# Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic

> Mold, shape, form, cast, or carve products such as food products, figurines, tile, pipes, and candles consisting of clay, glass, plaster, concrete, stone, or combinations of materials.

- **SOC code:** 51-9195.00
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-9195-00
- **Also known as:** Caster, Mold Mechanic, Molder, Molding Line Operator, Bed Laborer, Injection Molding Machine Operator, Machine Operator, Press 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):
- Read work orders or examine parts to determine parts or sections of products to be produced.
- Brush or spray mold surfaces with parting agents or insert paper into molds to ensure smoothness and prevent sticking or seepage.
- Engrave or stamp identifying symbols, letters, or numbers on products.
- Assemble, insert, and adjust wires, tubes, cores, fittings, rods, or patterns into molds, using hand tools and depth gauges.
- Clean, finish, and lubricate molds and mold parts.
- Separate models or patterns from molds and examine products for accuracy.
- Set the proper operating temperature for each casting.
- Load or stack filled molds in ovens, dryers, or curing boxes, or on storage racks or carts.
- Align and assemble parts to produce completed products, using gauges and hand tools.
- Operate and adjust controls of heating equipment to melt material or to cure, dry, or bake filled molds.
- Select sizes and types of molds according to instructions.
- Patch broken edges or fractures, using clay or plaster.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Arm-Hand Steadiness _(ability)_
- Manual Dexterity _(ability)_
- Finger Dexterity _(ability)_
- Production and Processing _(knowledge)_
- Control Precision _(ability)_
- Near Vision _(ability)_
- Oral Comprehension _(ability)_
- Selective Attention _(ability)_
- Multilimb Coordination _(ability)_
- Mechanical _(knowledge)_
- Operation and Control _(transferable_skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(ability)_

**Skills in demand:**
- Finger Dexterity _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Word _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Excel _(Common Skill)_
- Information Ordering _(Specialized Skill)_
- Inductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Visualization _(Specialized Skill)_
- Speech Recognition _(Specialized Skill)_
- Reading Comprehension _(Common Skill)_
- Active Listening _(Common Skill)_
- English Language _(Common Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Dassault Systemes SolidWorks _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Office software _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- Inventory control software
- Mastercam computer-aided design and manufacturing software
- Timekeeping software

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 10th percentile (Low) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 11th percentile (Low) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 3rd percentile (Low) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 28th percentile (Low) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 78th percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** 6.2% growth (About average); 5.5k annual openings; 41.7k → 44.3k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $45,690; 34,750 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-51-9195-00_