Production
Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders
Operate or tend bonding machines that use adhesives to join items for further processing or to form a completed product. Processes include joining veneer sheets into plywood; gluing paper; or joining rubber and rubberized fabric parts, plastic, simulated leather, or other materials.
Median pay
$46,460
Growth to 2035
+1%
little or no change
Openings a year
1,300
Time to qualify*
6 months
* From a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field.
Pay
Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders
Getting in
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
- Prior experience
- None
Calculate your switch to adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders
What the work is like
Dealing with the public
Unpleasant or angry people
Time pressure
Cost of a mistake
Freedom to make decisions
Repeating the same tasks
Time standing
Hazardous conditions
Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders: 47% usually work over 40 hours a week
Core tasks
- Align and position materials being joined to ensure accurate application of adhesive or heat sealing.
- Adjust machine components according to specifications such as widths, lengths, and thickness of materials and amounts of glue, cement, or adhesive required.
- Monitor machine operations to detect malfunctions and report or resolve problems.
- Start machines, and turn valves or move controls to feed, admit, apply, or transfer materials and adhesives, and to adjust temperature, pressure, and time settings.
- Fill machines with glue, cement, or adhesives.
- Perform test production runs and make adjustments as necessary to ensure that completed products meet standards and specifications.
- Examine and measure completed materials or products to verify conformance to specifications, using measuring devices such as tape measures, gauges, or calipers.
- Read work orders and communicate with coworkers to determine machine and equipment settings and adjustments and supply and product specifications.
Also called: Coater Operator · Glue Line Operator · Glue Reel Operator · Gluer Machine Operator · Gluing Pressman · Machine Operator · Perfect Bind Machine Operator · Sealer Operator
Outlook and AI
Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders held 12,100 jobs in 2025. BLS projects 12,200 by 2035 (+1%, little or no change; all jobs: +3.5%).
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