Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
Production
Drawings, sketches, or work orders determine the shape, the tools, and the order of cuts. Workpieces are aligned and secured with holding devices; heavier pieces may be placed with a hoist, then cutting tools and accessories are installed. Controls set the cut and start the machine, and the run is watched so adjustments keep the piece inside tolerance. After the cut, the part comes off and is checked with gauges, calipers, micrometers, or a microscope; worn tools are swapped and dull ones sharpened on a bench grinder. The job fits people who like positioning work carefully and cutting a profile to a measured specification.
Typical education: High School Diploma or GED
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$52'800
Median Wage Market Position
$52'800
What you might do
- Mill, plane, or shape metal and plastic parts
- Read layouts to plan grooves and cut order
- Hoist and clamp workpieces onto the machine
- Set feeds, line up the cutter, and start
- Watch the mill and hold the required tolerances
- Replace worn tools and sharpen them on grinders
Skills that matter
- Setting cutting specs and tool positions
- Checking finished pieces with gauges
- Watching runs stay inside tolerances
- Reading blueprints and work orders
- Installing and sharpening cutting tools
- Listening for setup and change instructions
AI & the future of this role
Routine machine setup, tool paths, and run monitoring are increasingly programmable, so software-guided equipment may absorb much of the day-to-day work. Hands-on fixturing, scrap diagnosis, and odd-job changeovers still matter, yet demand for purely manual tending looks softer.
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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