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Mechanical Drafters

Prepare detailed working diagrams of machinery and mechanical devices, including dimensions, fastening methods, and other engineering information.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Compute mathematical formulas to develop and design detailed specifications for components or machinery, using computer-assisted equipment.
    • Confer with customer representatives to review schematics and answer questions pertaining to installation of systems.
    • Design scale or full-size blueprints of specialty items, such as furniture and automobile body or chassis components.
    • Draw freehand sketches of designs, trace finished drawings onto designated paper for the reproduction of blueprints, and reproduce working drawings on copy machines.
    • Shade or color drawings to clarify and emphasize details and dimensions or eliminate background, using ink, crayon, airbrush, and overlays.
    • Lay out, draw, and reproduce illustrations for reference manuals and technical publications to describe operation and maintenance of mechanical systems.
    • Lay out and draw schematic, orthographic, or angle views to depict functional relationships of components, assemblies, systems, and machines.
    • Produce three-dimensional models, using computer-aided design (CAD) software.
    • Review and analyze specifications, sketches, drawings, ideas, and related data to assess factors affecting component designs and the procedures and instructions to be followed.
    • Coordinate with and consult other workers to design, lay out, or detail components and systems and to resolve design or other problems.
    • Check dimensions of materials to be used and assign numbers to the materials.
    • Supervise and train other drafters, technologists, and technicians.
    • Position instructions and comments onto drawings.
    • Develop detailed design drawings and specifications for mechanical equipment, dies, tools, and controls, using computer-assisted drafting (CAD) equipment.
    • Modify and revise designs to correct operating deficiencies or to reduce production problems.

    Skills

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    5
    Workplace Documents
    5
    Graphic Literacy
    5

    Abilities

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    Knowledge

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    Career Video

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    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 63320/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 30.44/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 1,620
    • Yearly Projected Openings 120

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Analytical Thinking
    • Dependability
    • Integrity
    • Initiative
    • Cooperation

    Tools

    • Compasses
    • Computer mouse
    • Curves
    • Desktop computers
    • Graphics or video accelerator cards
    • Notebook computers
    • Plotter printers
    • Pocket calculator
    • Print servers
    • Protractors
    • Scales
    • Scanners
    • T squares
    • Tablet computers
    • Touch pads
    • Triangles

    Technology

    • Computer aided design CAD software
    • Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Document management software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise application integration software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Geographic information system
    • Graphics or photo imaging software
    • Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software
    • Office suite software
    • Optical character reader OCR or scanning software
    • Presentation software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • InDemand occupations are considered a priority by the state of Ohio.
    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.
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