Occupation

Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

Human Advantage 66%

Significant human skills needed

AI Automation Risk Moderate Risk
3.6 / 10

Some tasks in this role may be augmented by AI, but human oversight and interpersonal skills remain important.

Design, fabricate, adjust, repair, or appraise jewelry, gold, silver, other precious metals, or gems.

Also Known As: Antique Jewelry Repairer, Appraisal Technician, Arborer, Artist, Bead Maker, Bench Jeweler, Bench Molder, Bracelet Maker +91 more

Video

Core Tasks

  1. Position stones and metal pieces, and set, mount, and secure items in place, using setting and hand tools.
  2. Smooth soldered joints and rough spots, using hand files and emery paper, and polish smoothed areas with polishing wheels or buffing wire.
  3. Create jewelry from materials such as gold, silver, platinum, and precious or semiprecious stones.
  4. Make repairs, such as enlarging or reducing ring sizes, soldering pieces of jewelry together, and replacing broken clasps and mountings.
  5. Clean and polish metal items and jewelry pieces, using jewelers' tools, polishing wheels, and chemical baths.
  6. Cut and file pieces of jewelry such as rings, brooches, bracelets, and lockets.
  7. Select and acquire metals and gems for designs.
  8. Compute costs of labor and materials to determine production costs of products and articles.
  9. Examine assembled or finished products to ensure conformance to specifications, using magnifying glasses or precision measuring instruments.
  10. Pierce and cut open designs in ornamentation, using hand drills and scroll saws.
  11. Construct preliminary models of wax, metal, clay, or plaster, and form sample castings in molds.
  12. Pour molten metal alloys or other materials into molds to cast models of jewelry.
  13. Shape and straighten damaged or twisted articles by hand or using pliers.
  14. Soften metal to be used in designs by heating it with a gas torch and shape it, using hammers and dies.
  15. Determine appraised values of diamonds and other gemstones based on price guides, market fluctuations, and stone grades and rarity.
  16. Grade stones based on their color, perfection, and quality of cut.
  17. Plate articles such as jewelry pieces and watch dials, using silver, gold, nickel, or other metals.
  18. Write or modify design specifications such as the metal contents and weights of items.
  19. Create new jewelry designs and modify existing designs, using computers as necessary.
  20. Buy and sell jewelry, or serve as agents between buyers and sellers.
  21. Record the weights and processing times of finished pieces.
  22. Lay out designs on metal stock, and cut along markings to fabricate pieces used to cast metal molds.
  23. Mark, engrave, or emboss designs on metal pieces such as castings, wire, or jewelry, following specifications.
  24. Cut designs in molds or other materials to be used as models in the fabrication of metal and jewelry products.
  25. Design and fabricate molds, models, and machine accessories, and modify hand tools used to cast metal and jewelry pieces.
  26. Research and analyze reference materials, and consult with interested parties to develop new products or modify existing designs.

Supplemental Tasks (3)

  1. Weigh, mix, and melt metal alloys or materials needed for jewelry models.
  2. Rotate molds to distribute alloys and to prevent formation of air pockets.
  3. Rout out locations where parts are to be joined to items, using routing machines.

Education & Training

Job Zone 3 Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Education: Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Experience: Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
On-the-Job Training: Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Technology & Tools

Hot Technologies

  • Adobe Illustrator
  • Adobe Photoshop
  • Intuit QuickBooks
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft Word

Software (13)

  • Computer assisted jewelry design CAD software
  • Customer information databases
  • Inventory tracking software
  • Jewelry store point of sale POS software
  • Metal designing software
  • Retail management software
  • Web browser software

Tools & Equipment (166)

  • Adjustable bench vises
  • Air compressors
  • Automatic lathes
  • Awl sets
  • Bail pliers
  • Ball peen hammers
  • Banding pliers
  • Battery testers
  • Bead reamers
  • Beading pliers
  • Beading tools
  • Beading tweezers
  • Belt sanders
  • Bench knives
  • Bench refractometers
  • Bench top polishers
  • Bending pliers
  • Bent chain nose pliers
  • Binocular magnifiers
  • Blow torches
  • Bow closing pliers
  • Bow opening pliers
  • Bristle brushes
  • Bur gauges
  • Burnishers
  • Burnishing tools
  • Case presses
  • Casting torches
  • Chasing hammers
  • Chasing tools
  • Cordless power drills
  • Cross locking tweezers
  • Crucible tongs
  • Curved nose pliers
  • Dapping cutters
  • Dapping punches
  • Dapping tools
  • Dead-blow hammers
  • Diagonal cutters
  • Dial gauges
  • Diamond testers
  • Diamond tweezers
  • Digital calipers
  • Digital gauges
  • Digital scales
  • Disc cutters
  • Double horn anvils
  • Draw tongs
  • Drill presses
  • Electric hot plates
  • Embossing hammers
  • Engraving blocks
  • Engraving tools
  • Eye protection
  • Flask tongs
  • Flat horn anvils
  • Flat nose pliers
  • Flex shaft machines
  • Flush cutters
  • Flux brushes
  • Foot-powered hammers
  • Fretz hammers
  • Fume hoods
  • Gas torches
  • Gem gauges
  • Gem holders
  • Gem tweezers
  • Gemological microscopes
  • Gold testers
  • Grinding stones
  • Hand drills
  • Hand files
  • Handheld magnifiers
  • Head and shank tweezers
  • Hex anvils
  • Hole punch pliers
  • Hole punching pliers
  • Jeweler's loupes
  • Jeweler's saws
  • Jewelers screwdrivers
  • Jewelers shears
  • Jewelers' chain-nose pliers
  • Jewelers' loupes
  • Jewelry mandrels
  • Jewelry scissors
  • Jump ring makers
  • Laser welders
  • Light boxes
  • Locking tweezers
  • Loop closing pliers
  • Looping pliers
  • Magnetic tumblers
  • Mallets
  • Metal stamping dies
  • Micro bevel cutters
  • Micro pliers
  • Milgrain machines
  • Milgrain tools
  • Mini band saws
  • Mini bench vises
  • Mini shears
  • Mini tweezers
  • Nylon pliers
  • Oblique end cutters
  • Parallel jaw pliers
  • Parallel pliers
  • Pattern tweezers
  • Peening hammers
  • Pen platers
  • Planishing hammers
  • Plastic coated tweezers
  • Plastic mallets
  • Pneumatic gravers
  • Pocket crimpers
  • Polariscopes
  • Polishing units
  • Polishing wheels
  • Precision files
  • Precision rulers
  • Precision screwdriver sets
  • Respirators
  • Ring bending pliers
  • Ring clamps
  • Ring cutters
  • Ring holding pliers
  • Ring looping pliers
  • Ring rollers
  • Ring shank pliers
  • Ring sizing sets
  • Ring stretcher/reducers
  • Riveting hammers
  • Rolling mills
  • Rosary pliers
  • Rotary tumblers
  • Round nose pliers
  • Routing machines
  • Sable brushes
  • Scratch brushes
  • Side cutters
  • Sidecutters
  • Silversmiths' hammers
  • Solder cutting pliers
  • Soldering guns
  • Soldering tweezers
  • Specialty forming pliers
  • Split ring pliers
  • Stamping dies
  • Steam cleaners
  • Stone gauges
  • Stone setting pliers
  • Straightedges
  • Texture hammers
  • Tongs
  • Tracing punches
  • Tweezer nose pliers
  • Ultrasonic cleaners
  • Utility tweezers
  • Vacuum pumps
  • Vibratory tumblers
  • Watch hand removers
  • Wire brushes
  • Wire cutters
  • Wire cutting tools
  • Wire gauges
  • Wire looping pliers
  • Wire twisting pliers

Where This Career Leads

Career progression organized by specialty track and experience level.

Production & Automation Advanced Manufacturing

Zone 3
Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers You are here
Zone 5

Engineering Advanced Manufacturing

Zone 3
Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers You are here

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