Clean machinery or equipment.

Clean machinery or equipment. is a detailed work activity in O*NET — a concrete unit of work shared across 11 occupations and seen in 12 occupation-specific tasks. It rolls up into the broader work activity Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas. in Performing General Physical Activities .

Detailed work activities are the most granular shared layer in O*NET's work-activity hierarchy (Generalized → Intermediate → Detailed → occupation-specific task). The figures below describe how this activity shows up across the economy and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the work will be automated.

AI exposure

Of the 12 tasks under this activity that the OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rated, 0 (0%) are flagged as directly exposed to language models (E1) or exposed via model-powered tools (E2).

Exposure estimates overlap with model capabilities — whether a model could speed the task up — not whether the work will be done by software. Observed AI use is augmentation and assistance today, not jobs replaced.

Member tasks

Occupation-specific tasks O*NET maps to this detailed work activity, most important first.

• Clean and lubricate equipment, and make minor repairs and adjustments. · Bridge and Lock Tenders · importance 4.6 · no direct exposure
• Clean, lubricate, and maintain mechanisms such as cables, pulleys, or grappling devices, making repairs, as necessary. · Crane and Tower Operators · importance 4.3 · no direct exposure
• Clean engine parts and keep engine rooms clean. · Ship Engineers · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Clean, sterilize, and maintain equipment, machinery, and work stations, using hand tools, shovels, brooms, chemicals, hoses, and lubricants. · Conveyor Operators and Tenders · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Clean, lubricate, and repair pumps and vessels, using hand tools and equipment. · Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Clean and maintain machinery, equipment, and work areas to ensure proper functioning and safe working conditions. · Machine Feeders and Offbearers · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Clean parking areas, offices, restrooms, or equipment, and remove trash. · Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Clean hoppers, and clean spillage from tracks, walks, driveways, and conveyor decking. · Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Maintain trucks and food-dispensing equipment and clean inside of machines that dispense food or beverages. · Driver/Sales Workers · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Scrub, scrape, or spray machine parts, equipment, or vehicles, using scrapers, brushes, clothes, cleaners, disinfectants, insecticides, acid, abrasives, vacuums, or hoses. · Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Clean, lubricate, and adjust equipment, and replace filters and gaskets, using hand tools. · Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators · importance 3.8 · no direct exposure
• Pre-soak or rinse machine parts, equipment, or vehicles by immersing objects in cleaning solutions or water, manually or using hoists. · Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure

Occupations that perform this

• Bridge and Lock Tenders
• Crane and Tower Operators
• Ship Engineers
• Conveyor Operators and Tenders
• Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers
• Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants
• Machine Feeders and Offbearers
• Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining
• Driver/Sales Workers
• Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment
• Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators

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.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

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

@misc{singulariki-clean-machinery-or-equipment,
  title  = {Clean machinery or equipment.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/detailed-activities/clean-machinery-or-equipment}
}