Chemical Plant and System Operators
Control or operate entire chemical processes or system of machines.
What you’d do
- Monitor recording instruments, flowmeters, panel lights, or other indicators and listen for warning signals to verify conformity of process conditions.
- Move control settings to make necessary adjustments on equipment units affecting speeds of chemical reactions, quality, or yields.
- Draw samples of products and conduct quality control tests to monitor processing and to ensure that standards are met.
- Record operating data, such as process conditions, test results, or instrument readings.
- Control or operate chemical processes or systems of machines, using panelboards, control boards, or semi-automatic equipment.
- Patrol work areas to ensure that solutions in tanks or troughs are not in danger of overflowing.
- Regulate or shut down equipment during emergency situations, as directed by supervisory personnel.
- Start pumps to wash and rinse reactor vessels, to exhaust gases or vapors, to regulate the flow of oil, steam, air, or perfume to towers, or to add products to converter or blending vessels.
Skills that matter
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Monitoring
- Quality Control Analysis
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
How to get there
Little to some preparation: usually a high school diploma or GED, though some jobs do not need one
Also called
- Chemical Operator
- Plant Technician (Plant Tech)
- Process Operator
- Process Technician (Process Tech)
- Chemical Plant Operations Technician (Chemical Plan Operations Tech)
- Chemical Plant Production Operator
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