About This Career

Laminates layers of fiberglass on molds to form boat decks and hulls, bodies for golf carts, automobiles, or other products.

This career is part of the Manufacturing cluster Production pathway.

A person in this career:

• Releases air bubbles and smooths seams, using rollers.
• Sprays chopped fiberglass, resins, and catalysts onto prepared molds or dies using pneumatic spray guns with chopper attachments.
• Mixes catalysts into resins, and saturates cloth and mats with mixtures, using brushes.
• Checks completed products for conformance to specifications and for defects by measuring with rulers or micrometers, by checking them visually, or by tapping them to detect bubbles or dead spots.
• Pats or presses layers of saturated mat or cloth into place on molds, using brushes or hands, and smooths out wrinkles and air bubbles with hands or squeegees.
• Selects precut fiberglass mats, cloth, and wood-bracing materials as required by projects being assembled.
• Bonds wood reinforcing strips to decks and cabin structures of watercraft, using resin-saturated fiberglass.
• Trims excess materials from molds, using hand shears or trimming knives.
• Applies layers of plastic resin to mold surfaces prior to placement of fiberglass mats, repeating layers until products have the desired thicknesses and plastics have jelled.
• Inspects, cleans, and assembles molds before beginning work.

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

People who do this job report that:

• You would often handle loads up to 10 lbs., sometimes up to 20 lbs. You might do a lot of walking or standing, or you might sit but use your arms and legs to control machines, equipment or tools.
• Work in this occupation involves bending or twisting your body more than one-third of the time
• Work in this occupation involves use of protective items such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hearing protection, a hard hat, or personal flotation devices
• Exposure to pollutants, gases, dust, fumes, odors, poor ventilation, etc.
• Work in this occupation involves using your hands to hold, control, and feel objects more than one-third of the time
• Exposed to conditions such as high voltage electricity, combustibles, explosives, and chemicals more than once a month
• Work in this occupation involves kneeling, crouching, stooping, and/or crawling more than one-third of the time
• Sound and noise levels are loud and distracting
• Work in this occupation involves making repetitive motions more than one-third of the time
• Work in this occupation involves use of special protective items such as a breathing apparatus, safety harness, full protection suit, or radiation protection
• Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time

Working in this career involves (physical activities):

• Identifying color and seeing differences in color, including shades and brightness
• Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching
• Seeing clearly up close
• Speaking clearly enough to be able to be understood by others
• Identifying and understanding the speech of another person
• Exerting oneself physically over long periods of time without getting out of breath
• Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying objects
• Using abdominal and lower back muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring

Work Hours and Travel

• Overtime work
• Regular working hours and limited travel
• Rotating shift work