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Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers
Use hand-welding, flame-cutting, hand-soldering, or brazing equipment to weld or join metal components or to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products.
Also Known As:
Assembly Line Brazer
Brazer
Fabrication Welder
MIG Welder (Metal Inert Gas Welder)
Maintenance Welder
Solderer
TIG Welder (Tungsten Inert Gas Welder)
Welder
Welder Fitter
Wirer
Wages
Annual wages for Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
467,200
2% Change From 2024
Explore Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
- Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.
- Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.
- Prepare all material surfaces to be welded, ensuring that there is no loose or thick scale, slag, rust, moisture, grease, or other foreign matter.
- Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.
- Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
- Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
- Melt and apply solder along adjoining edges of workpieces to solder joints, using soldering irons, gas torches, or electric-ultrasonic equipment.
- Repair products by dismantling, straightening, reshaping, and reassembling parts, using cutting torches, straightening presses, and hand tools.
- Develop templates and models for welding projects, using mathematical calculations based on blueprint information.
- Connect and turn regulator valves to activate and adjust gas flow and pressure so that desired flames are obtained.
- Align and clamp workpieces together, using rules, squares, or hand tools, or position items in fixtures, jigs, or vises.
- Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.
- Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.
- Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
- Preheat workpieces prior to welding or bending, using torches or heating furnaces.
- Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
- Guide and direct flames or electrodes on or across workpieces to straighten, bend, melt, or build up metal.
- Melt and apply solder to fill holes, indentations, or seams of fabricated metal products, using soldering equipment.
- Use fire suppression methods in industrial emergencies.
- Detect faulty operation of equipment or defective materials and notify supervisors.
- Recognize, set up, and operate hand and power tools common to the welding trade, such as shielded metal arc and gas metal arc welding equipment.
- Weld components in flat, vertical, or overhead positions.
- Determine required equipment and welding methods, applying knowledge of metallurgy, geometry, and welding techniques.
- Set up and use ladders and scaffolding as necessary to complete work.
- Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.
- Clean or degrease parts, using wire brushes, portable grinders, or chemical baths.
- Hammer out bulges or bends in metal workpieces.
- Check grooves, angles, or gap allowances, using micrometers, calipers, and precision measuring instruments.
- Ignite torches or start power supplies and strike arcs by touching electrodes to metals being welded, completing electrical circuits.
- Weld separately or in combination, using aluminum, stainless steel, cast iron, and other alloys.
- Position and secure workpieces, using hoists, cranes, wire, and banding machines or hand tools.
- Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.
- Operate safety equipment and use safe work habits.
- Select and install torches, torch tips, filler rods, and flux, according to welding chart specifications or types and thicknesses of metals.
- Monitor the fitting, burning, and welding processes to avoid overheating of parts or warping, shrinking, distortion, or expansion of material.
- Grind, cut, buff, or bend edges of workpieces to be joined to ensure snug fit, using power grinders and hand tools.
- Examine workpieces for defects and measure workpieces with straightedges or templates to ensure conformance with specifications.
- Mark or tag material with proper job number, piece marks, and other identifying marks as required.
- Chip or grind off excess weld, slag, or spatter, using hand scrapers or power chippers, portable grinders, or arc-cutting equipment.
- Operate metal shaping, straightening, and bending machines, such as brakes and shears.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")