Printed circuit board assembler to automated optical inspection operator
A printed circuit board assembler already meets 39% of what the automated optical inspection operator role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
61/ 100
1 How much of what an automated optical inspection operator is expected to do is already part of a printed circuit board assembler’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the automated optical inspection operator role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An automated optical inspection operator role treats 6 of its required skills as things a printed circuit board assembler already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- electronics
- ensure conformity to specifications
- interpret circuit diagrams
- meet deadlines
- printed circuit boards
- read assembly drawings
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An automated optical inspection operator role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a printed circuit board assembler background worth leading with.
- already held through-hole technology engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held IPC standards engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held surface-mount technology engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held printed circuit boards information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held integrated circuits engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held semiconductors engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 14 carried skills, including the 6 the automated optical inspection operator role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn inspect quality of products required
- still to learn monitor machine operations required
- still to learn read standard blueprints required
- still to learn report defective manufacturing materials required
- optional, not held write records for repairs optional
- optional, not held check system parameters against reference values optional
- still to learn analyse images required
- still to learn operate automated optical inspection machine required
- still to learn communicate test results to other departments required
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- optional, not held research equipment needs optional
- optional, not held write inspection reports optional
- still to learn electronic equipment standards required
- optional, not held instrument performance elements optional
- optional, not held optical engineering optional
- still to learn quality assurance procedures required
- still to learn automated optical inspection required
3 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an automated optical inspection operator role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 analyse images practise this
- 02 automated optical inspection study this
- 03 operate automated optical inspection machine practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 14 skills that carry over
- already held electronics knowledge
- already held ensure conformity to specifications skill
- already held interpret circuit diagrams skill
- already held meet deadlines skill
- already held printed circuit boards knowledge
- already held read assembly drawings skill
- already held IPC standards knowledge
- already held integrated circuits knowledge
- already held keep records of work progress skill
- already held microelectronics knowledge
- already held resolve equipment malfunctions skill
- already held semiconductors knowledge
- already held surface-mount technology knowledge
- already held through-hole technology knowledge
The 3 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held remove defective products optional
- optional, not held send faulty equipment back to assembly line optional
- optional, not held maintain test equipment optional
- optional, not held waste removal regulations optional
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held waste removal regulations optional
- optional, not held write records for repairs optional
- optional, not held check system parameters against reference values optional
- optional, not held instrument performance elements optional
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- optional, not held maintain test equipment optional
- optional, not held optical engineering optional
- optional, not held remove defective products optional
- optional, not held research equipment needs optional
- optional, not held send faulty equipment back to assembly line optional
- optional, not held write inspection reports optional
34 held skills the automated optical inspection operator role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role 3D printing process knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply through-hole technology manually skill
- not needed by the target role assemble printed circuit boards skill
- not needed by the target role check for solder defects skill
- not needed by the target role clean components during assembly skill
- not needed by the target role clean printed circuit board skill
- not needed by the target role coat printed circuit board skill
- not needed by the target role determine suitability of materials skill
- not needed by the target role dispose of hazardous waste skill
- not needed by the target role electrochemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role electroplating knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure public safety and security skill
- not needed by the target role maintain microelectronics skill
- not needed by the target role maintenance of printing machines knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintenance operations knowledge
- not needed by the target role microprocessors knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate 3D computer graphics software skill
- not needed by the target role operate SMT placement equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate insertion mount machine skill
- not needed by the target role operate precision machinery skill
- not needed by the target role operate printing machinery skill
- not needed by the target role operate wave soldering machine skill
- not needed by the target role oversee logistics of finished products skill
- not needed by the target role pack electronic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role prepare board for soldering skill
- not needed by the target role printed circuit boards testing methods knowledge
- not needed by the target role printing materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role printing on large scale machines knowledge
- not needed by the target role printing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role replace defect components skill
- not needed by the target role solder components onto electronic board skill
- not needed by the target role test microelectronics skill
- not needed by the target role test printed circuit boards skill
- not needed by the target role use diagnostic tools for electronic repairs skill
6 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn automated optical inspection required
- still to learn electronic equipment standards required
- still to learn quality assurance procedures required
- optional, not held waste removal regulations optional
- optional, not held instrument performance elements optional
- optional, not held optical engineering optional
Other moves recorded from printed circuit board assembler
Common questions about this move
Can a printed circuit board assembler become an automated optical inspection operator?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A printed circuit board assembler already covers 39% of what an automated optical inspection operator is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 6 of which the automated optical inspection operator role treats as required.
What skills does a printed circuit board assembler need to become an automated optical inspection operator?
10 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is analyse images.
How hard is the move from printed circuit board assembler to automated optical inspection operator?
Its learning distance is 61 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.