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AI Automation Index
Will AI Replace Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood?
Task-level automation exposure for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood: 22 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.
E-E-A-T Verified
Developed & audited by Gini Loh Automation Exposure
17%
weighted task index
22 of 22 tasks scored
Median Salary
$42,770 / year
BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation
Employment Level
Medium
40,850 people hold this job — size, not growth
Projected 2025–35
-1.0%
employment change
4,500 openings a year · BLS line item
Pay by state
BLS OEWS publishes 46 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.
$34,720 – $52,680
Highest medians
Alaska $52,680
Washington $51,940
Minnesota $51,330
Connecticut $51,150
Oregon $49,740
Lowest medians
New Mexico $34,720
West Virginia $35,590
Virginia $35,790
Oklahoma $36,140
Texas $36,740
State figures come from the 51-7041 row in the May 2025 state panel. States where the estimate was suppressed or too small to publish are absent.
What the score is made of
Each task is mapped to its work activities, scored for AI automation potential, and weighted by how important those activities are to the job. These are the components.
Automation potential 17%
Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.
Physical work 73%
Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.
Judgment & influence 8%
Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.
Routine administration 0%
Share in documenting, recording, and administrative activities.
Rewritten by O*NET 0%
Share of weighted tasks O*NET rewrote in a recent update. Reported, not folded into the score.
Consequence of error 22/100
Low
O*NET's own rating of how serious an uncorrectable mistake would be here — respondents, not us. Deliberately not in the index: the score measures what AI can do with the task content, and multiplying it by stakes would be our judgment dressed as data.
Constituent Task Mix
22 tasks for this occupation, weighted by work-activity importance. Shares below are of total task weight, not task count.
High exposure (≥ 60% of the task is automatable) 4%
1 tasks
Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 4%
1 tasks
Low exposure (below 35%) 93%
20 tasks
How would you survive?
Move your week away from the high-exposure tasks and toward the ones that need judgment. The simulator recalculates the index as you shift the mix.
Simulate Upskilling →Constituent Tasks
#12251 · Core · 28% automatable
Inspect and measure workpieces to mark for cuts and to verify the accuracy of cuts, using rulers, squares, or caliper rules.
physical manipulation — Hands-on dimensional measurement of workpieces
Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
#12250 · Core · 15% automatable
Adjust saw blades, using wrenches and rulers, or by turning handwheels or pressing pedals, levers, or panel buttons.
physical manipulation — Physical control setting for cutting
Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
#12256 · Core · 5% automatable
Mount and bolt sawing blades or attachments to machine shafts.
physical manipulation — Mounting tools requires hands-on setup
Mount attachments or tools onto production equipment.
#12253 · Core · 15% automatable
Set up, operate, or tend saws or machines that cut or trim wood to specified dimensions, such as circular saws, band saws, multiple-blade sawing machines, scroll saws, ripsaws, or crozer machines.
physical manipulation — Physical control setting for cutting
Set equipment controls to meet cutting specifications.
#12254 · Core · 18% automatable
Inspect stock for imperfections or to estimate grades or qualities of stock or workpieces.
visual inspection — Lumber inspection requires physical handling
Inspect lumber or raw woodstock.
#12257 · Core · 28% automatable
Monitor sawing machines, adjusting speed and tension and clearing jams to ensure proper operation.
visual inspection — Sensor/vision monitoring possible, but physical verification and accountability remain human
Monitor equipment operation to ensure proper functioning. Clear equipment jams.
#12261 · Core · 10% automatable
Sharpen blades, or replace defective or worn blades or bands, using hand tools.
physical manipulation — Hands-on removal and fitting of worn components
Replace worn equipment components. Sharpen cutting or grinding tools.
#12259 · Core · 8% automatable
Guide workpieces against saws, saw over workpieces by hand, or operate automatic feeding devices to guide cuts.
physical manipulation — Cutting equipment operation is manual and judgment-based
Maneuver workpieces in equipment during production. Operate cutting equipment.
#12264 · Core · 15% automatable
Clear machine jams, using hand tools.
physical manipulation — Physically clearing jams in machinery
Clear equipment jams.
#12263 · Core · 8% automatable
Lubricate or clean machines, using wrenches, grease guns, or solvents.
physical manipulation — Manual lubrication of production equipment
Clean production equipment. Lubricate production equipment.
#12260 · Supplemental · 5% automatable
Adjust bolts, clamps, stops, guides, or table angles or heights, using hand tools.
physical manipulation — Manual fixture adjustment
Set equipment guides, stops, spacers, or other fixtures.
#12252 · Supplemental · 18% automatable
Examine logs or lumber to plan the best cuts.
visual inspection — Lumber inspection requires physical handling
Inspect lumber or raw woodstock.
#12269 · Supplemental · 8% automatable
Trim lumber to straighten rough edges or remove defects, using circular saws.
physical manipulation — Manual trimming of workpieces
Trim excess material from workpieces.
#12262 · Supplemental · 15% automatable
Count, sort, or stack finished workpieces.
visual inspection — Counting physical products needs presence or sensors
Count finished products or workpieces. Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading. Stack finished items for further processing or shipment.
#12270 · Supplemental · 5% automatable
Position and clamp stock on tables, conveyors, or carriages, using hoists, guides, stops, dogs, wedges, or wrenches.
physical manipulation — Mounting workpieces is physical loading
Mount materials or workpieces onto production equipment. Position raw materials on processing or production equipment.
#12266 · Supplemental · 22% automatable
Measure and mark stock for cuts.
physical manipulation — Marking reference points requires hands-on measurement
Measure materials to mark reference points, cutting lines, or other indicators.
#12255 · Supplemental · 10% automatable
Operate panelboards of saw or conveyor systems to move stock through processes or to cut stock to specified dimensions.
physical manipulation — Woodworking equipment needs dexterity and material feel
Operate woodworking equipment.
#12267 · Supplemental · 71% automatable
Examine blueprints, drawings, work orders, or patterns to determine equipment set-up or selection details, procedures to be used, or dimensions of final products.
information retrieval — Parse specs and materials from orders
Read work orders or other instructions to determine product specifications or materials requirements. Study blueprints or other instructions to determine equipment setup requirements. Review blueprints or other instructions to determine operational methods or sequences.
#12258 · Supplemental · 56% automatable
Select saw blades, types or grades of stock, or cutting procedures to be used, according to work orders or supervisors' instructions.
decision support — Input material selection from specs; human approves
Select production input materials. Select production equipment according to product specifications.
#12271 · Supplemental · 6% automatable
Cut grooves, bevels, or miters, saw curved or irregular designs, and sever or shape metals, according to specifications or work orders.
physical manipulation — Hands-on industrial material cutting
Shape metal workpieces with hammers or other small hand tools. Cut industrial materials in preparation for fabrication or processing.
#12272 · Supplemental · 6% automatable
Unclamp and remove finished workpieces from tables.
physical manipulation — Physically extracting parts from production equipment
Remove products or workpieces from production equipment.
#12265 · Supplemental · 5% automatable
Dispose of waste material after completing work assignments.
physical manipulation — Physical disposal of trash and waste
Dispose of trash or waste materials.
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How this was scored
- 1. Tasks. O*NET task statements for this occupation, from a release whose newest record is dated 08/2026.
- 2. Work activities. Each task maps to 1–5 Detailed Work Activities; each activity belongs to one of 41 Generalized Work Activities that O*NET rates for importance (1–5) in this occupation.
- 3. Automation potential. Every work activity carries one score for how far current AI can perform it end-to-end. Tasks inherit the mean of their activities.
- 4. Weighting. Task weight = 0.35 + 0.65 × (importance − 1)/4, scaled by how often the task is performed and by 0.7 for Supplemental tasks. Importance is the task's own O*NET rating where it exists (18,369 of 18,838 tasks); the rest inherit their work activities' importance. The index is the weighted mean.
Check: across the 910 occupations where O*NET also rates how far machine speed sets the pace, this index moves opposite to it (Spearman ρ = -0.49). The more a job is paced by equipment, the less of its task content AI can address — the relationship you would expect if the scoring is working.
Sources · O*NET 31.0 (task records to 08/2026) · BLS OEWS May 2025 · BLS projections 2025-2035 · rubric v2.1 · tasks for O*NET, not a forecast
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