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Date: 07/22/2026

Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers

Develop programs to control machining or processing of materials by automatic machine tools, equipment, or systems. May also set up, operate, or maintain equipment.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Determine the sequence of machine operations, and select the proper cutting tools needed to machine workpieces into the desired shapes.
    • Analyze job orders, drawings, blueprints, specifications, printed circuit board pattern films, and design data to calculate dimensions, tool selection, machine speeds, and feed rates.
    • Align and secure pattern film on reference tables of optical programmers, and observe enlarger scope views of printed circuit boards.
    • Perform preventative maintenance or minor repairs on machines.
    • Observe machines on trial runs or conduct computer simulations to ensure that programs and machinery will function properly and produce items that meet specifications.
    • Enter computer commands to store or retrieve parts patterns, graphic displays, or programs that transfer data to other media.
    • Order tooling for jobs.
    • Revise programs or tapes to eliminate errors, and retest programs to check that problems have been solved.
    • Align and secure pattern film on reference tables of optical programmers, and observe enlarger scope views of printed circuit boards.
    • Enter coordinates of hole locations into program memories by depressing pedals or buttons of programmers.
    • Order tooling for jobs.
    • Determine reference points, machine cutting paths, or hole locations, and compute angular and linear dimensions, radii, and curvatures.
    • Write programs in the language of a machine's controller and store programs on media, such as punch tapes, magnetic tapes, or disks.
    • Determine the sequence of machine operations, and select the proper cutting tools needed to machine workpieces into the desired shapes.
    • Determine reference points, machine cutting paths, or hole locations, and compute angular and linear dimensions, radii, and curvatures.
    • Modify existing programs to enhance efficiency.
    • Compare encoded tapes or computer printouts with original part specifications and blueprints to verify accuracy of instructions.
    • Sort shop orders into groups to maximize materials utilization and minimize machine setup time.
    • Write instruction sheets and cutter lists for a machine's controller to guide setup and encode numerical control tapes.
    • Prepare geometric layouts from graphic displays, using computer-assisted drafting software or drafting instruments and graph paper.

    Skills

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    N/A
    Workplace Documents
    N/A
    Graphic Literacy
    N/A

    Abilities

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    Knowledge

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • 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.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • 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.

    • 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.

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    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 60080/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 28.89/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 2,330
    • Yearly Projected Openings 230

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Intellectual Curiosity
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Perseverance

    Tools

    • Angle gauge
    • Automatic lathe or chucking machine
    • Calipers
    • Comparators
    • Coordinate measuring machines CMM
    • Dial indicator or dial gauge
    • Drill press or radial drill
    • Height gauges
    • Hole gauge
    • Hydraulic press brake
    • Laser cutting machine
    • Metal cutters
    • Metallurgical microscopes
    • Micrometers
    • Pin gauge
    • Power grinders
    • Precision surface plate
    • Profile gauge
    • Protractors
    • Radius gauge
    • Sine bar
    • Squares
    • Thickness measuring devices
    • Thread pitch gauge
    • Traveling column milling machine
    • Turret lathe
    • Vertical turning center
    • Wire gauge

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Computer aided design CAD software
    • Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise application integration software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Object or component oriented development software
    • Office suite software
    • Presentation software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Video conferencing software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • InDemand occupations are considered a priority by the state of Ohio.
    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.
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