Control or tend conveyors or conveyor systems that move materials or products to and from stockpiles, processing stations, departments, or vehicles. May control speed and routing of materials or products.
U.S. Workers
26,060
Median Salary
$41,230
10-Year Growth
-3.4%
Annual Openings
2,600
Typical entry: No formal educational credential
23 of 23 tasks have some AI capability
Exposure Trend
This score reflects estimated AI technical capability for tasks in this occupation. It does not predict employment changes, and it does not account for company-specific constraints, regulation, or adoption barriers.
Observe packages moving along conveyors to identify packages, detect defective packaging, and perform quality control.
AI: Fully automatable - Computer vision systems powered by AI reliably identify packages and many packaging defects on conveyors and are widely deployed for automated quality control.
Inform supervisors of equipment malfunctions that need to be addressed.
AI: Fully automatable - Monitoring systems and AI anomaly detection can automatically detect equipment faults and notify supervisors or maintenance systems without human intermediaries.
Position deflector bars, gates, chutes, or spouts to divert flow of materials from one conveyor onto another conveyor.
AI: Fully automatable - Automated diverters, gates and sortation systems are common and can be positioned and controlled by AI and PLCs to route material flows without human action in typical facilities.
Observe conveyor operations and monitor lights, dials, and gauges to maintain specified operating levels and to detect equipment malfunctions.
AI: Fully automatable - Sensor arrays and computer vision systems coupled with AI can continuously observe conveyor operations and detect deviations from specified operating levels and malfunctions.
Record production data such as weights, types, quantities, and storage locations of materials, as well as equipment performance problems and downtime.
AI: Fully automatable - Automated instrumentation and integrated software systems can capture and log weights, types, quantities, locations, and downtime reliably for production tracking.
Manipulate controls, levers, and valves to start pumps, auxiliary equipment, or conveyors, and to adjust equipment positions, speeds, timing, and material flows.
AI: Fully automatable - Starting and adjusting pumps, conveyors and auxiliary equipment is routinely automated via PLCs and AI control systems that handle timing, speeds and flow adjustments.
Weigh or measure materials and products, using scales or other measuring instruments, or read scales on conveyors that continually weigh products, to verify specified tonnages and prevent overloads.
AI: Fully automatable - Weighing and measurement systems are straightforward to integrate with automation and can automatically read scales and enforce tonnage limits to prevent overloads.
Read production and delivery schedules, and confer with supervisors, to determine sorting and transfer procedures, arrangement of packages on pallets, and destinations of loaded pallets.
AI: Fully automatable - Warehouse management and planning algorithms can read schedules, compute sorting and transfer procedures and determine pallet arrangements and destinations in most standard operations.
Operate consoles to control automatic palletizing equipment.
AI: Fully automatable - Operating consoles for automatic palletizing is typically automated and can be managed by AI-driven controllers and supervisory systems in modern facilities.
Press console buttons to deflect packages to predetermined accumulators or reject lines.
AI: Fully automatable - Pressing console buttons to route packages is a routine sensor-to-actuator control task already performed by PLCs, machine-vision systems, and automated sortation systems.
Affix identifying information to materials or products, using hand tools.
AI: Fully automatable - Affixing identifying information is already widely automated with labelers, inkjet/thermal printers, and robotic applicators integrated into production lines.
Distribute materials, supplies, and equipment to work stations, using lifts and trucks.
AI: Fully automatable - Autonomous forklifts, AGVs and coordinated warehouse robots can already distribute materials and supplies to workstations in many industrial and warehousing environments.
Thread strapping through strapping tools and secure battens with strapping to form protective pallets around extrusions.
AI: Fully automatable - Threading strapping and securing battens on pallets is commonly automated by strapping machines and robotic palletizers in many production and shipping environments.
Contact workers in work stations or other departments to request movement of materials, products, or machinery, or to notify them of incoming shipments and their estimated delivery times.
AI: Fully automatable - Notifying or requesting moves from other workers can be fully automated via integrated warehouse management systems, messaging, and automated scheduling/ETA notifications.
Measure dimensions of bundles, using rulers, and cut battens to required sizes, using power saws.
AI: Fully automatable - Measuring and cutting to size can be fully automated using machine vision/metrology and programmed CNC or automated saws in industrial settings.
Operate elevator systems in conjunction with conveyor systems.
AI: Fully automatable - Coordinating elevators with conveyor systems is a deterministic control problem already handled by automated control systems and PLC logic.
Collect samples of materials or products, checking them to ensure conformance to specifications or sending them to laboratories for analysis.
AI: Partial - Automated sampling and AI-driven selection exist in some process industries, but physical sample collection and judgement about atypical samples remain frequently manual and context-dependent.
Repair or replace equipment components or parts such as blades, rolls, and pumps.
AI: Partial - AI can diagnose faults and some constrained robotic systems can replace components, but generalized repair and complex part replacement still require human skilled technicians.
Load, unload, or adjust materials or products on conveyors by hand, by using lifts, hoists, and scoops, or by opening gates, chutes, or hoppers.
AI: Partial - Robotic and mechanized solutions can perform some loading/unloading tasks but variability, delicate handling, and wide equipment diversity mean humans remain necessary in many situations as of 2025.
Stop equipment or machinery and clear jams, using poles, bars, and hand tools, or remove damaged materials from conveyors.
AI: Partial - AI and robotics can detect jams and perform automated clearing in structured setups, but unpredictable, varied or safety-sensitive jam-clearing tasks still often require human intervention.
Clean, sterilize, and maintain equipment, machinery, and work stations, using hand tools, shovels, brooms, chemicals, hoses, and lubricants.
AI: Partial - Cleaning and sterilizing has partial automation (floor cleaners, disinfection robots) but the full set of manual tools, ad-hoc maintenance, chemical handling, and varied environments still require human dexterity and judgement.
Move, assemble, and connect hoses or nozzles to material hoppers, storage tanks, conveyor sections or chutes, and pumps.
AI: Partial - Moving and connecting hoses/nozzles involves awkward, high-variability fittings and force-sensitive manipulation that today can be partially automated with fixtures or cobots but not fully generalized.
Join sections of conveyor frames at temporary working areas, and connect power units.
AI: Partial - Joining conveyor frame sections and connecting power units involves variable assembly, heavy lifting, and electrical hookup that currently require human skill and on-site judgement, though some sub-tasks can be automated.