Roustabouts, Oil and Gas — Tasks

Task statements

• Move pipes to and from trucks, using truck winches and motorized lifts, or by hand.
• Unscrew or tighten pipes, casing, tubing, and pump rods, using hand and power wrenches and tongs.
• Dismantle and repair oil field machinery, boilers, and steam engine parts, using hand tools and power tools.
• Guide cranes to move loads about decks.
• Walk flow lines to locate leaks, using electronic detectors and by making visual inspections, and repair the leaks.
• Lay gas and oil pipelines.
• Bolt together pump and engine parts.
• Clean trucks used in the fields.
• Dig holes, set forms, and mix and pour concrete into forms to make foundations for wood or steel derricks.
• Supply equipment to rig floors as requested and provide assistance to roughnecks.
• Clean up spilled oil by bailing it into barrels.
• Dig drainage ditches around wells and storage tanks.
• Cut down and remove trees and brush to clear drill sites, to reduce fire hazards, and to make way for roads to sites.