ISCO-08 8182
Steam engine and boiler operators
17.3%
ADI · 314th of 433 · 95% interval 2.9–34.3
An AI agent can at least partly carry out 17.3% of the task time of steam engine and boiler operators, and finish 0.0% alone. The barrier that holds most of the rest back is access to the systems the work runs on.
ADI · partial or full17.3%
314th of 433 · interval 2.9–34.3
ADI3 · full delegation0.0%
201st of 433 · interval 0.0–0.0
ADIs · share of time28.3%
250th of 433 · interval 21.6–34.6
Evidence25
task statements rated by two models and weighted by importance and frequency. World employment: 0.2 million.
Task weight by level
How the tasks rate
L0No meaningful role · 30.4%L1Augmentation · 52.3%L2Partial delegation · 17.3%L3Full delegation · 0.0%
Barriers
What stops the agent
Share of task weight flagged by each barrier; a task can carry several.
25 task statements, heaviest first
| Task statement (O*NET occupation) | Sonnet · Haiku | Barriers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operate or tend stationary engines, boilers, and auxiliary equipment, such as pumps, compressors, or air-conditioning equipment, to supply and maintain steam or heat for buildings, marine vessels, or pneumatic tools.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.7% | L1 | L1L2 | 20% | 4.4 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Monitor boiler water, chemical, and fuel levels, and make adjustments to maintain required levels.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.6% | L1 | L1L2 | 35% | 30 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Maintain daily logs of operation, maintenance, and safety activities, including test results, instrument readings, and details of equipment malfunctions and maintenance work.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.4% | L2 | L2L2 | 58% | 38 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Observe and interpret readings on gauges, meters, and charts registering various aspects of boiler operation to ensure that boilers are operating properly.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.3% | L2 | L2L2 | 45% | 22 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Activate valves to maintain required amounts of water in boilers, to adjust supplies of combustion air, and to control the flow of fuel into burners.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.2% | L1 | L1L2 | 25% | 22 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Adjust controls and/or valves on equipment to provide power, and to regulate and set operations of system or industrial processes.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 5.0% | L1 | L1L2 | 28% | 30 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Monitor and inspect equipment, computer terminals, switches, valves, gauges, alarms, safety devices, and meters to detect leaks or malfunctions and to ensure that equipment is operating efficiently and safely.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 4.8% | L1 | L1L2 | 30% | 4.3 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Analyze problems and take appropriate action to ensure continuous and reliable operation of equipment and systems.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 4.8% | L1 | L1L2 | 35% | 1.0 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Fire coal furnaces by hand or with stokers and gas- or oil-fed boilers, using automatic gas feeds or oil pumps.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · supplemental task | 4.8% | L0 | L0L1 | 9% | 45 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Supervise the work of assistant stationary engineers, turbine operators, boiler tenders, or air conditioning and refrigeration operators and mechanics.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · supplemental task | 4.5% | L1 | L1L2 | 30% | 1.5 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems |
| Test boiler water quality or arrange for testing and take necessary corrective action, such as adding chemicals to prevent corrosion and harmful deposits.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 4.4% | L1 | L1L2 | 30% | 38 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Operate mechanical hoppers and provide assistance in their adjustment and repair.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · supplemental task | 4.2% | L0 | L0L1 | 9% | 45 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Develop operation, safety, and maintenance procedures or assist in their development.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 4.0% | L2 | L2L2 | 65% | 4.0 h | Accountability, Access to systems |
| Weigh, measure, and record fuel used.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.9% | L1 | L1L2 | 38% | 20 min | Physical presence, Access to systems |
| Clean and lubricate boilers and auxiliary equipment and make minor adjustments as needed, using hand tools.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.9% | L0 | L0L1 | 6% | 1.5 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
Show the other 10 tasks
| Task statement (O*NET occupation) | Sonnet · Haiku | Barriers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Switch from automatic to manual controls and isolate equipment mechanically and electrically to allow for safe inspection and repair work.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.5% | L0 | L0L1 | 10% | 52 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Receive instructions from steam engineers regarding steam plant and air compressor operations.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.4% | L0 | L0L1 | 15% | 12 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Test electrical systems to determine voltages, using voltage meters.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.3% | L0 | L0L1 | 10% | 25 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Perform or arrange for repairs, such as complete overhauls, replacement of defective valves, gaskets, or bearings, or fabrication of new parts.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.3% | L1 | L1L2 | 25% | 5.5 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Check the air quality of ventilation systems and make adjustments to ensure compliance with mandated safety codes.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 3.1% | L1 | L1L2 | 35% | 1.3 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Contact equipment manufacturers or appropriate specialists when necessary to resolve equipment problems.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 2.6% | L2 | L2L2 | 62% | 38 min | Access to systems |
| Provide assistance to plumbers in repairing or replacing water, sewer, or waste lines, and in daily maintenance activities.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 2.6% | L0 | L0L1 | 14% | 3.0 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Install burners and auxiliary equipment, using hand tools.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 2.5% | L0 | L0L0 | 5% | 6.0 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Ignite fuel in burners, using torches or flames.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · supplemental task | 2.2% | L0 | L0L0 | 1% | 10 min | Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems |
| Investigate and report on accidents.Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · supplemental task | 2.0% | L1 | L1L2 | 42% | 4.0 h | Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems |
Level: consensus of the two models (the lower level when they disagree). Share: part of the task’s working time an agent could take over. Human time: minutes a competent person needs for one instance, as estimated by the models.
Against other measures
Exposure is not delegation
| Measure | Value | Percentile | Pct |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADI (this index) | 17.3% | 28 | |
| Eloundou et al. (2024), GPT exposure β | 0.127 | 24 | |
| Felten et al. (2021), AI occupational exposure | -0.503 | 39 | |
| Webb (2020), AI patent exposure | 75 | 67 | |
| Eisfeldt et al. (2026), generative AI exposure | 0.08 | 32 | |
| Anthropic Economic Index, observed use | 0 | 16 |
Earlier indices measure whether AI can touch a task; ADI measures how much of it an agent can carry out from a goal. – : the source does not cover this occupation.
Same sub-major group (81)
Neighbouring occupations
Dashed line: steam engine and boiler operators (17.3%).
Cite this record
Text
Espinal Maya, Cristian, and Santiago Jiménez Londoño. 2026. ADI v2026.1: Agent Delegability Index data, code and MCP server. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23552918. Record: Steam engine and boiler operators (ISCO-08 8182), https://balamlabs.org/adi/occupations/8182
BibTeX
@misc{espinal2026adidata,
title = {{ADI} v2026.1: Agent Delegability Index data, code and {MCP} server},
author = {Espinal Maya, Cristian and Jim{\'e}nez Londo{\~n}o, Santiago},
year = {2026},
publisher = {Zenodo},
version = {v2026.1},
doi = {10.5281/zenodo.23552918},
url = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23552918},
note = {Record: Steam engine and boiler operators (ISCO-08 8182)}
}Machine-readable
The same record as static JSON, with its citation: /adi/v2026.1/isco/8182.json.