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Pourers and Casters, Metal
Production · SOC 51-4052
0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$51,810
Median Annual Salary
Average
O*NET Outlook
700
Proj. Annual Openings
4,560
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-9%/yr
Empl. growth (2019–2025)
100/100
AI Resiliency Score
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 51-4052 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
Proxy / seed data labeledDescriptive-only
- SOC exposure
- 0.0%
- Low · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 49/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $51,810
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 700
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change -4.7%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- —
- FY— certified LCAs; 753 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Operations MonitoringOperation and ControlActive ListeningCritical ThinkingMonitoring
Transition context
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
AI Exposure Analysis
AI Exposure0.0%
AI Resiliency100/100
Exposure BandLow
Sector Avg. Exposure0.7%
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
13.2%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI0%
AI ability · AIOE39.6%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne87%
Top Skills
1.Operations Monitoring
2.Operation and Control
3.Active Listening
4.Critical Thinking
5.Monitoring
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →No H-1B certified LCA filings recorded for this occupation in FY2016–FY2025.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Operate hand-controlled mechanisms to pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds to produce castings or ingots.
Common titles: Caster, Casting Machine Operator, Casting Operator, DC Caster (Direct Chill Caster), Die Cast Machine Operator, Die Casting Machine Operator
Representative Tasks
- •Pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds and forms to produce ingots or other castings, using ladles or hand-controlled mechanisms.
- •Read temperature gauges and observe color changes, adjusting furnace flames, torches, or electrical heating units as necessary to melt metal to specifications.
- •Remove solidified steel or slag from pouring nozzles, using long bars or oxygen burners.
- •Examine molds to ensure they are clean, smooth, and properly coated.
- •Collect samples, or signal workers to sample metal for analysis.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Adjust equipment controls to regulate flow of production materials or products.
- •Place materials into molds.
- •Adjust temperature controls of ovens or other heating equipment.
- •Monitor instruments to ensure proper production conditions.
- •Clean production equipment.
Tools & Technologies
Microsoft Excel · hotMicrosoft Outlook · hotMicrosoft PowerPoint · hotMicrosoft Word · hotHusky Injection Molding Systems Shotscope NX
Related Occupations
Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic · BrightRolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticForging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and PlasticGrinding and Polishing Workers, HandMolding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
15
Occupations Shown
0.5%
Avg AI Exposure
1
Bright Outlook
Horizontal bar chart showing occupations with the highest projected annual openings. Each bar length represents annual projected openings. Color uses a gradient from violet (lower) to cyan (higher). Summary statistics are shown above the chart.
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Multi-year BLS OEWS history for SOC 51-4052: 2019 — employment: 8,010, median wage: $38,620; 2020 — employment: 7,200, median wage: $40,170; 2021 — employment: 6,570, median wage: $45,850; 2022 — employment: 6,070, median wage: $45,070; 2023 — employment: 5,460, median wage: $48,690; 2025 — employment: 4,560, median wage: $51,810.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 0.0% | 0.7% |
| Outlook | Average | 4% Bright |
| Median Salary | $51,810 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |