Job Description

Overview

The Tool/Die Maker is responsible for making and repairing tools, dies, and fixtures for metal fabricating machines. This position may involve working in a specific tool room capacity or providing backup to other personnel.

Responsibilities

  • Receives engineering drawings or blueprints.
  • Operates various machine tools to build dies and fabricate prototypes.
  • Checks and inspects dies for damage and implements repairs.
  • Sets up and operates machine tools for making or repairing tools.
  • Reads blueprints and uses measuring equipment to ensure repairs meet tolerances.
  • Operates material handling equipment to lift and move dies safely.
  • Performs routine maintenance and troubleshooting on production lines.
  • Observes safety standards and maintains a neat work area.
  • Maintains records related to die repair and quality.
  • May train or instruct others on machining techniques.
  • Recommends improvements and revisions to designs.
  • Maintains inventory levels of spare components.
  • Completes all paperwork accurately and timely.
  • Complies with company policies and procedures.
  • Participates in activities to increase personal skill level.

Requirements

  • Ability to use assigned machinery and equipment.
  • Read and understand blueprints and geometric dimensioning and tolerancing.
  • Advanced math skills including calculations for feeds, speeds, and geometry.
  • Understand and use various measuring equipment.
  • Use CNC computer programs and control panels.
  • Understand machining properties of various raw materials.
  • Good communication skills for oral and written instructions.

Additional Information

  • Location: Wood Dale, IL
  • Reports to: Tool Room Manager
  • Sedentary position with occasional exposure to loud noises and dust.

How this job compares in Wood Dale, IL

Pay in context

This employer didn't publish a rate. For reference, welding jobs across Illinois currently run a median of $33/hr in our index, with the middle half of them falling between $28–$40/hr across 242 postings with published pay. That median is a reasonable floor to anchor on when a recruiter asks what you're looking for.

The local market in Wood Dale, IL

Wood Dale, IL currently has 3 other active welding openings besides this one, spread across 2 employers. 1 of them was added in the last week. Across Illinois as a whole we're tracking 338 other active welding openings from 201 employers. That's enough local activity to be worth comparing two or three offers before committing. Browse every welding job in Wood Dale, or widen the search to Illinois.

The most active employers in Illinois at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are Gerber Collision & Glass (14), S&C Electric Company (11), and Venteon (10). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within Illinois, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Downers Grove at $46/hr, Chicago at $37/hr, and Elk Grove Village at $34/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

Similar openings near Wood Dale, IL

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Tool & Die Maker Progressive Tooling figures were last recalculated when this page was built.