Optical Mechanic
What the work is
Operates machines to grind, polish and surface optical lenses to meet prescription requirements, and fits lenses to spectacle frames.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Operates machines to shape and smooth optical lenses
- Inspects lenses to ensure they meet prescription requirements
- Selects and assembles optical elements for instruments or spectacles, and fits them into position
- Scrapes, files and laps mounts of instrument to align optical elements
- Centres, focuses, adjusts and calibrates instrument on standard targets
- Anchors lenses and other optical elements with adhesives or retaining rings
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a rail network control centre watching a busy suburban line. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A disrupted morning is untangled and the trains are running to time by lunch
- A boat you rebuilt slides back into the water and floats exactly as it should
- You find the one faulty part that has been puzzling everyone for a week
Hard days
- A signal failure at peak hour, with phones ringing and every train asking for a decision
- Working in a cold shed or a hot hull when the deadline for the job is fixed
- Telling an owner their boat or equipment needs far more work than they hoped
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 399935, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.