Toolmaker
A toolmaker designs, manufactures, and maintains precision metal tools, dies, moulds, and jigs used in industrial production. Working in tool rooms or manufacturing facilities, they operate machine tools including lathes, milling machines, and grinders to produce components to exact specifications, often working from engineering drawings and using precision measurement instruments.
What this job is
A toolmaker designs, manufactures, and maintains precision metal tools, dies, moulds, and jigs used in industrial production. Working in tool rooms or manufacturing facilities, they operate machine tools including lathes, milling machines, and grinders to produce components to exact specifications, often working from engineering drawings and using precision measurement instruments. They may also modify or repair existing tools to meet changing production requirements.
Are employers advertising this role?
Fewer than 50 vacancies were advertised nationally in the latest month. The numbers are too small to draw a reliable trend.
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, Internet Vacancy Index.
Day-to-day
Interpret engineering drawings and specifications to determine tool dimensions, tolerances, and manufacturing sequences. Operate precision machine tools including CNC lathes, milling machines, and surface grinders to shape metal components. Set up and adjust machine tools with cutting tools, fixtures, and work-holding devices according to job requirements. Measure completed components using micrometers, callipers, dial gauges, and other precision instruments to verify conformance to specifications. Perform heat treatment operations including hardening, tempering, and annealing of tool steel to achieve required hardness and strength. File, lap, and hand-finish tool surfaces to achieve required surface finishes and tight tolerances. Assemble component parts into functional tools, dies, or moulds using appropriate fasteners and assembly techniques. Troubleshoot tool performance issues and modify or remake tools to correct defects or improve functionality.
Who does this now
About 2,200 people worked in this occupation across Australia at the 2021 Census.
What this role asks for
Certificate IV or Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training (ABS skill level 3)
Can employers fill these jobs
Employers hiring for this occupation had trouble finding suitable applicants in 2025. Ratings are not the same everywhere. NT was rated not in shortage. This measures how hard employers found it to fill jobs. It is not a count of jobs, and it does not say whether the occupation is growing.
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, Training Occupation Pathways dataset, March 2026, version 1.0
Jobs and Skills Australia defines an occupation-ready qualification as:
Completing this qualification will provide the skills and knowledge to undertake this occupation. Further training and experience may be required to meet specific industry requirements including licensing and registration.
Jobs and Skills Australia, Training Occupation Pathways dataset, March 2026, version 1.0
Requirements
The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate IV or Certificate III with at least two years of on-the-job training (ABS skill level 3). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.
The honest hard part
You're learning a skilled trade that takes years to get genuinely good at, but the pay ceiling is modest and flat. Most toolmakers earn in the mid-range for trades, with limited room to move higher unless you become a supervisor or start your own business. The work demands precision that never lets up: a mistake costs time and money. You'll also compete against CNC automation doing routine jobs faster.
Where the jobs are
Regional areas have fewer opportunities. Most work is on-site in factories, not remote.
Skills
- Accurise gunscore
- Adjust cut sizescore
- Attention to Detailcore
- Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracycore
- Calculate quotations for security devices servicescore
- Carry out inventory planningcore
- Casting processescore
- Continuous Learning and Upskillingcore
- Policy and Procedure Adherencecore
- Problem Solvingcore
- Process Documentationcore
- Process Improvement Identificationcore
- Quality Assurance and Checkingcore
- Risk Identificationcore
- Team Collaborationcore
- Time Management and Prioritisationcore
- Verbal Communicationcore
- Written Communicationcore
- Adaptability and Flexibility
- Digital Literacy
- ERP and Inventory Systems
- Incident Reporting
- Inventory Tracking
- Regulatory and Legislative Awareness
- Research and Analysis
Which of these do you have?
Tick the ones you haveCommon questions
Sources
- ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
- ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.
Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.
What Toolmaker workers move into, from ten years of tax records.
Last updated: 30 October 2026
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