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Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders
Operate or tend machines to bleach, shrink, wash, dye, or finish textiles or synthetic or glass fibers.
Also Known As:
Beck Operator
Dye House Worker
Dye Line Operator
Dye Machine Operator
Dye Operator
Dye Tub Operator
Dyer
Jet Dyeing Machine Operator
Machine Operator (Machine Op)
Tub Operator
Wages
Annual wages for Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
5,500
-10% Change From 2024
Explore Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Mount rolls of cloth on machines, using hoists, or place textile goods in machines or pieces of equipment.
- Record production information such as fabric yardage processed, temperature readings, fabric tensions, and machine speeds.
- Perform machine maintenance, such as cleaning and oiling equipment, and repair or replace worn or defective parts.
- Observe display screens, control panels, equipment, and cloth entering or exiting processes to determine if equipment is operating correctly.
- Adjust equipment controls to maintain specified heat, tension, and speed.
- Soak specified textile products for designated times.
- Sew ends of cloth together, by hand or using machines, to form endless lengths of cloth to facilitate processing.
- Ravel seams that connect cloth ends when processing is completed.
- Key in processing instructions to program electronic equipment.
- Perform machine maintenance, such as cleaning and oiling equipment, and repair or replace worn or defective parts.
- Install, level, and align components such as gears, chains, dies, cutters, and needles.
- Study guides, charts, and specification sheets, and confer with supervisors to determine machine setup requirements.
- Adjust equipment controls to maintain specified heat, tension, and speed.
- Inspect machinery to determine necessary adjustments and repairs.
- Study guides, charts, and specification sheets, and confer with supervisors to determine machine setup requirements.
- Remove dyed articles from tanks and machines for drying and further processing.
- Add dyes, water, detergents, or chemicals to tanks to dilute or strengthen solutions, according to established formulas and solution test results.
- Confer with coworkers to get information about order details, processing plans, or problems that occur.
- Thread ends of cloth or twine through specified sections of equipment prior to processing.
- Install, level, and align components such as gears, chains, dies, cutters, and needles.
- Start and control machines and equipment to wash, bleach, dye, or otherwise process and finish fabric, yarn, thread, or other textile goods.
- Monitor factors such as temperatures and dye flow rates to ensure that they are within specified ranges.
- Perform machine maintenance, such as cleaning and oiling equipment, and repair or replace worn or defective parts.
- Test solutions used to process textile goods to detect variations from standards.
- Examine and feel products to identify defects and variations from coloring and other processing standards.
- Mount rolls of cloth on machines, using hoists, or place textile goods in machines or pieces of equipment.
- Prepare dyeing machines for production runs, and conduct test runs of machines to ensure their proper operation.
- Weigh ingredients, such as dye, to be mixed together for use in textile processing.
- Notify supervisors or mechanics of equipment malfunctions.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- 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.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- 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.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- 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.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- 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.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- 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.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")