As of June 2026, Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic has an AI-exposure score of 55/100 (Elevated exposure) on the AI-Safe Careers index, blending O*NET tasks, the Anthropic Economic Index, the Penn/OpenAI study, and BLS data. This is an estimate of task exposure, not a prediction of job loss.
Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
More exposed than 49% of the roles we track. Median pay ~US$46,550. About 5,500 projected openings a year (BLS 2024–34 — growth plus replacement).
Pay & demand figures are US medians (BLS, in USD) — your local figures will differ. Your exposure score applies broadly.
How you compare to similar Production roles
Your tasks, by AI exposure
No automatable tasks identified for this role — its real, individually-assessed tasks consistently read as augmentable (100%).
- Observe machine operations to detect any problems, making necessary adjustments to correct problems.
- Repair or replace machine parts, using hand tools, or notify engineering personnel when corrective action is required.
- Select machine tooling to be used, using knowledge of machine and production requirements.
- Slide spacers between buffs on spindles to set spacing.
- Adjust air cylinders and setting stops to set traverse lengths and feed arm strokes.
- Study blueprints, work orders, or machining instructions to determine product specifications, tool requirements, and operational sequences.
- Mount and position tools in machine chucks, spindles, or other tool holding devices, using hand tools.
- Thread and hand-feed materials through machine cutters or abraders.
- Maintain stocks of machine parts and machining tools.
- Brush or spray lubricating compounds on workpieces, or turn valve handles and direct flow of coolant against tools and workpieces.
- Lift and position workpieces, manually or with hoists, and secure them in hoppers or on machine tables, faceplates, or chucks, using clamps.
- Compute machine indexings and settings for specified dimensions and base reference points.
- Activate machine start-up switches to grind, lap, hone, debar, shear, or cut workpieces, according to specifications.
- Set and adjust machine controls according to product specifications, using knowledge of machine operation.
- Set up, operate, or tend grinding and related tools that remove excess material or burrs from surfaces, sharpen edges or corners, or buff, hone, or polish metal or plastic workpieces.
- Move machine controls to index workpieces, and to adjust machines for pre-selected operational settings.
- Measure workpieces and lay out work, using precision measuring devices.
- Inspect or measure finished workpieces to determine conformance to specifications, using measuring instruments, such as gauges or micrometers.
No durable tasks identified for this role — its real, individually-assessed tasks consistently read as augmentable (100%).
Safer adjacent roles
Your AI-Safe Career Report
Every task scored with what to do about it · 5–10 safer roles with salary, demand & reachability · skill-gap map · a 30/60/90-day roadmap · plus a résumé & LinkedIn rewrite · PDF.
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Workers with AI skills earn a roughly 62% wage premium — adapting pays. — PwC Global AI Jobs Barometer, 2026
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