Shape molten glass according to patterns.
U.S. Workers
34,750
Median Salary
$45,690
10-Year Growth
+6.2%
Annual Openings
5,500
Typical entry: High school diploma or equivalent
19 of 19 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.
Place glass into dies or molds of presses and control presses to form products, such as glassware components or optical blanks.
AI: Fully automatable - Industrial robots, PLCs and vision systems in 2025 can reliably place glass into molds and control presses for repeatable glass-forming operations in production settings.
Spray or swab molds with oil solutions to prevent adhesion of glass.
AI: Fully automatable - Automated spray systems and simple robotic applicators can perform mold-release spraying or swabbing reliably and safely at scale.
Heat glass to pliable stage, using gas flames or ovens and rotating glass to heat it uniformly.
AI: Fully automatable - Heating glass to a pliable stage and rotating it for uniform heating can be controlled automatically with furnaces and motorized rotation systems.
Inspect, weigh, and measure products to verify conformance to specifications, using instruments such as micrometers, calipers, magnifiers, or rulers.
AI: Fully automatable - Inspection, weighing, and measuring are highly automatable using machine vision, automated gauges, and coordinate measuring equipment.
Operate electric kilns that heat and mold glass sheets to the shape and curve of metal jigs.
AI: Fully automatable - Kiln temperature profiling and servo/robotic handling of jigs are well-supported by existing kiln controllers and automation for shaping glass sheets to jigs.
Determine types and quantities of glass required to fabricate products.
AI: Fully automatable - Determining glass types and quantities is a data-driven planning task that can be automated with BOMs, CAD nesting, and inventory systems.
Record manufacturing information, such as quantities, sizes, or types of goods produced.
AI: Fully automatable - Recording manufacturing data is easily automated by sensors, PLCs, and software systems for automatic logging and reporting.
Develop sketches of glass products into blueprint specifications, applying knowledge of glass technology and glass blowing.
AI: Fully automatable - Converting sketches into detailed blueprints and applying glass material/process knowledge can be fully automated today using CAD tools, generative design models, and domain knowledge encoded in AI systems.
Superimpose bent tubing on asbestos patterns to ensure accuracy.
AI: Fully automatable - Computer-vision systems can accurately superimpose and compare bent tubing to patterns to verify conformity, enabling full automation of the inspection/overlay task.
Cut lengths of tubing to specified sizes, using files or cutting wheels.
AI: Fully automatable - Cutting tubing to specified lengths is a straightforward, well‑solved automated operation using CNC tube cutters and robotic tooling.
Place rubber hoses on ends of tubing and charge tubing with gas.
AI: Fully automatable - Placing hoses on tubing ends and charging with gas are routine pick-and-place and valve-control operations that industrial automation and AI can fully handle.
Blow tubing into specified shapes to prevent glass from collapsing, using compressed air or own breath, or blow and rotate gathers in molds or on boards to obtain final shapes.
AI: Partial - Automated tubing manufacturing exists for standard profiles, but artisan glassblowing (freehand blowing and shaping) requires human skill and real-time tactile judgement that is not fully automated.
Set up and adjust machine press stroke lengths and pressures and regulate oven temperatures, according to glass types to be processed.
AI: Partial - Many press and oven parameters can be automated via recipes and closed-loop control, but mechanical setup and complex tuning still commonly require human technicians.
Shape, bend, or join sections of glass, using paddles, pressing and flattening hand tools, or cork.
AI: Partial - Standardized bending and joining can be automated, but manual shaping using paddles and hand tools remains a skilled, partially nonautomatable craft.
Design and create glass objects, using blowpipes and artisans' hand tools and equipment.
AI: Partial - AI can assist design and some automated fabrication, but creating glass objects with blowpipes and artisan hand tools remains primarily a human craft.
Place electrodes in tube ends and heat them with glass burners to fuse them into place.
AI: Partial - Specialized fixtures and robots can place and fuse electrodes in high-volume production, but many lab and custom operations still require manual dexterity and monitoring.
Operate and maintain finishing machines to grind, drill, sand, bevel, decorate, wash, or polish glass or glass products.
AI: Partial - Automated finishing machines exist for grinding, polishing and washing, yet operating adjustments and maintenance tasks still typically need human oversight and skill.
Repair broken scrolls by replacing them with new sections of tubing.
AI: Partial - Repairing broken glass tubing requires complex, high‑temperature, dexterous manipulation and tactile judgement that current AI/robotics can assist with but not reliably fully automate in general repair settings.
Strike necks of finished articles to separate articles from blowpipes.
AI: Partial - Striking necks to separate blown glass from blowpipes is a delicate, fast manual action requiring tactile timing and force control that is only partially automatable with specialized robotics.