Biomass Plant Technicians

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Operate valves, pumps, engines, or generators to control and adjust production of biofuels or biomass-fueled power.
• Operate equipment to heat biomass, using knowledge of controls, combustion, and firing mechanisms.
• Calculate, measure, load, or mix biomass feedstock for power generation.
• Operate equipment to start, stop, or regulate biomass-fueled generators, generator units, boilers, engines, or auxiliary systems.
• Clean work areas to ensure compliance with safety regulations.
• Calibrate liquid flow devices or meters, including fuel, chemical, and water meters.
• Manage parts and supply inventories for biomass plants.
• Perform routine maintenance or make minor repairs to mechanical, electrical, or electronic equipment in biomass plants.
• Operate biomass fuel-burning boiler or biomass fuel gasification system equipment in accordance with specifications or instructions.
• Perform tests of water chemistry in boilers.
• Inspect biomass power plant or processing equipment, recording or reporting damage and mechanical problems.
• Preprocess feedstock to prepare for biochemical or thermochemical production processes.
• Calculate, measure, load, or mix biomass feedstock for power generation.
• Operate heavy equipment, such as bulldozers and front-end loaders.
• Inspect biomass power plant or processing equipment, recording or reporting damage and mechanical problems.
• Perform tests of water chemistry in boilers.
• Assess quality of biomass feedstock.
• Measure and monitor raw biomass feedstock, including wood, waste, or refuse materials.
• Calculate, measure, load, or mix biomass feedstock for power generation.
• Operate high-pressure steam boiler or water chiller equipment for electrical cogeneration operations.
• Inspect biomass power plant or processing equipment, recording or reporting damage and mechanical problems.
• Record or report operational data, such as readings on meters, instruments, and gauges.
• Operate valves, pumps, engines, or generators to control and adjust production of biofuels or biomass-fueled power.
• Read and interpret instruction manuals or technical drawings related to biomass-fueled power or biofuels production equipment or processes.

Skills

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

Abilities

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

Knowledge

• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• 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.
• 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.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• 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.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• 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.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• 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.
• 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.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• 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.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• 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.
• 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.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Education

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

More than 1 year on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

124050/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

59.64/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

370

Yearly Projected Openings

40

Personality

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

• Dependability
• Attention to Detail
• Cooperation
• Stress Tolerance
• Adaptability/Flexibility
• Initiative

Tools

• Air dryers
• Batching plants or feeders
• Belt conveyors
• Conveyor feeders
• Desktop computers
• Dump trucks
• Extendable conveyors
• Fire tube boilers
• Front end loaders
• Grinding mills
• Hammer mills
• Intake structures
• Notebook computers
• Personal computers
• Steam engines
• Steam generators
• Truck or rail scales
• Water samplers
• Water tube boiler

Technology

• Analytical or scientific software
• Development environment software
• Electronic mail software
• Industrial control software
• Inventory management software
• Office suite software
• Spreadsheet software
• Word processing software