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Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders

Typical education: High school diplomaModerate pressure

What they do

Operate or tend heating equipment other than basic metal, plastic, or food processing equipment. Includes activities such as annealing glass, drying lumber, curing rubber, removing moisture from materials, or boiling soap.

Kinds of work

  • Realistic: Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals, often outdoors.
  • Conventional: Organizing information, following clear procedures and working with data and details.

Moderate pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $48,040 Median per year · $23.10/hr Most earn $35,960–$69,800

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Melt or refine metal before casting, calculating required temperatures, and observe metal color, adjusting controls as necessary to maintain required temperatures.
  • Press and adjust controls to activate, set, and regulate equipment according to specifications.
  • Replace worn or defective equipment parts, using hand tools.
  • Feed fuel, such as coal and coke, into fireboxes or onto conveyors, and remove ashes from furnaces, using shovels and buckets.
  • Remove products from equipment, manually or using hoists, and prepare them for storage, shipment, or additional processing.
  • Monitor equipment operation, gauges, and panel lights to detect deviations from standards.

Job outlook

United States
3% more jobs by 2035, about as fast as average · about 1,800 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing36.8%
  • Sawmills and wood preservation8.0%
  • Veneer, plywood, and engineered wood product manufacturing6.2%
  • Chemical manufacturing4.2%
  • Nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying3.0%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Experience before this job: 3 to 6 months

Some people start through an apprenticeship: paid training on the job, often with classes. Search apprenticeships on Apprenticeship.gov (opens in a new tab) ↗

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: High school diplomaExperience before this job: 3 to 6 monthsEntry-level

This is an entry-level job. Most people start with a high school diploma and learn on the job, usually building about 3 to 6 months of related experience before they're comfortable running the equipment on their own.

  1. High school diploma

    4 years

    Finish school with solid math, science, and shop or safety classes. These show employers you can read gauges, follow procedures, and work safely around heat.

  2. Machine Feeder and Offbearer

    1-3 months

    Load materials into equipment and move finished product off it under supervision. You learn the plant's routines, safety rules, and how heating equipment behaves before you run it yourself.

  3. Kiln Operator

    Ongoing

    Operate or tend kilns, ovens, dryers, or furnaces that anneal, cure, or dry materials. Once you have about 3 to 6 months of experience, you can monitor temperatures, load batches, and handle routine adjustments.

Where it can lead

  1. Lead Kiln Operator

    3-5 years of experience first

    You oversee a shift or a line of equipment, train newer operators, and keep production and safety records on track. Showing reliability and good judgment with temperatures and timing usually earns this role.

  2. Heat Treating Equipment Setter

    1-3 years of experience first

    You set up and adjust heat-treating equipment for different jobs, which takes more technical know-how. Moving into this role often means learning how metal or plastic changes under heat and reading process specs.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take chemistry and physicsThese classes explain how heat changes materials, which helps you understand what happens inside a kiln, oven, or dryer.
  • Take shop or industrial technology classesHands-on work with tools and machines teaches you equipment routines and basic safety habits.
  • Get a part-time or summer jobWork at a bakery, factory, or food processing plant if you can, since it teaches you to follow procedures and work safely around heat.
  • Volunteer at a community pottery or glass studioMany studios have kilns, and helping load and monitor firings gives you real exposure to the work.
  • Join a robotics, engineering, or science clubTeamwork and building projects show you can troubleshoot equipment, which operators do every day.

In college

  • Take courses in manufacturing processes or industrial technologyClasses in process controls, materials, or manufacturing give you the vocabulary and basics that operators and their supervisors use.
  • Look for a campus job in a lab, kitchen, or maintenance crewWorking around ovens, dryers, or heating equipment builds comfort with heat safety and equipment routines.
  • Pursue an internship at a manufacturing plant or materials companySeeing a real production floor, including kilns or dryers, helps you decide if this work suits you and gives you a reference.
  • Earn a workplace safety or equipment certification if one is offeredMany schools and training centers offer short safety courses, and a certificate shows employers you already know the rules.
  • Join a materials, ceramics, or engineering clubClub projects teach you to track temperatures, follow test procedures, and work well in a team.

Tips for getting started

  • Ask a supervisor or plant manager about on-the-job training and what a new operator is expected to learn in the first few months. Many employers train you directly.
  • Show you are dependable: arrive on time, follow safety rules every time, and write down what you observe. Those habits matter more than prior experience in this job.
  • Look for part-time or summer work at a bakery, factory, pottery studio, or lumber yard. Even a few months of handling heat-related equipment helps your resume stand out.

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

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