Why We Love It
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$52,650Potential Avg. Salary
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15.2%Job Growth Rate
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Growing DemandJob Outlook
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Growing IndustryCareer Attribute
Millwrights erect, maintain and repair machinery in a variety of settings, the most prominent of which are construction sites, power plants and factories. They are responsible for the repair, installation and dismantling, leveling and aligning of machinery.
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What is a Millwright?
Millwrights perform specific tasks such as planning machine installations and alignments, fabricating machinery from constituent parts, fitting pipes, and dismantling old machinery. It is a physically rigorous career due to the nature of the work, and safety precautions are paramount, including the use of protective gear, such as safety glasses, hearing protectors and hardhats. Despite the sometimes demanding hours and physical nature of the work, job satisfaction is rated highly.
In the course of their work, millwrights typically fulfill the following responsibilities:
- Conduct dignistic tests to ensure machinery is operating at peak efficiency and provide necesary adjustments to machinery to maximize performance
- Align and test equipment regularly, make precision adjustments
- Repair and replace defective components; completely dissassemlbe machinery when required, install new equipment or replace defective parts of machinery as needed
- Operate heavy rigging equipment to move or replace machinery
- Fit bearings, align gears and shafts, attach motors, and connect couplings and belts to precise tolerances
The job description for millwright has evolved over the years with the work becoming more specialized in nature and additionally requiring a more flexible set of skills.
Machinery must be moved or taken apart completely one day and the next will require a simple adjustment or replacement of a single defective portion. With such variety of day-to-day responsibilities, expertise with tools and equipment, ranging from simple hammers and sledgehammers to complex (and more dangerous) sauntering irons, welding tools and precision instruments such as lasers. With especially large projects, it is typical to utilize forklifts, winches, trucks and cranes.
All of this will require millwrights to carefully plan, utilize problem-solving skills, operate a variety of equpiment with high levels of accuracy and operate within physically challenging environemnts, such as construction sites with heights.
TYPICAL WORK SCHEDULE
Most millwrights work full time in factories, refineries, food-processing facilities, power plants or at construction sites. Normal business hours are prevalent, however millwrights may find themselves on call and working night or weekend shifts as part of their job. Overtime is quite common regardless of employer.
JOB GROWTH
Employment of millwrights is expected to increase over the next ten years, at a faster rate than the average taken for all occupations. A combination of factors are behind this, including an emphasis on repairing and expanding infrastructure across the country, along with an expected uptick overall in construction. The need to keep increasingly sophisticated machinery functioning and efficient in these industries will drive demand for millwrights and as such, job prospects for qualified applicants should be quite good.
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How To Become a Millwright
A high school diploma is the minimum academic requirement in order to become a millwright. The ability to perform manual labor is also an absolute essential. The majority of millwritghts complete an apprenticeship, fulfilled in lab settings or with on-site job instruction. These typically last approximately four years and are paid from industry sponsorships, though specific requirements for apprenticeships differ amongst employers.
Certification programs are less common, but provide value in covering numerous aspects of the industry and relevant duties, including but not lmited to hydraulic, welding, industrocial mathematics and mill maintenance. Advancement is typically based on on-the-job experience and additional coursework received through certification progams.
Millwright Salary Data
We’ve provided you the following to learn more about this career. The salary and growth data on this page comes from recently published Bureau of Labor Statistics data while the recommendations and editorial content are based on our research.
National Anual Salary
Low Range
$40,540Average
$52,650High Range
$76,350National Hourly Wage
Low Range
$19/hrAverage
$25/hrHigh Range
$37/hrHow do Millwright salaries stack up to other jobs across the country? Based on the latest jobs data nationwide, Millwright's can make an average annual salary of $52,650, or $25 per hour. This makes it an Above Average Salary. On the lower end, they can make $40,540 or $19 per hour, perhaps when just starting out or based on the state you live in.
Salary Rankings And Facts
#359 Nationally for All Careers
Highest Education Among Millwrights
- 0% Doctorate
- 0.9% Masters
- 3.3% Bachelors
- 9.6% Associates
- 32.7% College
- 46.6% High School
- 6.9% Less than High School
Job Growth Projections and Forecast
2014 Total Jobs
40,9002024 Est. Jobs
47,100Job Growth Rate
15.2%Est. New Jobs
6,200How does Millwright job growth stack up to other jobs across the country? By 2024, there will be a change of 6,200 jobs for a total of 47,100 people employed in the career nationwide. This is a 15.2% change in growth over the next ten years, giving the career a growth rate nationwide of Below Average.
Growth Rankings And Facts
#101 Nationally for All Careers
What Companies Employ The Most Millwrights
| Industry | Current Jobs | New Jobs Needed | % Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Other building equipment contractors | 9,500 | 2,400 | 2% |
| Nonresidential building construction | 4,800 | 800 | 1% |
| Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills | 2,000 | -200 | 0% |
