Description
Operate dredging equipment to excavate and maintain navigable waterways by removing sand, gravel, and other materials.
- • Move levers to position the dredge, engage hydraulic pumps, raise and lower suction booms, and control cutterhead rotation.
- • Start and stop engines and auxiliary equipment.
- • Operate power winches to draw in or let out cables to reposition the dredge; handle cables manually as needed.
- • Pump water to flush and clear machinery pipelines.
- • Verify excavation depths by lowering anchor poles with winches and monitoring depth gauges.
- • Direct or assist crew placing shore anchors and cables, laying discharge pipes to shore, and pumping water from pontoons.
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Tasks & skills:
O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
