Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders

No automatable tasks identified for this role — its real, individually-assessed tasks consistently read as durable (53%).

• Study work orders or shoe part tags to obtain information about workloads, specifications, and the types of materials to be used.
• Draw thread through machine guide slots, needles, and presser feet in preparation for stitching, or load rolls of wire through machine axles.
• Perform routine equipment maintenance such as cleaning and lubricating machines or replacing broken needles.
• Position dies on material in a manner that will obtain the maximum number of parts from each portion of material.
• Test machinery to ensure proper functioning before beginning production.
• Collect shoe parts from conveyer belts or racks and place them in machinery such as ovens or on molds for dressing, returning them to conveyers or racks to send them to the next work station.
• Select and place spools of thread or pre-wound bobbins into shuttles, or onto spindles or loupers of stitching machines.
• Align parts to be stitched, following seams, edges, or markings, before positioning them under needles.
• Cut excess thread or material from shoe parts, using scissors or knives.

• Staple sides of shoes, pressing a foot treadle to position and hold each shoe under the feeder of the machine.
• Inspect finished products to ensure that shoes have been completed according to specifications.
• Hammer loose staples for proper attachment.
• Remove and examine shoes, shoe parts, and designs to verify conformance to specifications such as proper embedding of stitches in channels.
• Switch on machines, lower pressure feet or rollers to secure parts, and start machine stitching, using hand, foot, or knee controls.
• Turn knobs to adjust stitch length and thread tension.
• Fill shuttle spools with thread from a machine's bobbin winder by pressing a foot treadle.
• Operate or tend machines to join, decorate, reinforce, or finish shoes and shoe parts.
• Turn setscrews on needle bars, and position required numbers of needles in stitching machines.
• Turn screws to regulate size of staples.