Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators
Production
Resin is mixed with a catalyst, then cloth and mats are saturated and pressed onto prepared molds by hand, brush, or squeegee so wrinkles and air pockets come out. Chopped fiberglass, resins, and catalysts can also be sprayed on with a pneumatic gun. On boats, wood strips are bonded into decks and cabins with resin-soaked fiberglass. Excess material is trimmed with shears or knives, and finished pieces are checked by measuring, looking, or tapping for bubbles and dead spots. Suits people who like close, tactile work with wet materials and spotting flaws before a piece leaves the mold.
Typical education: High School Diploma or GED
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$46'880
Median Wage Market Position
$46'880
What you might do
- Spray fiberglass and resin onto molds
- Press saturated cloth into place by hand
- Roll out air bubbles and smooth seams
- Mix catalyst into resin for the cloth
- Bond wood strips into boat decks
- Check finished pieces for bubbles and defects
Skills that matter
- Releasing bubbles and smoothing seams
- Reading specs for mats and resins
- Mixing catalysts into resins
- Fixing wrinkles and dead spots
- Talking through mold and layup issues
- Writing up material and defect notes
AI & the future of this role
Hand layup, mold work, and finish quality on irregular shapes remain hard to fully automate without costly custom cells. Materials and curing know-how still count, even as tooling and prep steps could gradually become more machine-assisted.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details