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Wellhead Pumpers

Operate power pumps and auxiliary equipment to produce flow of oil or gas from wells in oil field.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks.
    • Operate engines and pumps to shut off wells according to production schedules, and to switch flow of oil into storage tanks.
    • Gauge oil and gas production.
    • Repair gas and oil meters and gauges.
    • Attach pumps and hoses to wellheads.
    • Mix acids, chemicals, or dry cement as required for a specific job.
    • Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks.
    • Monitor control panels during pumping operations to ensure that materials are being pumped at the correct pressure, density, rate, and concentration.
    • Change water filters.
    • Prepare trucks and equipment necessary for the type of pumping service required.
    • Unload and assemble pipes and pumping equipment, using hand tools.
    • Gauge oil and gas production.
    • Perform routine maintenance on vehicles and equipment.
    • Open valves to return compressed gas to bottoms of specified wells to repressurize them and force oil to surface.
    • Change water filters.
    • Supervise oil pumpers and other workers engaged in producing oil from wells.
    • Start compressor engines and divert oil from storage tanks into compressor units and auxiliary equipment to recover natural gas from oil.

    Skills

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

    Abilities

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

    Knowledge

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

    Education

    Education
    High school diploma or equivalent
    Work Experience
    Less than 5 years work experience
    Training
    1 to 12 months on-the-job training

    Pay

    U.S. Annual Salary
    70010/yr
    U.S. Hourly Wage
    33.66/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    17,900
    Yearly Projected Openings
    2000

    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
    • Dependability
    • Attention to Detail

    Tools

    • Adjustable wrenches
    • Air compressors
    • All terrain vehicles tracked or wheeled
    • Calipers
    • Chemical pumps
    • Circulating pumps
    • Combination wrenches
    • Depth gauges
    • Diesel engines
    • Downhole jet pumps
    • Ear plugs
    • Electric downhole pumps
    • Eyewashers or eye wash stations
    • Fire extinguishers
    • Fuse pullers
    • Gas compressors
    • Gas gauges
    • Gas generators
    • Gasoline engines
    • Goggles
    • Grease guns
    • Hammers
    • Heat exchangers
    • Hot water tank
    • Level sensors or transmitters
    • Light trucks or sport utility vehicles
    • Mechanical rod pumps
    • Mobile medical services first aid kits
    • Mud pumps
    • Multimeters
    • Notebook computers
    • Oil gauges
    • Oil samplers
    • Oil storage tanks
    • Oil water separators
    • Oil well heater treaters
    • Personal computers
    • Plunger lift equipment
    • Pressure calibrator
    • Pressure indicators
    • Protective gloves
    • Remote reading thermometers
    • Respirators
    • Scaffolding
    • Screwdrivers
    • Spark plug wrench
    • Storage tanks
    • Stuffing box
    • Submersible pumps
    • Tape measures
    • Through tubing perforation guns
    • Two way radios
    • Volumeters
    • Water storage tanks
    • Well pumps
    • Well testing separators

    Technology

    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Industrial control software
    • Office suite software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software