Webster’s Dictionary defines “craft” as “a special skill, art, or dexterity; an occupation requiring special skills; esp., any of the manual arts; the members of a skilled trade.” The special skill or manual art of an operating engineer is the ability to run and maintain equipment, usually in construction and related industries.

The operating engineers’ craft can be traced back to the introduction of steam as a power source. Not long after railroad tracks carrying steam locomotive engines began to crisscross Europe and the United States, enterprising mechanics began to adapt steam engines to move mass quantities of earth; to lift construction materials; and to generate electricity in buildings and factories in the days before municipal electric systems. To this day, in honor of the role of steam power, the steam gauge remains the logo of the International Union of Operating Engineers.

Operating engineers run and/or fix heavy equipment in a variety of industries, some closely related to construction, others not. To learn more about the varied crafts that make up the work of the Operating Engineers, click on the menu on the left.