cylindrical grinder operator
Cylindrical grinder operators set up and tend cylindrical grinding machines designed to apply abrasive processes in order to remove small amounts of excess material and smoothen metal workpieces by multiple abrasive grinding wheels with diamond teeth as a cutting device for very precise and light cuts, as the workpiece is fed past it and formed into a cylinder.
cylindrical grinder operator cylindrical grinder operators set up and tend cylindrical grinding machines designed to apply abrasive processes in order to remove small amounts of excess material and smoothen metal workpieces by multiple abrasive grinding wheels with diamond teeth as a cutt. 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 quality and cycle time optimisation, cylindrical grinder parts, types of metal, quality standards, monitor gauge.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £32,871 a year for Metal making and treating process operatives (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 8115). ONS rates this estimate reasonably 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 cylindrical grinder 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
Frequently asked questions
What does cylindrical grinder operator do?
Cylindrical grinder operators set up and tend cylindrical grinding machines designed to apply abrasive processes in order to remove small amounts of excess material and smoothen metal workpieces by multiple abrasive grinding wheels with diamond teeth as a cutting device for very precise and light cuts, as the workpiece is fed past it and formed into a cylinder.
What skills does cylindrical grinder operator need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include quality and cycle time optimisation, cylindrical grinder parts, types of metal, quality standards, monitor gauge, remove inadequate workpieces. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace cylindrical grinder operator?
Our AI-durability model gives cylindrical grinder 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.