Career profile for Industrial Painter

What does an Industrial Painter do?

Industrial Painters paint walls, equipment, buildings, bridges, and other structural surfaces, using brushes, rollers, and spray guns.

In addition, Industrial Painters

may remove old paint to prepare surface prior to painting,
may mix colors or oils to obtain desired color or consistency.

What kind of tasks does an Industrial Painter perform regularly?

Industrial Painters are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Fill cracks, holes, or joints with caulk, putty, plaster, or other fillers, using caulking guns or putty knives.
Cover surfaces with dropcloths or masking tape and paper to protect surfaces during painting.
Smooth surfaces, using sandpaper, scrapers, brushes, steel wool, or sanding machines.
Read work orders or receive instructions from supervisors or homeowners to determine work requirements.
Apply primers or sealers to prepare new surfaces, such as bare wood or metal, for finish coats.
Apply paint, stain, varnish, enamel, or other finishes to equipment, buildings, bridges, or other structures, using brushes, spray guns, or rollers.
Erect scaffolding or swing gates, or set up ladders, to work above ground level.
Mix and match colors of paint, stain, or varnish with oil or thinning and drying additives to obtain desired colors and consistencies.
Calculate amounts of required materials and estimate costs, based on surface measurements or work orders.
Polish final coats to specified finishes.
Wash and treat surfaces with oil, turpentine, mildew remover, or other preparations, and sand rough spots to ensure that finishes will adhere properly.
Select and purchase tools or finishes for surfaces to be covered, considering durability, ease of handling, methods of application, and customers' wishes.
Remove old finishes by stripping, sanding, wire brushing, burning, or using water or abrasive blasting.
Remove fixtures such as pictures, door knobs, lamps, or electric switch covers prior to painting.
Use special finishing techniques such as sponging, ragging, layering, or faux finishing.
Cut stencils and brush or spray lettering or decorations on surfaces.

The above responsibilities are specific to Industrial Painters. More generally, Industrial Painters are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others		Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Performing General Physical Activities		Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.

Getting Information

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

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others

Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Performing General Physical Activities

Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.

What is an Industrial Painter salary?

The median salary for an Industrial Painter is $42,130, and the average salary is $46,460. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Industrial Painter salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Industrial Painters earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Industrial Painters earn less than $28,290 per year, 25% earn less than $34,300, 75% earn less than $55,590, and 90% earn less than $70,470.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Industrial Painters is expected to change by 5.2%, and there should be roughly 32,700 open positions for Industrial Painters every year.

Median annual salary: $42,130
Typical salary range: $28,290 - $70,470
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 5.2%

What personality traits are common among Industrial Painters?

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 an Industrial Painter are usually higher in their Realistic interests.

Industrial Painters 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.

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 an Industrial Painter tend to value Support, Independence, and Working Conditions.

Most importantly, Industrial Painters moderately value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Second, Industrial Painters moderately value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Lastly, Industrial Painters 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 Industrial Painters must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, integrity, and leadership.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Industrial Painters, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Integrity		Job requires being honest and ethical.
Leadership		Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Attention to Detail

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

Integrity

Job requires being honest and ethical.

Leadership

Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

Dependability

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

Cooperation

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

What education and training do Industrial Painters need?

Working as an Industrial Painter usually requires a high school diploma.

Industrial Painters 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 Industrial Painters

34.1% did not complete high school or secondary school
39.2% completed high school or secondary school
15.6% completed some college coursework
4.5% earned a Associate's degree
5.3% earned a Bachelor's degree
1.1% earned a Master's degree
0.2% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Industrial Painters

Industrial Painters may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as public safety and security, administration and management, or customer and personal service knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Industrial Painters might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
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.
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.
Building and Construction		Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Education and Training		Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

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.

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.

Building and Construction

Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

Education and Training

Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

Important Abilities needed by Industrial Painters

Industrial Painters 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, Industrial Painters need abilities such as arm-hand steadiness, trunk strength, and extent flexibility in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Industrial Painters, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Arm-Hand Steadiness		The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Trunk Strength		The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
Extent Flexibility		The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Gross Body Equilibrium		The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
Near Vision		The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Arm-Hand Steadiness

The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.

Trunk Strength

The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.

Extent Flexibility

The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.

Gross Body Equilibrium

The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.

Near Vision

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

Critical Skills needed by Industrial Painters

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.

Industrial Painters frequently use skills like active listening, critical thinking, and social perceptiveness to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Industrial Painters, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
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.
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Social Perceptiveness		Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Time Management		Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Reading Comprehension		Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

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.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Social Perceptiveness

Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Time Management

Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

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 Industrial Painter

Industrial Painter

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