Weigh, measure, and check materials, supplies, and equipment for the purpose of keeping relevant records. Duties are primarily clerical by nature. Includes workers who collect and keep record of samples of products or materials.
U.S. Workers
49,720
Median Salary
$45,650
10-Year Growth
-4.8%
Annual Openings
5,300
Typical entry: High school diploma or equivalent
22 of 22 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.
Compare product labels, tags, or tickets, shipping manifests, purchase orders, and bills of lading to verify accuracy of shipment contents, quality specifications, or weights.
AI: Fully automatable - OCR, document-processing AI and rules-based reconciliation systems can compare labels, manifests and orders to verify shipment accuracy and flag mismatches.
Document quantity, quality, type, weight, test result data, and value of materials or products to maintain shipping, receiving, and production records and files.
AI: Fully automatable - Documenting quantities, weights, test results and related shipping/receiving records can be fully automated by integrating sensors, testing equipment, and AI data‑processing into record systems.
Weigh or measure materials, equipment, or products to maintain relevant records, using volume meters, scales, rules, or calipers.
AI: Fully automatable - Automated scales, calipers, volume meters and integrated data-logging systems can reliably take measurements and record them without human intervention in most industrial settings.
Collect or prepare measurement, weight, or identification labels and attach them to products.
AI: Fully automatable - Label printers, automated applicators and robotic arms are commonly used to prepare and affix identification and weight labels across many production lines.
Inspect products and examination records to determine the number of defects per worker and the reasons for examiners' rejections.
AI: Fully automatable - AI and analytics can aggregate inspection records, count defects per worker, and classify common rejection reasons to produce the required metrics and summaries.
Store samples of finished products in labeled cartons and record their location.
AI: Fully automatable - Automated storage and retrieval systems and warehouse management software can place labeled sample cartons into storage and record their locations without manual input.
Signal or instruct other workers to weigh, move, or check products.
AI: Fully automatable - Workflow systems, IoT signals and automated alerts can reliably instruct or notify workers and equipment to weigh, move, or check products.
Maintain financial records, such as accounts of daily collections and billings, and records of receipts issued.
AI: Fully automatable - Maintaining financial records (daily collections, billings, receipts) is routinely automated by accounting systems and AI-driven bookkeeping tools that can record, reconcile, and generate receipts.
Count or estimate quantities of materials, parts, or products received or shipped.
AI: Fully automatable - Counting or estimating quantities is readily automated using vision systems, weight sensors, barcodes/RFID, and inventory software that accurately tally received or shipped items.
Communicate with customers and vendors to exchange information regarding products, materials, and services.
AI: Fully automatable - Routine communication with customers and vendors about products, materials, and services can be fully handled by AI chat/email automation and workflow systems for most standard interactions.
Compute product totals and charges for shipments.
AI: Fully automatable - Computing product totals and charges for shipments is a deterministic calculation that current software and AI can perform reliably given the inputs (weights, rates, taxes, discounts).
Operate scalehouse computers to obtain weight information about incoming shipments such as those from waste haulers.
AI: Fully automatable - Operating scalehouse computers and ingesting weight data from incoming shipments is a straightforward automated integration task that existing systems can fully perform.
Sort products or materials into predetermined sequences or groupings for display, packing, shipping, or storage.
AI: Fully automatable - Sorting products or materials into predetermined groupings is widely automated using conveyors, barcode/RFID systems, and vision-guided robotic sorters for most standardized operations.
Prepare measurement tables and conversion charts, using standard formulas.
AI: Fully automatable - Preparing measurement tables and conversion charts using standard formulas is fully automatable by software and AI that can calculate and format such tables on demand.
Remove from stock products or loads not meeting quality standards, and notify supervisors or appropriate departments of discrepancies or shortages.
AI: Partial - Automated reject mechanisms and conveyors can segregate nonconforming items in many facilities, but physical removal and complex disposition decisions often still require human action.
Examine products or materials, parts, subassemblies, and packaging for damage, defects, or shortages, using specification sheets, gauges, and standards charts.
AI: Partial - Machine vision and gauges can detect many defects against specifications, but tactile inspections and complex or rare defect types still often require human judgment.
Inspect incoming loads of waste to identify contents and to screen for the presence of specific regulated or hazardous wastes.
AI: Partial - AI and sensor/computer-vision systems can assist in screening and flagging likely hazardous wastes, but reliable, exhaustive identification of regulated or hazardous contents still requires physical sampling and human regulatory judgment.
Fill orders for products and samples, following order tickets, and forward or mail items.
AI: Partial - Order filling can be partially automated—warehouse robotics and pick/pack systems handle many fulfillment tasks—but end-to-end automation (especially for varied, small-scale, or delicate items) is not yet universal.
Collect product samples and prepare them for laboratory analysis or testing.
AI: Partial - Laboratory automation and robotic sample-prep systems handle many routine sampling tasks, but varied field sampling and complex preparation still commonly need human involvement.
Transport materials, products, or samples to processing, shipping, or storage areas, manually or using conveyors, pumps, or hand trucks.
AI: Partial - Material transport is partially automatable—conveyors and autonomous mobile robots handle much internal transport—but manual handling remains necessary in many contexts and environments.
Maintain, monitor, and clean work areas, such as recycling collection sites, drop boxes, counters and windows, and areas around scale houses.
AI: Partial - Robotic cleaners and monitoring sensors can perform routine cleaning and monitoring, but full maintenance and detailed cleaning of varied sites remain partially manual.
Unload or unpack incoming shipments.
AI: Partial - Unloading and unpacking are physical manual tasks that require dexterity and on-site presence—some robotics exist but AI alone cannot fully perform them reliably across contexts as of 2025.