Pile Driver Operators
Operate pile drivers mounted on skids, barges, crawler treads, or locomotive cranes to drive pilings for retaining walls, bulkheads, and foundations of structures such as buildings, bridges, and piers.
Also Known As:
Pile Driver
Pile Driver Operator
Pile Driving Operator
Wages
Annual wages for Pile Driver Operators in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
3,300
4% Change From 2024
Explore Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Clean, lubricate, and refill equipment.
- Clean, lubricate, and refill equipment.
- Move hand and foot levers of hoisting equipment to position piling leads, hoist piling into leads, and position hammers over pilings.
- Move levers and turn valves to activate power hammers, or to raise and lower drophammers that drive piles to required depths.
- Drive pilings to provide support for buildings or other structures, using heavy equipment with a pile driver head.
- Conduct pre-operational checks on equipment to ensure proper functioning.
- Drive pilings to provide support for buildings or other structures, using heavy equipment with a pile driver head.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- 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.
- 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.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- 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.
- 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.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- 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.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- 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.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- 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.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
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")