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Maintain tools or equipment

Work activity · O*NET

Maintain tools or equipment is an intermediate work activity in the O*NET database — a concrete task that recurs across many occupations , grouped under Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment. 166 occupations report doing it as part of their work.

What it involves

The most common detailed activities O*NET records under this category, ranked by how many occupation tasks map to each.

  • Maintain production or processing equipment
  • Maintain work equipment or machinery
  • Lubricate production equipment
  • Lubricate equipment to allow proper functioning
  • Maintain mechanical equipment
  • Clear equipment jams
  • Maintain construction tools or equipment
  • Sharpen cutting or grinding tools

How AI is applied to this activity

Microsoft's "Working with AI" study mapped real Bing Copilot conversations to O*NET work activities. The figures below are their measurements for this activity — they describe how AI is used today in one assistant's data, not a forecast that the activity will be automated.

AI completes it successfully 98.5% When Copilot attempts this activity, how often it finishes the task
Scope AI handles 27.6% How much of the activity AI carries within a conversation
Positive user feedback 76.9% Share of interactions users rated positively
How often AI is applied here 50th pct Percentile across all measured activities by how often AI performs them

Source: Microsoft "Working with AI" (working-with-ai). A high completion rate means AI can assist the activity in isolation — it does not mean an occupation that performs it is being automated, since every job blends many activities.

Detailed work activities

The more granular units of work O*NET groups under this activity, ordered by how many occupations perform them.

Occupations that perform this activity

Ranked by how many of the occupation's tasks map to this activity.

Occupation Tasks
Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 4
Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators 4
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood 4
Agricultural Equipment Operators 3
Electro-Mechanical and Mechatronics Technologists and Technicians 3
Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers 3
First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers 3
Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders 3
Hydroelectric Plant Technicians 3
Maintenance and Repair Workers, General 3
Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines 3
Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 3
Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 3
Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 3
Power Plant Operators 3
Robotics Technicians 3
Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas 3
Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers 3
Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators 3
Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders 3
Adhesive Bonding Machine Operators and Tenders 2
Aircraft Service Attendants 2
Athletes and Sports Competitors 2
Biofuels Processing Technicians 2
Biomass Power Plant Managers 2
Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders 2
Coin, Vending, and Amusement Machine Servicers and Repairers 2
Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers 2
Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders 2
Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders 2
Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas 2
Electric Motor, Power Tool, and Related Repairers 2
Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters 2
Fishing and Hunting Workers 2
Forging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 2
Gas Plant Operators 2
Geothermal Production Managers 2
Geothermal Technicians 2
Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand 2
Helpers--Extraction Workers 2

Showing 40 of 166 occupations.

Exposure quadrant: AI task-overlap percentile vs Median pay AI task-overlap (horizontal) versus median pay (vertical), each as a percentile across all scored occupations, for 39 occupations in occupations that perform Maintain tools or equipment.. Overlap measures shared tasks with AI, not automation. Lower overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · higher pay Higher overlap · lower pay Lower overlap · lower pay Helpers--Extraction Workers Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters Agricultural Equipment Operators Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers Hydroelectric Plant Technicians Electric Motor, Power Tool, and Related Repairers First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers Gas Plant Operators Geothermal Technicians Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers Robotics Technicians Biomass Power Plant Managers AI task-overlap percentile → ↑ Median pay
Occupations that perform Maintain tools or equipment., by AI task-overlap and median pay

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

Cite this page
Plain

Singulariki. "Maintain tools or equipment." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/activities/maintain-tools-or-equipment

APA

Singulariki. (2026). Maintain tools or equipment. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/activities/maintain-tools-or-equipment

BibTeX 
@misc{singulariki-maintain-tools-or-equipment,
  title  = {Maintain tools or equipment},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/activities/maintain-tools-or-equipment}
}

Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.