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Watch and Clock Repairers

Repair, clean, and adjust mechanisms of timing instruments, such as watches and clocks. Includes watchmakers, watch technicians, and mechanical timepiece repairers.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Repair or replace broken, damaged, or worn parts on timepieces, using lathes, drill presses, and hand tools.
    • Record quantities and types of timepieces repaired, serial and model numbers of items, work performed, and charges for repairs.
    • Order supplies, including replacement parts, for timing instruments.
    • Demagnetize mechanisms, using demagnetizing machines.
    • Estimate repair costs and timepiece values.
    • Gather information from customers about a timepiece's problems and its service history.
    • Clean, rinse, and dry timepiece parts, using solutions and ultrasonic or mechanical watch-cleaning machines.
    • Adjust timing regulators, using truing calipers, watch-rate recorders, and tweezers.
    • Test and replace batteries and other electronic components.
    • Fabricate parts for watches and clocks, using small lathes and other machines.
    • Test timepiece accuracy and performance, using meters and other electronic instruments.
    • Repair or replace broken, damaged, or worn parts on timepieces, using lathes, drill presses, and hand tools.
    • Oil moving parts of timepieces.
    • Test and replace batteries and other electronic components.
    • Reassemble timepieces, replacing glass faces and batteries, before returning them to customers.
    • Disassemble timepieces and inspect them for defective, worn, misaligned, or rusty parts, using loupes.
    • Disassemble timepieces and inspect them for defective, worn, misaligned, or rusty parts, using loupes.
    • Perform regular adjustment and maintenance on timepieces, watch cases, and watch bands.

    Skills

    • Instructing
      • Teaching people how to do something.
    • Programming
      • Writing computer programs.
    • Persuasion
      • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
    • Management of Financial Resources
      • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
    • Equipment Selection
      • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
    • Quality Control Analysis
      • Testing how well a product or service works.
    • Operation and Control
      • Using equipment or systems.
    • Management of Personnel Resources
      • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
    • Speaking
      • Talking to others.
    • Reading Comprehension
      • Reading work-related information.
    • Science
      • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
    • Installation
      • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
    • Judgment and Decision Making
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
    • Monitoring
      • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
    • Repairing
      • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
    • Service Orientation
      • Looking for ways to help people.
    • Complex Problem Solving
      • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
    • Equipment Maintenance
      • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
    • Coordination
      • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
    • Negotiation
      • Bringing people together to solve differences.
    • Systems Analysis
      • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
    • Learning Strategies
      • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
    • Time Management
      • Managing your time and the time of other people.
    • Social Perceptiveness
      • Understanding people's reactions.
    • Technology Design
      • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
    • Active Listening
      • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
    • Critical Thinking
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
    • Active Learning
      • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
    • Operations Monitoring
      • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
    • Systems Evaluation
      • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
    • Operations Analysis
      • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
    • Troubleshooting
      • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
    • Management of Material Resources
      • Managing equipment and materials.
    • Writing
      • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
    • Mathematics
      • Using math to solve problems.

    Abilities

    • Information Ordering
      • Ordering or arranging things.
    • Flexibility of Closure
      • Seeing hidden patterns.
    • Visualization
      • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
    • Manual Dexterity
      • Holding or moving items with your hands.
    • Control Precision
      • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
    • Response Orientation
      • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
    • Auditory Attention
      • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
    • Hearing Sensitivity
      • Telling the difference between sounds.
    • Reaction Time
      • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
    • Extent Flexibility
      • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Near Vision
      • Seeing details up close.
    • Problem Sensitivity
      • Noticing when problems happen.
    • Depth Perception
      • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
    • Number Facility
      • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
    • Memorization
      • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
    • Perceptual Speed
      • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
    • Spatial Orientation
      • Knowing where things are around you.
    • Multilimb Coordination
      • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
    • Rate Control
      • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
    • Visual Color Discrimination
      • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
    • Gross Body Coordination
      • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
    • Far Vision
      • Seeing details that are far away.
    • Speech Clarity
      • Speaking clearly.
    • Speed of Closure
      • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
    • Oral Expression
      • Communicating by speaking.
    • Explosive Strength
      • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
    • Speed of Limb Movement
      • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
    • Deductive Reasoning
      • Using rules to solve problems.
    • Dynamic Flexibility
      • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Selective Attention
      • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
    • Time Sharing
      • Doing two or more things at the same time.
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
      • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
    • Finger Dexterity
      • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
    • Mathematical Reasoning
      • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
    • Trunk Strength
      • Using your lower back and stomach.
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
      • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
    • Peripheral Vision
      • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
    • Speech Recognition
      • Recognizing spoken words.
    • Fluency of Ideas
      • Coming up with lots of ideas.
    • Wrist-Finger Speed
      • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
    • Originality
      • Creating new and original ideas.
    • Category Flexibility
      • Grouping things in different ways.
    • Oral Comprehension
      • Listening and understanding what people say.
    • Written Comprehension
      • Reading and understanding what is written.
    • Stamina
      • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
    • Dynamic Strength
      • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
    • Static Strength
      • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
    • Glare Sensitivity
      • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
    • Night Vision
      • Seeing at night or under low light.
    • Sound Localization
      • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
    • Written Expression
      • Communicating by writing.
    • Inductive Reasoning
      • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    Knowledge

    • 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.
    • Mechanical
      • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Mathematics
      • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Sociology and Anthropology
      • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
    • 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.
    • Law and Government
      • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
    • 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.
    • Transportation
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Food Production
      • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
    • 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.
    • Design
      • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
    • Fine Arts
      • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • History and Archeology
      • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Economics and Accounting
      • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Biology
      • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
    • 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.
    • 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.
    • Telecommunications
      • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    Education

    Education
    High school diploma or equivalent
    Work Experience
    No work experience
    Training
    More than 1 year on-the-job training

    Pay

    U.S. Annual Salary
    60690/yr
    U.S. Hourly Wage
    29.18/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    1,400
    Yearly Projected Openings
    100

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:
    • Cautiousness
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability

    Tools

    • Angle measuring instrument
    • Audio amplifier
    • Battery testers
    • Bench vises
    • Binocular light compound microscopes
    • Clock timers
    • Drill bit set
    • Glass cutters
    • Grinding wheels
    • Hammers
    • Loupes
    • Magnetizer demagnetizer devices
    • Magnifying lamp
    • Manual wire straighteners
    • Mechanical or ultrasonic metal cleaner
    • Micrometer calipers
    • Mini pliers
    • Needle file
    • Oil can
    • Pressure or steam cleaners
    • Pullers
    • Rubber mallet
    • Screw extractors
    • Sound detector
    • Specialty wrenches
    • Thickness measuring devices
    • Tweezers
    • Utility knives
    • Watch or clock case openers
    • Watch or clock repair kits

    Technology

    • Accounting software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Office suite software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software