Will AI replace Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators?
AI reaches little of this job’s work.
9/100
Low exposure
More exposed to AI than 20% of US workers.
- AI already used in
- 0% of the work
- As AI tools mature: up to
- 17% of the work
What the job involves
Operate steam-, gas-, electric motor-, or internal combustion-engine driven compressors. Transmit, compress, or recover gases, such as butane, nitrogen, hydrogen, and natural gas.
Where AI reaches the work
The job’s main tasks, heaviest first, by how far AI reaches them.
Within reach(2)
- Record instrument readings and operational changes in operating logs.
- Submit daily reports on facility operations.
Out of reach(11)
- Monitor meters and pressure gauges to determine consumption rate variations, temperatures, and pressures.
- Adjust valves and equipment to obtain specified performance.
- Move controls and turn valves to start compressor engines, pumps, and auxiliary equipment.
- Operate power-driven pumps that transfer liquids, semi-liquids, gases, or powdered materials.
- Respond to problems by adjusting control room equipment or instructing other personnel to adjust equipment at problem locations or in other control areas.
and 6 more
Also called
Compressor Station Operator · Gas Operator · Compressor Operator · Liquefied Natural Gas Plant Operator (LNG Plant Operator) · Pipeline Technician · Acetylene Gas Compressor · Butadiene Compressor Operator · Butane Compressor Operator
Related jobs
What these numbers mean
The score is the share of this job’s work, weighted by how important and frequent each task is, that AI could do in half the time: tasks an AI model could do alone count in full, tasks that need software built on AI count half.
“AI already used” is the share of the work in tasks where people are recorded using AI today. “As AI tools mature” counts every task AI could halve, with or without extra software.
The percentile compares the score with every job’s, weighted by how many people in the US do each one. Exposure means AI could change how the work is done, not that the job goes away. These are estimates for the typical job, not predictions.
Sources
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
- GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs (task labels), Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), OpenAI and University of Pennsylvania
- Anthropic Economic Index: labor market impacts (task penetration), Anthropic
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (national and metropolitan areas), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics