AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 51-4052.00
Will AI replace Pourers and Casters, Metal?
Pourers and Casters, Metal: AI does not yet handle any of the role's 16 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs an efficient-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 16 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Pourers and Casters, Metal, from most to least exposed. None reaches 60, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skim slag or remove excess metal from ingots or equipment, using hand tools, strainers, rakes, or burners, collecting scrap for recycling. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Repair and maintain metal forms and equipment, using hand tools, sledges, and bars. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds and forms to produce ingots or other castings, using ladles or hand-controlled mechanisms. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Read temperature gauges and observe color changes, adjusting furnace flames, torches, or electrical heating units as necessary to melt metal to specifications. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Remove solidified steel or slag from pouring nozzles, using long bars or oxygen burners. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Assemble and embed cores in casting frames, using hand tools and equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Examine molds to ensure they are clean, smooth, and properly coated. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Collect samples, or signal workers to sample metal for analysis. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Turn valves to circulate water through cores, or spray water on filled molds to cool and solidify metal. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Load specified amounts of metal and flux into furnaces or clay crucibles. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Position equipment such as ladles, grinding wheels, pouring nozzles, or crucibles, or signal other workers to position equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Remove metal ingots or cores from molds, using hand tools, cranes, and chain hoists. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Add metal to molds to compensate for shrinkage. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Stencil identifying information on ingots and pigs, using special hand tools. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Pull levers to lift ladle stoppers and to allow molten steel to flow into ingot molds to specified heights. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Transport metal ingots to storage areas, using forklifts. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 16 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 16 of 16. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
An efficient-tier model or lower covers 12% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 12% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 88% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 4,560
- Median annual wage
- $51,810
- Middle half of earners
- $45,190 to $61,700
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -4.7%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 76% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure20
- Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders 71% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure22
- Foundry Mold and Coremakers 70% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure15
- Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic 69% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure18
- Forging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure21
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Pourers and Casters, Metal and AI
Will AI replace Pourers and Casters, Metal?
Not on current evidence. None of the 16 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation reaches a task exposure of 60, the level at which JobRoute counts a task as handled by AI, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 16 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears.
What is the AI exposure of Pourers and Casters, Metal?
16 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 16 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 16 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Pourers and Casters, Metal tasks can AI already do?
None reaches 60 yet. The most exposed task is: Skim slag or remove excess metal from ingots or equipment, using hand tools, strainers, rakes, or burners, collecting scrap for recycling, at 35 out of 100.
What AI model tier does this role need?
An efficient-tier model or lower covers 12% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 88% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Pourers and Casters, Metal, and what do they earn?
4,560 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $51,810 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -4.7% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Pourers and Casters, Metal. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/pourers-and-casters-metal
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