Overview
1. Automation Risk
2. User Poll
3. Growth
4. Wages
5. Volume
Decription
Comments

Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

AUTOMATION RISK
CALCULATED
22%
risk level
POLLING
15.2%
Based on 531 votes
LABOR DEMAND
GROWTH
1.9%
by year 2032
WAGES
$61,550
or $29.59 per hour
Volume
436,160
as of 2023
SUMMARY
JOB SCORE
6.4/10

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Comments (17)

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Automation risk

22% (Low Risk)

Low Risk (21-40%): Jobs in this level have a limited risk of automation, as they demand a mix of technical and human-centric skills.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Some quite important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Cramped Work Space, Awkward Positions

  • Finger Dexterity

  • Manual Dexterity

User poll

15.2% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted there's a minimal chance this occupation will be automated. This assessment is further supported by the calculated automation risk level, which estimates 22% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters will be replaced by robots or artificial intelligence within the next 20 years?






Sentiment

The following graph(s) are included wherever there is a substantial amount of votes to render meaningful data. These visual representations display user poll results over time, providing a significant indication of sentiment trends.

Sentiment over time (yearly)

Growth

Slow growth relative to other professions.

The number of 'Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters' job openings is expected to rise 1.9% by 2032

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2021 and 2031
Updated projections are due 09-2023.

Wages

Moderately paid relative to other professions

In 2023, the median annual wage for 'Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters' was $61,550, or $29 per hour

'Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters' were paid 28.1% higher than the national median wage, which stood at $48,060

Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Volume

Significantly greater range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2023 there were 436,160 people employed as 'Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters' within the United States.

This represents around 0.29% of the employed workforce across the country

Put another way, around 1 in 348 people are employed as 'Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters'.

Job description

Assemble, install, alter, and repair pipelines or pipe systems that carry water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases. May install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. Includes sprinkler fitters.

SOC Code: 47-2152.00

Comments

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Captain box fan 13 days ago
About all it would be able to do is dig a trench for a repair or new installation on sewer lines. Other than that, I do not think it could handle the majority of the work. The cost to build it would outweigh its productivity over its lifespan.
0 0 Reply
ilian (No chance) 1 month ago
a robot that will be able to preform the complex moovements required will cost more to make than it will produce troughout it's functioning
0 0 Reply
Carl Wyatt (Low) 3 years ago
I can envisage machines installing plumbing and heating in new builds however most plumbing tasks such as repairs/maintenance or installations on old buildings require dexterity and flexibility which are difficult criteria's for machines to meet. I'm sure it'll be possible one day but I believe plumbing to be one of the last professions to be automated.
0 0 Reply
Pierce (Low) 3 years ago
Robots can't think critically to solve unusual problems that are always guaranteed to happen.
0 0 Reply
Frank (No chance) 3 years ago
How in the world, in the relatively near future, will automation enter a job site and set a toilet for example???? Ridiculous!!
0 0 Reply
Elon Musk 3 years ago
The probability of a robot being able to diagnose a plumbing or drain issue and have the engineering benefit of that being in development is possibly more likely for new construction rather than residential services or retro construction in the next 30 if at all ever.
0 0 Reply
Nathan Wood (Low) 3 years ago
Unless they are all pre fabricated buildings. No robot will be able to do repairs, fit in a crawl hole or remodel a home or office either.
1 0 Reply
bringthon (No chance) 3 years ago
no chance lol forget it..

manual skilled jobs will be hard to replace but they will evolve
0 0 Reply
lol (No chance) 4 years ago
I'm not sure if robot could do this correctly, or if it will be cheaper than from human beings
0 0 Reply
Josh 4 years ago
I would have preferred a robot from 1994 than the spud who did my bathroom refurb!
0 0 Reply
Andreas (Low) 4 years ago
In buildings or industrial facilities where there is a standardised infrastructure built with all used parts digitised in an archive, maybe. But everything with existing infrastructure needs the experience of humans to decide and take action. However, it would be awesome to have a robot with me at work doing stuff like heavy lifts, cleaning, carrying equipment and parts.
0 0 Reply
Mister man (No chance) 4 years ago
While I understand the seemingly repetitive nature of pipe work, it strikes me as the sort of business that takes a lot more figuring than more repetitive work, such as cashiering
0 0 Reply
Marty (No chance) 4 years ago
Are robots going to go into people's homes to deal with plumbing issues? I highly doubt it.
0 0 Reply
Franklin (Low) 4 years ago
I think robots capable of this are decades away and when they do arrive it will probably be cheaper to hire a human.
0 0 Reply
Phillip (No chance) 5 years ago
I just don't see how your gonna get a robot to come to a house, diagnose the plumbing issue and then perform the work to fix it. Thats a complex task and modern robots can still only reliably perform the simplest of tasks. The tech is a long ways away and even if it weren't I don't feel like replacing plumbers would the first thing on the agenda for that tech.
0 0 Reply
Kenn 3 years ago
Well instead of the robot coming into houses it would be a robot per household capable of completing any plumbing, carpentry, pretty much any trade repair needed within that household. That robot would he owned by the family and essentially a crazy advanced butler. The tech is def not in the next decade but 15-30 years from now it's quite a possibility.
0 0 Reply
Kenny (Low) 5 years ago
Would need very good robots to do this.
0 0 Reply

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