A boilermaker fabricates, installs and repairs heavy steel structures and plate work: tanks, chutes, hoppers, ducting, structural steel and pressure vessels. It is a marking-out and cutting trade as much as a welding one, and accuracy at the layout stage determines whether anything fits at assembly.
This guide sets out boilermaker duties and responsibilities, the shape of a working day, and how the trade differs by industry. It sits in the Trades Technical duties and responsibilities cluster, part of the wider job duties guide.
What Does a Boilermaker Do?
A boilermaker reads a drawing, marks out the steel, cuts and shapes it, and joins it into a structure that meets the specification. Much of the skill is spatial: working out how a flat plate becomes a curved chute, or how a structure will distort as it is welded and allowing for that in advance.
The trade often overlaps with welding, but they are not the same. A welder joins metal; a boilermaker sets out, forms and assembles the structure, welding as part of that process. Job adverts frequently blur the two, so read the duties rather than the title.
Key Boilermaker Duties and Responsibilities
- Interpreting engineering drawings, isometrics and fabrication specifications.
- Marking out and setting out steel plate and sections accurately.
- Cutting steel using flame, plasma and mechanical cutting equipment.
- Forming, rolling and bending plate to the required profile.
- Fitting up and tacking components ready for welding.
- Welding to the specified procedure and standard.
- Fabricating tanks, chutes, hoppers, ducting and structural steelwork.
- Installing and repairing fabricated items on site or in plant.
- Checking dimensions, squareness and alignment against the drawing.
- Preparing work for inspection and supporting non-destructive testing.
- Working safely with hot work permits, lifting equipment and working at height.
- Completing job cards and recording materials and consumables used.
Daily Tasks of a Boilermaker
- Start of shift: collect job cards and drawings, check materials and consumables, inspect equipment.
- Set out: mark out plate and sections from the drawing, checking dimensions before cutting.
- Fabrication: cut, form and fit up components, tacking and checking as the assembly builds.
- Welding and finishing: weld out to procedure, grind and prepare for inspection or coating.
- End of shift: check dimensions against the drawing, complete job cards, clear and secure the bay.
Boilermaker Skills and Competencies
- Drawing interpretation: reading fabrication drawings and developing flat patterns from them.
- Marking out accuracy: the stage where errors become expensive if missed.
- Welding competence: to the procedure and quality the job requires.
- Understanding distortion: anticipating how heat will move a structure and sequencing to control it.
- Safety discipline: hot work permits, fume control, lifting and working at height.
- Physical capability: heavy, awkward material handled safely all shift.
Boilermaker Duties by Workplace or Industry
Fabrication Workshops
Job-card driven bench and bay work: marking out, cutting, forming and assembling to drawing, with dimensional inspection before items leave for site or coating.
Mining and Heavy Industry
Duties focus on chutes, hoppers, screens and plant structures, often repaired in place during shutdowns, with permits, confined space controls and time pressure to restore production.
Construction and Structural Steel
Erection of structural steelwork on site, with duties around setting out, bolting and welding connections, working at height and coordinating with cranes and riggers.
Petrochemical and Pressure Work
Pressure vessels and pipework carry qualified welding procedures, coded welder requirements, formal inspection and non-destructive testing, with documentation as important as the weld itself.
Boilermaker Duties for a CV
Lead with your trade test and any welding qualifications, then the type of fabrication. Use the duties for a CV guide for the method.
- Fabricated chutes, hoppers and structural steelwork from drawings in a heavy engineering workshop.
- Marked out and cut plate to within tolerance, with no rework required on dimensional inspection.
- Carried out on-site repairs during plant shutdowns under hot work and confined space permits.
- Prepared welds for non-destructive testing with a first-time pass rate above 95%.
Related Job Roles and Responsibilities
These guides cover the roles and next steps most closely related to this one.
- Mechanical Fitter duties and responsibilities
- Foreman duties and responsibilities
- Machine Operator duties and responsibilities
- Safety Officer duties and responsibilities
- Job description duties and responsibilities
Frequently Asked Questions About Boilermaker Duties
What are the duties of a boilermaker?
Interpreting fabrication drawings, marking out steel, cutting with flame and plasma equipment, forming and rolling plate, fitting up and tacking components, welding to procedure, fabricating and installing tanks chutes and structural steel, checking dimensions and preparing work for inspection.
What is the difference between a boilermaker and a welder?
A welder joins metal to a procedure. A boilermaker sets out, cuts, forms and assembles structures from drawings, welding as one part of that. Boilermaking is the broader trade, though the roles overlap and adverts often use the terms loosely.
Do boilermakers need welding certification?
For general fabrication, trade competence is usually enough. Pressure vessel and pipework fabrication requires welding to a qualified procedure, and often a coded welder qualification tested against that procedure. The employer or the client specification will state what is needed.
How do you qualify as a boilermaker?
Through an apprenticeship or learnership combining workshop experience with theory, followed by a trade test. Mining and petrochemical work adds site-specific inductions and, for some work, additional welding qualifications.
Duties vary by employer and sector. Welding procedures, client specifications, permit systems and applicable safety legislation take precedence over this general guide.
Last reviewed: 2 September 2026