Career profile for Construction Operating Engineer

What does a Construction Operating Engineer do?

Construction Operating Engineers operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement.

In addition, Construction Operating Engineers may repair and maintain equipment in addition to other duties.

What kind of tasks does a Construction Operating Engineer perform regularly?

Construction Operating Engineers are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Learn and follow safety regulations.
Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects.
Start engines, move throttles, switches, or levers, or depress pedals to operate machines, such as bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, or backhoes.
Coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads in response to hand or audio signals from crew members.
Align machines, cutterheads, or depth gauge makers with reference stakes and guidelines or ground or position equipment, following hand signals of other workers.
Locate underground services, such as pipes or wires, prior to beginning work.
Signal operators to guide movement of tractor-drawn machines.
Repair and maintain equipment, making emergency adjustments or assisting with major repairs as necessary.
Load and move dirt, rocks, equipment, or other materials, using trucks, crawler tractors, power cranes, shovels, graders, or related equipment.
Operate tractors or bulldozers to perform such tasks as clearing land, mixing sludge, trimming backfills, or building roadways or parking lots.
Drive and maneuver equipment equipped with blades in successive passes over working areas to remove topsoil, vegetation, or rocks or to distribute and level earth or terrain.
Monitor operations to ensure that health and safety standards are met.
Select and fasten bulldozer blades or other attachments to tractors, using hitches.
Connect hydraulic hoses, belts, mechanical linkages, or power takeoff shafts to tractors.
Operate loaders to pull out stumps, rip asphalt or concrete, rough-grade properties, bury refuse, or perform general cleanup.
Adjust handwheels and depress pedals to control attachments, such as blades, buckets, scrapers, or swing booms.
Keep records of material or equipment usage or problems encountered.
Operate equipment to demolish or remove debris or to remove snow from streets, roads, or parking lots.

The above responsibilities are specific to Construction Operating Engineers. More generally, Construction Operating Engineers are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Controlling Machines and Processes		Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings		Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment		Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems		Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

Controlling Machines and Processes

Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).

Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings

Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.

Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment

Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

What is a Construction Operating Engineer salary?

The median salary for a Construction Operating Engineer is $49,770, and the average salary is $55,280. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Construction Operating Engineer salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Construction Operating Engineers earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Construction Operating Engineers earn less than $32,980 per year, 25% earn less than $39,150, 75% earn less than $65,640, and 90% earn less than $87,220.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Construction Operating Engineers is expected to change by 5.4%, and there should be roughly 46,000 open positions for Construction Operating Engineers every year.

Median annual salary: $49,770
Typical salary range: $32,980 - $87,220
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 5.4%

What personality traits are common among Construction Operating Engineers?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Construction Operating Engineer are usually higher in their Realistic and Conventional interests.

Construction Operating Engineers typically have very strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Also, Construction Operating Engineers typically have moderate Conventional interests. Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Construction Operating Engineer tend to value Support, Relationships, and Working Conditions.

Most importantly, Construction Operating Engineers strongly value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Construction Operating Engineers moderately value Relationships. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

Lastly, Construction Operating Engineers moderately value Working Conditions. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Construction Operating Engineers must consistently demonstrate qualities such as dependability, initiative, and cooperation.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Construction Operating Engineers, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Initiative		Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Adaptability/Flexibility		Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Initiative

Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Adaptability/Flexibility

Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

What education and training do Construction Operating Engineers need?

Working as a Construction Operating Engineer usually requires a high school diploma.

Construction Operating Engineers need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Construction Operating Engineers

20.4% did not complete high school or secondary school
53.0% completed high school or secondary school
18.0% completed some college coursework
5.7% earned a Associate's degree
2.5% earned a Bachelor's degree
0.4% earned a Master's degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Construction Operating Engineers

Construction Operating Engineers may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as mechanical, public safety and security, or administration and management knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Construction Operating Engineers might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Mechanical		Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Public Safety and Security		Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Administration and Management		Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Mathematics		Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Customer and Personal Service		Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Mechanical

Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

Public Safety and Security

Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

Administration and Management

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Mathematics

Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Customer and Personal Service

Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Important Abilities needed by Construction Operating Engineers

Construction Operating Engineers must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Construction Operating Engineers need abilities such as control precision, depth perception, and multilimb coordination in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Construction Operating Engineers, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Control Precision		The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
Depth Perception		The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
Multilimb Coordination		The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Far Vision		The ability to see details at a distance.

Control Precision

The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.

Depth Perception

The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.

Multilimb Coordination

The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.

Near Vision

The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Far Vision

The ability to see details at a distance.

Critical Skills needed by Construction Operating Engineers

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Construction Operating Engineers frequently use skills like operation and control, operations monitoring, and equipment maintenance to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Construction Operating Engineers, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Operation and Control		Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
Operations Monitoring		Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
Equipment Maintenance		Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
Monitoring		Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Operation and Control

Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Operations Monitoring

Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

Equipment Maintenance

Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.

Monitoring

Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

Career profile Construction Operating Engineer

Construction Operating Engineer

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