Signal & Track Switch Repairers

Install, inspect, test, maintain, or repair electric gate crossings, signals, signal equipment, track switches, section lines, or intercommunications systems within a railroad system.

On the job, you would:

Inspect and test operation, mechanical parts, and circuitry of gate crossings, signals, and signal equipment such as interlocks and hotbox detectors.
Inspect electrical units of railroad grade crossing gates and repair loose bolts and defective electrical connections and parts.
Test and repair track circuits.

Personality

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Characteristics of this Career
		76%	Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
		75%	Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
		73%	Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
		71%	Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
		70%	Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
		68%	Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
		67%	Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
		66%	Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
		64%	Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
		64%	Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
		63%	Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
		63%	Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
		62%	Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
		56%	Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Strengths
		100%	Realistic - Work involves designing, building, or repairing of equipment, materials, or structures, engaging in physical activity, or working outdoors. Realistic occupations are often associated with engineering, mechanics and electronics, construction, woodworking, transportation, machine operation, agriculture, animal services, physical or manual labor, athletics, or protective services.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Values of the Work Environment
		72%	Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
		56%	Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
		53%	Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.

Aptitude

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Abilities \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		69%	Arm-Hand Steadiness - The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
		69%	Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
		69%	Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
		66%	Visual Color Discrimination - The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
		66%	Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
		66%	Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
		66%	Manual Dexterity - The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
		66%	Finger Dexterity - The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
		63%	Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
		63%	Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
		56%	Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
		56%	Reaction Time - The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
		56%	Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
		56%	Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
		53%	Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
		53%	Perceptual Speed - The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Skills \| Cognitive, Physical, Personality
		57%	Troubleshooting - Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
		55%	Equipment Maintenance - Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
		55%	Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
		55%	Quality Control Analysis - Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
		54%	Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

Job Details

Responsibilities

Inspect mechanical equipment to locate damage, defects, or wear.

Maintain work equipment or machinery.

Inspect equipment to locate or identify electrical problems.

Test electrical circuits or components for proper functioning.

Inspect mechanical equipment to locate damage, defects, or wear.

Drive trucks or other vehicles to or at work sites.

Test electrical circuits or components for proper functioning.

Adjust the tension of nuts or bolts.

Inspect equipment to locate or identify electrical problems.

Repair electrical circuits or wiring.

Replace worn, damaged, or defective mechanical parts.

Record information about parts, materials or repair procedures.

Inspect electrical or electronic systems for defects.

Lubricate equipment to allow proper functioning.

Clean equipment, parts, or tools to repair or maintain them in good working order.

Control power supply connections.

Test mechanical equipment to ensure proper functioning.

Repair worn, damaged, or defective mechanical parts.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent
		100%	Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets - How much does this job require wearing common protective or safety equipment such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets?
		92%	Outdoors, Exposed to Weather - How often does this job require working outdoors, exposed to all weather conditions?
		91%	Sounds, Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable - How often does this job require working exposed to sounds and noise levels that are distracting or uncomfortable?
		91%	Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - How much responsibility is there for the health and safety of others in this job?
		89%	Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
		89%	Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
		89%	Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
		88%	In an Enclosed Vehicle or Equipment - How often does this job require working in a closed vehicle or equipment (e.g., car)?
		87%	Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
		86%	Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer?
		85%	Very Hot or Cold Temperatures - How often does this job require working in very hot (above 90 F degrees) or very cold (below 32 F degrees) temperatures?
		81%	Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls - How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?
		75%	Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
		75%	Exposed to Contaminants - How often does this job require working exposed to contaminants (such as pollutants, gases, dust or odors)?
		75%	Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
		72%	Frequency of Decision Making - How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
		72%	Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
		71%	Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - What results do your decisions usually have on other people or the image or reputation or financial resources of your employer?
		66%	Spend Time Standing - How much does this job require standing?
		64%	Exposed to Hazardous Equipment - How often does this job require exposure to hazardous equipment?
		63%	Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
		62%	Extremely Bright or Inadequate Lighting - How often does this job require working in extremely bright or inadequate lighting conditions?
		62%	Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers?
		62%	Consequence of Error - How serious would the result usually be if the worker made a mistake that was not readily correctable?
		61%	Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in non-controlled environmental conditions (e.g., warehouse without heat)?
		60%	Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
		57%	Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings - How often does this job require exposure to minor burns, cuts, bites, or stings?
		53%	Exposed to High Places - How often does this job require exposure to high places?
		53%	Spend Time Walking and Running - How much does this job require walking and running?
		52%	Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions - How much does this job require making repetitive motions?
		52%	Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job?
		52%	Cramped Work Space, Awkward Positions - How often does this job require working in cramped work spaces that requires getting into awkward positions?
		70%	Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week.

A3	Your Strengths	Importance	Tasks & Values
		70%	Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials - Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
		69%	Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment - Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
		65%	Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
		64%	Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment - Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
		64%	Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
		62%	Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
		60%	Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
		58%	Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
		56%	Handling and Moving Objects - Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
		56%	Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
		55%	Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
		54%	Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
		52%	Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
		52%	Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
		52%	Controlling Machines and Processes - Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).

Getting Started

Education:

34%

Less than a High School Diploma

29%

High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)

Signal & Track Switch Repairers

What they do:

On the job, you would:

Personality

Characteristics of this Career

Strengths

Values of the Work Environment

Aptitude

Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Skills | Cognitive, Physical, Personality

Job Details

Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent

Tasks & Values

Getting Started