dump trucks, and snow plows.
  • Coordinate truck dumping.
  • Set up and tear down equipment.
  • Operate tamping machines or manually roll surfaces to compact earth fills, foundation forms, and finished road materials, according to grade specifications.
  • Shovel blacktop.
  • Drive machines onto truck trailers, and drive trucks to transport machines and material to and from job sites.
  • Observe distribution of paving material to adjust machine settings or material flow, and indicate low spots for workers to add material.
  • Light burners or start heating units of machines, and regulate screed temperatures and asphalt flow rates.
  • Control paving machines to push dump trucks and to maintain a constant flow of asphalt or other material into hoppers or screeds.
  • Set up forms and lay out guidelines for curbs, according to written specifications, using string, spray paint, and concrete or water mixes.
  • Fill tanks, hoppers, or machines with paving materials.
  • Drive and operate curbing machines to extrude concrete or asphalt curbing.
  • Cut or break up pavement and drive guardrail posts, using machines equipped with interchangeable hammers.
  • Install dies, cutters, and extensions to screeds onto machines, using hand tools.
  • Operate machines that clean or cut expansion joints in concrete or asphalt and that rout out cracks in pavement.
  • Place strips of material, such as cork, asphalt, or steel into joints, or place rolls of expansion-joint material on machines that automatically insert material.
  • Control traffic.

Interests

  • Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Education, training, experience

  • Education - These occupations usually require a high school diploma.
  • Training - Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
  • Experience - Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Knowledge

  • Building and Construction -Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Skills

None found.

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