laminating machine operator
Laminating machine operators tend a machine that applies a plastic layer to paper to strenghten it and protect it from wetness and stains.
laminating machine operator laminating machine operators tend a machine that applies a plastic layer to paper to strenghten it and protect it from wetness and stains. 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 laminators, types of paper, quality standards, troubleshoot, operate laminating machine.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £30,360 a year for Paper and wood machine operatives (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 8131). 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 laminating 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
- Administration and Management
- Production and Processing
- Education and Training
- Chemistry
- English Language
- Customer and Personal Service
- Building and Construction
- Administrative
What you'd actually do
- Release air bubbles and smooth seams, using rollers.
- Spray chopped fiberglass, resins, and catalysts onto prepared molds or dies using pneumatic spray guns with chopper attachments.
- Mix catalysts into resins, and saturate cloth and mats with mixtures, using brushes.
- Check completed products for conformance to specifications and for defects by measuring with rulers or micrometers, by checking them visually, or by tapping them to detect bubbles or dead spots.
- Pat or press layers of saturated mat or cloth into place on molds, using brushes or hands, and smooth out wrinkles and air bubbles with hands or squeegees.
- Select precut fiberglass mats, cloth, and wood-bracing materials as required by projects being assembled.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does laminating machine operator do?
Laminating machine operators tend a machine that applies a plastic layer to paper to strenghten it and protect it from wetness and stains.
What skills does laminating machine operator need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include types of laminators, types of paper, quality standards, troubleshoot, operate laminating machine, perform test run. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace laminating machine operator?
Our AI-durability model gives laminating 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.