Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters
Machines can already do 27% of this job's tasks. By 2035 that rises to 66%. The job changes before it disappears.
Share of the work machines can do
Worldwide baseline, 2026 to 2050
Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters in 2026: the short answer
- Today: machines can do 27% of this job's tasks, and AI use is already seen in 0% of them.
- Forecast: machines can do half of its tasks by 2032, and 66% by 2035, according to the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit.
- Size: 5,100 people do this job in the United States, on a median pay of $61,390 a year.
- Contact with people: it scores 73% for contact with people.
- Also called: Blast Hole Driller, Blaster, Explosive Technician, Powderman.
Updated by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit. These are worldwide baseline figures; the Workforce Starburst shows them for your country. Go deeper: How ready am I? or an executive briefing.
How the work changes, task by task
The tasks that take up most of the day, with the share of each that machines can do in 2026 (dark) and 2035 (pink). Worldwide baseline.
| Task | Share of the day | Machines can do | 2026 to 2035 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Insert, pack, and pour explosives, such as dynamite, ammonium nitrate, black powder, or slurries into blast holes; then shovel drill cuttings, admit water into boreholes, and tamp material to compact charges | 10% | 30% to 75% | |
| Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed | 8% | 20% to 60% | |
| Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material | 7% | 20% to 60% | |
| Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites | 7% | 30% to 75% | |
| Place explosive charges in holes or other spots; then detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials | 6% | 3% to 30% | |
| Compile and keep gun and explosives records in compliance with local and federal laws | 6% | 70% to 95% | |
| Set up and operate equipment such as hoists, jackhammers, and drills, in order to bore charge holes | 6% | 30% to 75% | |
| Place safety cones around blast areas to alert other workers of danger zones, and signal workers as necessary to ensure that they clear blast sites prior to explosions | 5% | 20% to 60% |
The skills this job runs on
The skills explosives workers, ordnance handling experts, and blasters use most, most used first.
Safer jobs nearby
Jobs with a similar skill shape where machines can do less of the work by 2035.
- Nuclear Power Reactor Operators61% of tasks by 2035 · US median $122,890
- Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers46% of tasks by 2035 · US median $232,140
- Bailiffs37% of tasks by 2035 · US median $56,600
- Embalmers39% of tasks by 2035 · US median $58,780
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Questions
When will machines do half of the tasks of Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters?
Machines can do half of its tasks by 2032. That is the worldwide baseline from the 311 Workforce Starburst, before adjusting for country.
Will AI take the job of explosives workers, ordnance handling experts, and blasters?
Machines can do 27% of the tasks of explosives workers, ordnance handling experts, and blasters today and 66% by 2035. The job changes before it disappears: the routine tasks move first.
Sources and citing
Tasks and their share of the day: O*NET 31.0, occupation 47-5032.00 (US Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0). Pay and jobs: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. AI use today: Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY). Scoring and forecast: the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit; after 2035 the figures extend each trend, with lower confidence. Foresight, not advice.
Cite as: 311 Institute (2026). Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters: the outlook to 2050. 311 Workforce Starburst. https://www.311institute.com/jobs/explosives-workers-ordnance-handling-experts-and-blasters/