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Overview
Tool grinders sharpen, grind and smooth metal tools or workpieces so edges, surfaces and dimensions meet tooling instructions and quality specifications.
In job descriptions, look for surface grinders, precision measuring equipment, cutting tools, workpiece preparation, metal types, defective parts, machine maintenance and quality inspection.
Explore this occupation
Search jobsWhat the work can involve
Tool grinder work is precision metal finishing. The role follows tooling instructions, prepares workpieces, uses grinding and sharpening equipment, checks dimensions with measuring instruments and removes parts that do not meet specification.
Skills and specializations
Important skills include surface grinding, sharpening edged tools, precision measurement, metalworking tools, cutting techniques, equipment maintenance and recognizing faults in metal surfaces. Specialization may focus on production tools, repair sharpening or quality inspection.
Salary context
Compare roles by tolerance level, tool complexity, machine setup responsibility, inspection duties, material range and whether the work includes troubleshooting or advising on machine faults. Precision and independent quality judgement usually change the scope.
Career paths
Development can move toward senior grinding, toolroom work, CNC grinding, quality control, machine maintenance support or training newer workers on measurement, dressing wheels and safe handling of sharp tools.
Good to know
Read vacancies for grinder type, metals handled, measuring equipment, drawing or tooling instructions and inspection requirements. A clear advert states whether the work is repetitive sharpening, precision toolroom work or broader metal finishing.
Editorial note
This guide is editorial career context, not official labour-market statistics or role-specific pay data.
Map overview
Click the map to search for tool grinder jobs.
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O*NET relationships
See occupations connected to this ESCO occupation in the official O*NET–ESCO mapping. The relationship type comes from the source and is not a ranking or recommendation.
O*NET relationships: 4
Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners
51-4194.00
Exact relationship
The official mapping treats the O*NET and ESCO occupations as closely equivalent.
Open in O*NETLocksmiths and Safe Repairers
49-9094.00
Close relationship
The occupations are closely related, but the official mapping does not treat them as exact equivalents.
Open in O*NETGrinding and Polishing Workers, Hand
51-9022.00
O*NET occupation is broader
The O*NET occupation covers a broader field of work than this ESCO occupation.
Open in O*NETGrinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
51-4033.00
O*NET occupation is broader
The O*NET occupation covers a broader field of work than this ESCO occupation.
Open in O*NETSource and method
These relationships come from the official European Commission O*NET–ESCO crosswalk.
Relationship direction: O*NET occupation to ESCO occupation.
Several O*NET occupations can point to the same ESCO occupation, and one O*NET occupation can point to several ESCO occupations.
AltoTrail preserves the source relationship type. The order is technical and does not show which occupation is best, most relevant or recommended.
AltoTrail validates and presents the source relationships without adding ranking or recommendation semantics.
Alternative labels
Occupation group
Metal polishers, wheel grinders and tool sharpeners (7224)
Source facts
| ESCO URI | http://data.europa.eu/esco/occupation/835d118e-11db-4b11-b055-d78bfe426cac |
|---|---|
| ESCO code | 7224.2 |
| ISCO group | 7224 |
| Concept type | Occupation |