Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
In short: today's best AI models could do about 6% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about the same by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The people and hands-on work, about 94% of the time, stays with people.
Set up, operate, or tend plating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces. Typically, the product being coated is immersed in molten metal or an electrolytic solution.
32,410 people do this job in the US. $43,960 a year.
A typical 40-hour week
Not yet reviewed task by task- AI could take on3 h
- A person checks AI's work0 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet0 h
- Stays with people37 h
Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 3 hours, 0 hours become checking its work, 0 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 37 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Determine sizes and compositions of objects to be plated, and amounts of electrical current and time required (about 1 h); Maintain production records (under an hour); Read production schedules to determine setups of equipment and machines (under an hour).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 6%
- 0%
- 94%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 2%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 6%. Today's estimate: 6%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, no reportable share went to this job's tasks in May 2026; 0 of its 33 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.002% to none (released February and March 2025); 0.0056% to 0.0022% (August 2025 to February 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.002% | 700 of 708 | 1 of 33 |
| Released March 2025 | none | n/a | 0 of 33 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.0056% | 523 of 655 | 2 of 33 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.0032% | 616 of 672 | 1 of 33 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.0022% | 643 of 677 | 1 of 33 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 33 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 33 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 92% of this job's working time as physical work. For 89% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 83% in a purpose-built cell, 6% in a structured facility. 0.95 of 3, the 142nd highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 8%
- No robot shown 2%
- In a purpose-built cell 83%
- In a structured facility 6%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
The tasks
Sorted by . 33 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Set up, operate, or tend plating or coating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Corrotec automated electroless nickel barrel plating line with GPR Flextime wet process line control at Varland Plating (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 26% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean and maintain equipment, using water hoses and scrapers.Done hourly or more by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Stäubli HE humid-environment washing robots (TX2 HE series) in automated washing lines (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 38 min13 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Remove objects from solutions at periodic intervals and observe objects to verify conformance to specifications.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Corrotec/Plating Specialists automated EN barrel line with GPR Flextime wet-process line control (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Observe gauges to ensure that machines are operating properly, making adjustments or stopping machines when problems occur.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Jessup Engineering automated electroplating system (PC/HMI + PLC controls) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Replace worn parts and adjust equipment components, using hand tools.Done daily by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Panasonic automatic dismantling equipment (AC outdoor unit covers) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 50 min17 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Determine sizes and compositions of objects to be plated, and amounts of electrical current and time required.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 3% | 21 min8 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Rinse coated objects in cleansing liquids and dry them with cloths, centrifugal driers, or by tumbling in sawdust-filled barrels.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Jessup 15-station automatic barrel plating line (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Measure, mark, and mask areas to be excluded from plating.Done daily by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, MTU / Robooptic Systems automated SpeedMask masking machine (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 25 min8 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Inspect coated or plated areas for defects, such as air bubbles or uneven coverage.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, VisionLab / VisionLab-X automated inspection machine (General Inspection LLC) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 10 min4 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Monitor and measure thicknesses of electroplating on component parts to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometers.Done several times a day by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, FISCHERSCOPE MMS Automation (Helmut Fischer GmbH) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 21 min8 min to 38 min | Stays with people | |
| Test machinery to ensure that it is operating properly.Done daily by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Renishaw AxiSet Check-Up (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 25 min8 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Immerse objects to be coated or plated into cleaning solutions, or spray objects with conductive solutions to prepare them for plating.Done hourly or more by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Saporito Finishing automatic zinc rack plating line (refurbished, PLC/HMI controls, automatic hoists) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 13 min4 min to 33 min | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders1% now, 1% by 2028
- Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic20% now, 20% by 2028
- Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders11% now, 11% by 2028
- Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic5% now, 5% by 2028
- Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic0% now, 0% by 2028
- Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers5% now, 5% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
- Coating, Engraving, Heat Treating, and Allied Activities20,280 people
- Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing1,740 people
- Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing (3321, 3322, 3325, 3326, and 3329 only)1,180 people
- Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing (3323 and 3324 only)1,040 people
- Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing920 people
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 6% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 6% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which tasks of Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Determine sizes and compositions of objects to be plated, and amounts of electrical current and time required (100% of the task's time now); Maintain production records (100% of the task's time now); and Read production schedules to determine setups of equipment and machines (100% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Set up, operate, or tend plating or coating machines to coat metal or plastic products with chromium, zinc, copper, cadmium, nickel, or other metal to protect or decorate surfaces; Clean and maintain equipment, using water hoses and scrapers; and Remove objects from solutions at periodic intervals and observe objects to verify conformance to specifications. Together such tasks are about 94% of the working time.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026, no reportable share went to this job's tasks. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 0%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 92% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 89% of the working time, 6% in a structured facility. Its index is 0.95 of 3. One example: OTTO 100 / OTTO 1500 AMRs (Rockwell Automation) for "position containers to receive parts, and load or unload materials in containers, using dollies or handtrucks". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 33 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, each classed as desk, people or body work, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. Data checked November 10, 2026.
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