# Pourers and Casters, Metal

> Operate hand-controlled mechanisms to pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds to produce castings or ingots.

- **SOC code:** 51-4052.00
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-4052-00
- **Also known as:** Caster, Melter, Metal Handler, Pourer, Casting Machine Operator, Casting Operator, DC Caster (Direct Chill Caster), Die Cast Machine Operator
- **Frame:** "AI exposure" means task overlap (how codifiable the work is), not jobs lost or a forecast. Every figure below is traced to a named public dataset.

## What this work is

**Core tasks** (O*NET):
- Pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds and forms to produce ingots or other castings, using ladles or hand-controlled mechanisms.
- Read temperature gauges and observe color changes, adjusting furnace flames, torches, or electrical heating units as necessary to melt metal to specifications.
- Remove solidified steel or slag from pouring nozzles, using long bars or oxygen burners.
- Assemble and embed cores in casting frames, using hand tools and equipment.
- Examine molds to ensure they are clean, smooth, and properly coated.
- Collect samples, or signal workers to sample metal for analysis.
- Turn valves to circulate water through cores, or spray water on filled molds to cool and solidify metal.
- Load specified amounts of metal and flux into furnaces or clay crucibles.
- Pull levers to lift ladle stoppers and to allow molten steel to flow into ingot molds to specified heights.
- Position equipment such as ladles, grinding wheels, pouring nozzles, or crucibles, or signal other workers to position equipment.
- Skim slag or remove excess metal from ingots or equipment, using hand tools, strainers, rakes, or burners, collecting scrap for recycling.
- Remove metal ingots or cores from molds, using hand tools, cranes, and chain hoists.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Arm-Hand Steadiness _(ability)_
- Manual Dexterity _(ability)_
- Control Precision _(ability)_
- Operations Monitoring _(transferable_skill)_
- Operation and Control _(transferable_skill)_
- Perceptual Speed _(ability)_
- Multilimb Coordination _(ability)_
- Reaction Time _(ability)_
- Near Vision _(ability)_
- English Language _(knowledge)_
- Active Listening _(essential_skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(essential_skill)_

**Skills in demand:**
- English Language _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Word _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Excel _(Common Skill)_
- Finger Dexterity _(Common Skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(Common Skill)_
- Active Listening _(Common Skill)_
- Time Management _(Common Skill)_
- Speech Recognition _(Specialized Skill)_
- Information Ordering _(Specialized Skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- Husky Injection Molding Systems Shotscope NX

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 8th percentile (Low) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 17th percentile (Low) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 3rd percentile (Low) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 16th percentile (Low) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 74th percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** -4.7% growth (Declining); 0.6k annual openings; 5.9k → 5.7k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $48,940; 5,830 employed.

## Sources

- **O*NET** (30.3) — U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)** (May 2024) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS Employment Projections** (2024–2034) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **Microsoft “Working with AI”** (working-with-ai) — Microsoft Research. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/
- **“GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.)** (arXiv 2303.10130) — OpenAI / academic. https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130
- **AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE)** (Felten, Raj & Seamans) — academic. https://github.com/AIOE-Data/AIOE
- **Frey & Osborne (2013)** (frey-osborne-automation) — academic. https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/publications/the-future-of-employment/
- **Dingel & Neiman (2020)** (dingel-neiman-workathome) — academic. https://github.com/jdingel/DingelNeiman-workathome

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_Generated from Singulariki's joined dataset; data snapshot 2026-06-02T21:00:32.945303+00:00. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-4052-00_