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Manufacturing & Production · Updated Aug 2026

Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners

Perform precision smoothing, sharpening, polishing, or grinding of metal objects.

JVS 2.0.0-phase4b
AI Exposure
45/100
Moderate

How much of this occupation’s work can be materially affected by current AI systems.

Replacement Risk
43/100
Moderate

How likely exposure is to translate into reduced human demand.

Includes provisional estimates for AI adoption pressure and labour-market resilience. How this is measured

Evidence quality
Confidence82/100
Task coverage87%

Confidence reflects task coverage, mapping and capability-evidence quality, and how much of the score rests on provisional inputs.

Task-level evidence

What is driving the score?

Occupation scores are built from the task mix—not a single prediction about a job title.

JVS 2.0.0-phase4b
TaskImportanceAI impactExposure
Study blueprints or layouts of metal workpieces to determine grinding procedures, and to plan machine setups and operational sequences.High
69
File or finish surfaces of workpieces, using prescribed hand tools.High
68
Set up and operate grinding or polishing machines to grind metal workpieces, such as dies, parts, and tools.High
61
Inspect, feel, and measure workpieces to ensure that surfaces and dimensions meet specifications.High
52
Monitor machine operations to determine whether adjustments are necessary, stopping machines when problems occur.High
52
Select and mount grinding wheels on machines, according to specifications, using hand tools and applying knowledge of abrasives and grinding procedures.High
64
Fit parts together in pre-assembly to ensure that dimensions are accurate.High
70
Place workpieces in electroplating solutions or apply pigments to surfaces of workpieces to highlight ridges and grooves.Medium
70
Inspect dies to detect defects, assess wear, and verify specifications, using micrometers, steel gauge pins, and loupes.High
32
Compute numbers, widths, and angles of cutting tools, micrometers, scales, and gauges, and adjust tools to produce specified cuts.High
23
Remove finished workpieces from machines and place them in boxes or on racks, setting aside pieces that are defective.High
24
Perform basic maintenance, such as cleaning and lubricating machine parts.High
25
Attach workpieces to grinding machines and form specified sections and repair cracks, using welding or brazing equipment.High
22
Turn valves to direct flow of coolant against cutting wheels and workpieces during grinding.High
17
Remove and replace worn or broken machine parts, using hand tools.Medium
24
Most exposed

Where AI can do more

Routine, digitized, and highly repeatable tasks face the greatest pressure.

  1. Fit parts together in pre-assembly to ensure that dimensions are accurate.70
  2. Place workpieces in electroplating solutions or apply pigments to surfaces of workpieces to highlight ridges and grooves.70
  3. Study blueprints or layouts of metal workpieces to determine grinding procedures, and to plan machine setups and operational sequences.69
  4. File or finish surfaces of workpieces, using prescribed hand tools.68
Hardest to automate

Where people still matter

These tasks score lowest on automation feasibility—physical presence, judgement, accountability and real-world variability all resist end-to-end automation.

  1. Turn valves to direct flow of coolant against cutting wheels and workpieces during grinding.01
  2. Compute numbers, widths, and angles of cutting tools, micrometers, scales, and gauges, and adjust tools to produce specified cuts.02
  3. Attach workpieces to grinding machines and form specified sections and repair cracks, using welding or brazing equipment.03
  4. Remove finished workpieces from machines and place them in boxes or on racks, setting aside pieces that are defective.04
  5. Remove and replace worn or broken machine parts, using hand tools.05
Where else this work leads

Related occupations

Occupations O*NET links to this one. Relatedness reflects shared work, not a claim that these roles are safer.

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AI risk 47

Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

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AI risk 45

Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

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AI risk 49

Lathe and Turning Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

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Beyond AI capability

Adoption and labour-market outlook

Structural factors are kept separate from raw capability so you can see what actually resists automation. Adoption pressure and labour-market resilience are still provisional models—25% of this occupation’s replacement-risk weight rests on them.

Human dependency56
Physical dependency64
Adoption pressure44
Labour-market resilience60
Methodology & sources

O*NET 30.3 occupational data interpreted through the JobsVsAI capability, automation and structural-constraint models.

Confidence82/100
CalculatedAug 21, 2026
Read methodology →