Millions of packages move around the country by a variety of means every day. The secure shipping and storing of goods relies on the workers who wrap them, label them, and box them up. Packaging and filling machine workers handle the machines that prepare industrial and consumer products for the marketplace and for transport, such as cannery workers who pack food products into cans that are then packaged together and shipped for sale. Paper goods machine operators set up and run equipment that cuts, corrugates, forms or seals paper or paperboard sheets into, or onto, products. These workers focus on the proper operation of the machines they tend to, they load materials into machines, operate machine controls, and monitor the production line for problems. They also prepare products for storage, shipment, or the next step in the production process. Machine operators may also keep records of production, malfunctions, and scrapped material. They keep equipment clean and well-maintained. Work schedules are typically 40 hours or more per week. Positions typically require a high school diploma or equivalent.
What they do:
Set up, operate, or tend paper goods machines that perform a variety of functions, such as converting, sawing, corrugating, banding, wrapping, boxing, stitching, forming, or sealing paper or paperboard sheets into products.
On the job, you would:
Examine completed work to detect defects and verify conformance to work orders, and adjust machinery as necessary to correct production problems.
Observe operation of various machines to detect and correct machine malfunctions such as improper forming, glue flow, or pasteboard tension.
Start machines and move controls to regulate tension on pressure rolls, to synchronize speed of machine components, and to adjust temperatures of glue or paraffin.
Manufactured or Agricultural Goods
manufacture and distribution of products
Engineering and Technology
mechanical
Math and Science
arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics
Arts and Humanities
English language
Basic Skills
keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Problem Solving
noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Hand and Finger Use
keep your arm or hand steady
hold or move items with your hands
Attention
pay attention to something without being distracted
People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.
They do well at jobs that need:
Dependability
Attention to Detail
Integrity
Initiative
Cooperation
Stress Tolerance
You might use software like this on the job:
Graphics or photo imaging software
Adobe Systems Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Systems Adobe Photoshop
Desktop publishing software
Adobe Systems Adobe InDesign
Quark enterprise publishing software
Spreadsheet software
Microsoft Excel
high school diploma/GED or no high school diploma/GED usually needed
Get started on your career:
New job opportunities are less likely in the future.
In the military:
see titles from the Army or Marine Corps.
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