Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators
Also called: Boat Builder, Chopper Gun Operator, Fiberglass Laminator, LaminatorLaminate layers of fiberglass on molds to form boat decks and hulls, bodies for golf carts, automobiles, or other products.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 1 of its 16 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 4.6% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 5.2% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other assemblers and fabricators”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 5.4 hires for every 10 job openings in durable goods manufacturing, which employs about 72% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.5.4 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $38,360 | $36,230 to $40,710 | 170 |
| Arkansas | $39,320 | $36,760 to $45,700 | 360 |
| California | $47,750 | $41,860 to $58,840 | 850 |
| Colorado | $42,840 | $36,660 to $50,140 | 80 |
| Florida | $47,140 | $39,070 to $49,720 | 2,870 |
| Georgia | $35,670 | $33,330 to $38,250 | 130 |
| Idaho | $53,040 | $50,650 to $53,850 | not published |
| Indiana | $45,820 | $42,740 to $55,050 | 2,010 |
| Iowa | $50,450 | $41,740 to $50,450 | 40 |
| Kansas | $40,460 | $34,500 to $46,540 | 210 |
| Louisiana | $40,000 | $32,450 to $56,640 | 220 |
| Maine | $50,710 | $47,280 to $55,000 | 320 |
| Massachusetts | $55,980 | $46,620 to $60,030 | 200 |
| Michigan | $43,980 | $38,500 to $46,720 | 520 |
| Minnesota | $37,410 | $37,410 to $42,950 | not published |
| Mississippi | $42,080 | $37,330 to $48,780 | 180 |
| Missouri | $46,640 | $44,600 to $58,650 | 240 |
| Nebraska | $47,420 | $40,580 to $47,660 | 90 |
| Nevada | $47,700 | $37,110 to $63,740 | 120 |
| New Jersey | $54,080 | $48,390 to $56,530 | 680 |
| New York | $47,300 | $45,070 to $56,680 | 120 |
| North Carolina | $43,890 | $38,430 to $48,030 | 850 |
| Ohio | $49,130 | $45,610 to $56,770 | 490 |
| Oklahoma | $39,260 | $36,010 to $52,800 | 120 |
| Oregon | $49,850 | $38,790 to $55,620 | 160 |
| Pennsylvania | $54,800 | $43,660 to $108,970 | 270 |
| Rhode Island | $49,260 | $47,480 to $63,350 | 170 |
| South Carolina | $45,250 | $39,910 to $57,370 | 480 |
| South Dakota | $48,410 | $46,520 to $49,380 | 70 |
| Tennessee | $52,120 | $45,310 to $52,850 | 590 |
| Texas | $44,450 | $37,530 to $49,110 | 1,050 |
| Utah | $44,510 | $35,010 to $49,630 | 50 |
| Virginia | $39,140 | $37,920 to $43,070 | 160 |
| Washington | $58,410 | $48,930 to $77,500 | 1,100 |
| West Virginia | $39,450 | $38,020 to $49,340 | 80 |
| Wisconsin | $44,060 | $38,580 to $45,650 | 250 |
Nationally: $46,880. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 1 of its 16 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Release air bubbles and smooth seams, using rollers. | Not published |
| Not much | Mix catalysts into resins, and saturate cloth and mats with mixtures, using brushes. | Not published |
| Not much | Pat or press layers of saturated mat or cloth into place on molds, using brushes or hands, and smooth out wrinkles and air bubbles with hands or squeegees. | Not published |
| Not much | Check completed products for conformance to specifications and for defects by measuring with rulers or micrometers, by checking them visually, or by tapping them to detect bubbles or dead spots. | Not published |
| AI alone | Select precut fiberglass mats, cloth, and wood-bracing materials as required by projects being assembled. | Not published |
| Not much | Bond wood reinforcing strips to decks and cabin structures of watercraft, using resin-saturated fiberglass. | Not published |
See all 16 tasks
| Not much | Spray chopped fiberglass, resins, and catalysts onto prepared molds or dies using pneumatic spray guns with chopper attachments. | Not published |
| Not much | Inspect, clean, and assemble molds before beginning work. | Not published |
| Not much | Cure materials by letting them set at room temperature, placing them under heat lamps, or baking them in ovens. | Not published |
| Not much | Mask off mold areas not to be laminated, using cellophane, wax paper, masking tape, or special sprays containing mold-release substances. | Not published |
| Not much | Trim excess materials from molds, using hand shears or trimming knives. | Not published |
| Not much | Apply layers of plastic resin to mold surfaces prior to placement of fiberglass mats, repeating layers until products have the desired thicknesses and plastics have jelled. | Not published |
| Not much | Check all dies, templates, and cutout patterns to be used in the manufacturing process to ensure that they conform to dimensional data, photographs, blueprints, samples, or customer specifications. | Not published |
| Not much | Repair or modify damaged or defective glass-fiber parts, checking thicknesses, densities, and contours to ensure a close fit after repair. | Not published |
| Not much | Apply lacquers and waxes to mold surfaces to facilitate assembly and removal of laminated parts. | Not published |
| Not much | Trim cured materials by sawing them with diamond-impregnated cutoff wheels. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 0 of the 16 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 16 tasks fall under 13 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #38 Select materials or equipment for operations or projects
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Load products, materials, or equipment for transportation or further processing | |||
| Cut materials | |||
| Perform general construction or extraction activities | |||
| Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment | |||
| Remove workpieces from production equipment | |||
| Select materials or equipment for operations or projects | |||
| Prepare mixtures or solutions | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment |
Show all 13 activities
| Repair workpieces or products | |||
| Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Assemble products or work aids | |||
| Smooth surfaces of objects or equipment |
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for fiberglass laminators and fabricators specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved in from
of 283 moves in
- 1 Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists Low +3.6% 11%
- 2 Production Workers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 7%
- 3 Automotive Body and Related Repairers Low +3.7% 7%
- 4 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers Moderate +3.8% 5%
- 5 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 5%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 43% less than high school
- 46% high school
- 11% some college
- 1% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 22 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 15% less than high school
- 50% high school
- 20% some college
- 7% associate's
- 6% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other assemblers and fabricators” · 9,005 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other assemblers and fabricators”
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 2 registered apprenticeships in this occupation (COMPOSITE FITTER MECHANIC; Composite Technician). Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators” there.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/51-2051.00