Skip to content
Boston Career Explorer

Production

Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders

Set up, operate, or tend machines, such as glass-forming machines, plodder machines, and tuber machines, to shape and form products such as glassware, food, rubber, soap, brick, tile, clay, wax, tobacco, or cosmetics.

Also called: Extruder Operator, Extrusion Operator, Glass Forming Crew Member, Machine Operator, Press Operator, Tuber Operator

Compare with my current job (Cooks, Restaurant)
Median pay in Greater Boston
$47,730
$22.95/hr
Jobs in Greater Boston
850
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+2.9%
110 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
High school diploma or equivalent
plus Moderate-term on-the-job training

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$40,430$41,050$47,730$51,410$55,560

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Adjust machine components to regulate speeds, pressures, and temperatures, and amounts, dimensions, and flow of materials or ingredients.
  • Press control buttons to activate machinery and equipment.
  • Examine, measure, and weigh materials or products to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as templates, micrometers, or scales.
  • Monitor machine operations and observe lights and gauges to detect malfunctions.
  • Clear jams, and remove defective or substandard materials or products.
  • Notify supervisors when extruded filaments fail to meet standards.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Lower exposure15 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 15
  • Language-model AIOE 12
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 18

Observed AI use today: Little or none (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure for this job is lower, and little AI use has been seen so far. AI tools may help with watching gauges and checking measurements against standards. Setting up machines, adjusting them by hand, and clearing jams still rely on a person at the machine.

Likely to change

  • Watching gauges and lights for problems
  • Checking product measurements against standards

Still relies on people

  • Clearing jams and removing bad product
  • Hands-on machine adjustments and setup

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

Next steps from here

Related jobs that build on what you already do.

  • Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

    You already set controls and check products against specifications. This job does the same with metal and plastic, with a higher Boston median pay of $51,220.

    Pay difference
    +$3,490 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +3.9%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

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

    Reading work orders and shaping products carry over. This move offers higher pay ($55,530) and faster expected growth (6.7%), though it takes long-term on-the-job training.

    Pay difference
    +$7,800 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +6.7%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

  • Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers

    Measuring and examining pieces for defects carries over. Welding offers a higher Boston median pay of $63,770 with moderate on-the-job training.

    Pay difference
    +$16,040 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +4.2%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

No college programs near Boston map to this job. Many people enter through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.

Talk to a career coach at the Office of Workforce Development about apprenticeships and City partner programs.

Related occupations

Talk to a career coach

A coach at the Office of Workforce Development can help you plan your next step, and connect you with training, apprenticeships and City partner programs that are not listed here.

Talk to a career coach