# Gas Plant Operators

> Distribute or process gas for utility companies and others by controlling compressors to maintain specified pressures on main pipelines.

- **SOC code:** 51-8092.00
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-8092-00
- **Also known as:** Gas Controller, Gas Dispatcher, Gas Plant Operator, Plant Operator, Compressor Technician (Compressor Tech), Engine Room Operator, Gas Resource Control Operator, Gas System 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):
- Monitor equipment functioning, observe temperature, level, and flow gauges, and perform regular unit checks to ensure that all equipment is operating as it should.
- Distribute or process gas for utility companies or industrial plants, using panel boards, control boards, and semi-automatic equipment.
- Control operation of compressors, scrubbers, evaporators, and refrigeration equipment to liquefy, compress, or regasify natural gas.
- Control equipment to regulate flow and pressure of gas to feedlines of boilers, furnaces, and related steam-generating or heating equipment.
- Record, review, and compile operations records, test results, and gauge readings such as temperatures, pressures, concentrations, and flows.
- Determine causes of abnormal pressure variances, and make corrective recommendations, such as installation of pipes to relieve overloading.
- Adjust temperature, pressure, vacuum, level, flow rate, or transfer of gas to maintain processes at required levels or to correct problems.
- Collaborate with other operators to solve unit problems.
- Monitor transportation and storage of flammable and other potentially dangerous products to ensure that safety guidelines are followed.
- Start and shut down plant equipment.
- Read logsheets to determine product demand and disposition, or to detect malfunctions.
- Control fractioning columns, compressors, purifying towers, heat exchangers, and related equipment to extract nitrogen and oxygen from air.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Operations Monitoring _(transferable_skill)_
- Public Safety and Security _(knowledge)_
- Perceptual Speed _(ability)_
- Operation and Control _(transferable_skill)_
- Mechanical _(knowledge)_
- Near Vision _(ability)_
- Monitoring _(essential_skill)_
- Problem Sensitivity _(ability)_
- English Language _(knowledge)_
- Critical Thinking _(essential_skill)_
- Auditory Attention _(ability)_
- Computers and Electronics _(knowledge)_

**Skills in demand:**
- English Language _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Excel _(Common Skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(Common Skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Mathematics _(Common Skill)_
- Reading Comprehension _(Common Skill)_
- Information Ordering _(Specialized Skill)_
- Writing _(Common Skill)_
- Visualization _(Specialized Skill)_
- Time Management _(Common Skill)_
- Speech Recognition _(Specialized Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Google Android _(hot technology, in demand)_
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology, in demand)_
- Microsoft Office software _(hot technology, in demand)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology, in demand)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- SAP software _(hot technology)_
- AspenTech HYSYS
- Operating log software
- Quorum PGAS
- Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software
- Work scheduling software

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 28th percentile (Low) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 40th percentile (Moderate) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 17th percentile (Low) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 31st percentile (Low) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 63rd percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** -8.8% growth (Declining); 1.3k annual openings; 16.2k → 14.8k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $83,400; 15,910 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/
- **Anthropic Economic Index** (v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27)) — Anthropic. https://www.anthropic.com/economic-index
- **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-51-8092-00_