Will AI replace Boilermakers?
Construction and Extraction · O*NET 47-2011.00
Task exposure index for this occupation
Averaged across the week, this work sits at the low end of the exposure scale — most of it is not the kind current systems do well. O*NET breaks Boilermakers into 17 distinct work activities. Weighted by how much of the week each one takes, 7% of the job sits at or above the threshold where current systems can do the task end to end. The single largest contributor is "Review blueprints or specifications to determine work requirements", which scores 72 and takes roughly 7% of the week. That is the average for the job title. It is not a measurement of any particular person’s week, and the difference between the two is usually larger than the difference between job titles.
Model v1.2 · activity indices last updated 18 August 2026
What this occupation does
Construct, assemble, maintain, and repair stationary steam boilers and boiler house auxiliaries. Align structures or plate sections to assemble boiler frame tanks or vats, following blueprints. Work involves use of hand and power tools, plumb bobs, levels, wedges, dogs, or turnbuckles. Assist in testing assembled vessels. Direct cleaning of boilers and boiler furnaces. Inspect and repair boiler fittings, such as safety valves, regulators, automatic-control mechanisms, water columns, and auxiliary machines.
The most exposed parts of the job
Scored 0–100 on how completely a current system could perform the activity.
- Review blueprints or specifications to determine work requirements.72
About 7% of a typical week
- Measure materials or objects for installation or assembly.43
About 2% of a typical week
- Signal equipment operators to indicate proper equipment positioning.36
About 2% of a typical week
- Test products for functionality or quality.34
About 4% of a typical week
- Inspect industrial or commercial equipment to ensure proper operation.34
About 15% of a typical week
The least exposed parts
The same scale. These are the activities current systems handle worst.
- Install gauges or controls.5
About 5% of a typical week
- Assemble products or production equipment.5
About 7% of a typical week
- Weld metal components.5
About 10% of a typical week
- Install metal structural components.5
About 2% of a typical week
- Install masonry materials.5
About 3% of a typical week
How far off the rest is
Of those 17 activities, 1 can be performed by systems available today and 14 are outside what current approaches do at all. The remaining 2 sit in between — demonstrated in research or in narrow products, but not something you can hand over whole. We do not put dates on that middle group, because nobody can.
Compared with similar occupations
The nearest scoring roles in Construction and Extraction.
- Boilermakers (this page)21
- Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas21
- Brickmasons and Blockmasons21
- Tile and Stone Setters21
Why your own number is different
Two people with the title "Boilermakers" can spend their weeks on almost entirely different parts of this list, and the parts they choose move the number far more than the title does. Who signs off when the work is wrong, whether the job needs you physically present, and how fast you have picked up the tools all change it again — and none of that is in an occupation average.
The assessment asks you to divide your own week across these activities and answer fourteen questions about the parts of the job an occupation average cannot see. It takes six to nine minutes.
Score my own roleFree to take. The full report is a paid subscription — the price and its terms are on the pricing section, before you start.
Questions
Will AI replace Boilermakers?
We do not answer that, because nobody can. What is measurable is how much of the work is already doable by machine: for Boilermakers, about 7% of a typical week, across 17 activities. The other 93% is not, and what happens to the job depends on things this index does not contain — cost, regulation, who carries the liability, and what the people doing it decide to do next.
What part of this job is most exposed?
"Review blueprints or specifications to determine work requirements" — it scores 72 out of 100 on task automatability and takes roughly 7% of the week.
What part is least exposed?
"Install gauges or controls", at 5 out of 100. Work like that is where the hours you protect tend to be worth the most.
Where do these numbers come from?
The activity list and the time weights come from O*NET 30.3, the US Department of Labor's occupational database. The exposure score for each activity is ours, from a published model — the weights, the priors and the limitations are all on the methodology page. No language model is involved in the arithmetic.
Does this apply to my job?
Only roughly. This is the average for the title, and the number that matters is the one for the week you actually work. The assessment asks you to divide your own time across these activities and answer fourteen questions about accountability, the parts of the job that need you specifically, and how fast you have adapted. That produces a different number, and usually a more useful one.
The full model — the weights, the priors and what it cannot see — is on the methodology page.