refining machine operator
Refining machine operators tend machines to refine crude oils, such as soybean oil, cottonseed oil, and peanut oil. They tend wash tanks to remove by-products and remove impurities with heat.
refining machine operator refining machine operators tend machines to refine crude oils, such as soybean oil, cottonseed oil, and peanut oil. They tend wash tanks to remove by-products and remove impurities with heat. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include types of lubricants, origin of dietary fats and oils, mechanical tools, alkali stages of refining processes for edible oils, operate centrifuges.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £28,243 a year for Food, drink and tobacco process operatives (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
Middle half of full-time jobs: £24,471 to £33,889 a year
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 8111). ONS rates this estimate precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Plant and machine operators and assemblers” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only refining machine operator, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 8. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Production and Processing
- English Language
- Public Safety and Security
- Psychology
- Education and Training
- Chemistry
- Mechanical
- Administration and Management
What you'd actually do
- Add specified amounts of chemicals to equipment at required times to maintain solution levels and concentrations.
- Observe machine operations, gauges, or thermometers, and adjust controls to maintain specified conditions.
- Set controls to regulate temperature and length of cycles, and start conveyors, pumps, agitators, and machines.
- Drain, clean, and refill machines or tanks at designated intervals, using cleaning solutions or water.
- Operate or tend machines to wash and remove impurities from items such as barrels or kegs, glass products, tin plate surfaces, dried fruit, pulp, animal stock, coal, manufactured articles, plastic, or rubber.
- Record gauge readings, materials used, processing times, or test results in production logs.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does refining machine operator do?
Refining machine operators tend machines to refine crude oils, such as soybean oil, cottonseed oil, and peanut oil. They tend wash tanks to remove by-products and remove impurities with heat.
What skills does refining machine operator need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include types of lubricants, origin of dietary fats and oils, mechanical tools, alkali stages of refining processes for edible oils, operate centrifuges, measure density of liquids. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace refining machine operator?
Our AI-durability model gives refining machine operator a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.