Career
Extruding, forming, pressing, and compacting machine setters, operators, and tenders
Run machines that form and press materials.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Adjust machine components to regulate speeds, pressures, and temperatures, and amounts, dimensions, and flow of materials or ingredients.
- Press control buttons to activate machinery and equipment.
- Examine, measure, and weigh materials or products to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as templates, micrometers, or scales.
- Monitor machine operations and observe lights and gauges to detect malfunctions.
- Clear jams, and remove defective or substandard materials or products.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Adjust machine components to regulate speeds, pressures, and temperatures, and amounts, dimensions, and flow of materials or ingredients.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Monitoring, Speaking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though moderate-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $45,760 a year and 5,200 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- NO MATCHCIP 99.9999
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers$46,350 · -3.3%
- Machine Feeders and Offbearers$41,220 · -13.1%
- Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$46,570 · -0.9%
- Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$50,270 · -3.6%
- Adhesive Bonding Machine Operators and Tenders$46,460 · +1.3%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.