Construction and Extraction · United States (national)
Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
How exposed this work is to automation, shown as ranges with the reasoning and sources.
The short version: this role is highly exposed to automation, and the bigger shift looks near-term.
It is a sourced range, not a verdict, and the detail is below.
Built on O*NET tasks, BLS pay and projections, and peer-reviewed AI-exposure research. Sources shown.
Data snapshot SNAPSHOT-2026-11-06. How it works
AI / softwarerange 0.0 to 12.0
Physical / roboticsrange 54.5 to 78.5
When the change is likely
Near-term, highlocal demand stable
What to do about it
Use AI to outpace AI.
Strategies to protect your livelihood, most important first.
1
Act within the next 1 to 2 years
Displacement for this role is near-term. Start a concrete reskilling plan now, while you still have income and leverage.
2
Move up from the task to the system
Robotics targets the physical work. Shift toward supervising, maintaining, or programming the automation instead of competing with it.
3
Pivot toward Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers
It is skill-adjacent and less exposed (58.9 vs 66). A lateral move now beats a forced one later.
4
Build a financial buffer
Keep 6 to 12 months of expenses and diversify your income, so a disruption is a setback rather than a catastrophe.
5
Add a recognised credential
A certification or license raises the bar against automation and signals value in a tightening market.
Keep the monitor on
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Which of my tasks are exposed
Measure, cut, thread and assemble new pipe, placing the assembled pipe in hangers or other supports.
66.5
Cut or drill holes in walls or floors to accommodate the passage of pipes.
66.5
Perform rough-ins, repair and replace fixtures and water heaters, and locate, repair, or remove leaking or broken pipes.
66.5
Assist pipe fitters in the layout, assembly, and installation of piping for air, ammonia, gas, and water systems.
66.5
Cut pipe and lift up to fitters.
66.5
Fit or assist in fitting valves, couplings, or assemblies to tanks, pumps, or systems, using hand tools.
66.5
Requisition tools and equipment, select type and size of pipe, and collect and transport materials and equipment to work site.
66.5
Mount brackets and hangers on walls and ceilings to hold pipes, and set sleeves or inserts to provide support for pipes.
66.5
Longer, orange bars are more automatable; short green bars are resistant.
What is driving my result
lowers risk
raises risk
Task: Measure, cut, thread and assemble new pipe, placing the assembled pipe in hangers or other supports.
Task: Cut or drill holes in walls or floors to accommodate the passage of pipes.
Lower-risk adjacent roles
Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers
58.9
Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons
64.0
A full, ranked mitigation plan is part of the paid tiers.
How this score is calculated
Map Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters to its standard O*NET task list (8 core tasks).
Score each task for AI/software exposure (Eloundou et al. 2023) and physical/robotics exposure (an O*NET work-context proxy), each 0 to 100.
The two axis scores are the task averages: AI 0.0, robotics 66.5.
The timeline comes from the higher axis (66.5), shifted for local demand (stable), and seniority. It is read against your remaining working years.
Ranges are about ±12 points. A backtest against real BLS employment change shows the risk ranking holds in aggregate, but individual outcomes are predicted weakly, so results are ranges, never a flat verdict.
Sources: O*NET, Eloundou et al. (2023), GPTs are GPTs, O*NET Work Context, BLS CPI-U, BLS OEWS.
Snapshot SNAPSHOT-2026-11-06. Full method and backtest on How it works.