Freight and Cargo Inspectors

Inspect the handling, storage, and stowing of freight and cargoes.

tasks jobzones knowledge skills abilities work_activities work_context interests work_values

Tasks

• Advise crews in techniques of stowing dangerous and heavy cargo.

• Check temperatures and humidities of shipping and storage areas to ensure that they are at appropriate levels to protect cargo.

• Determine cargo transportation capabilities by reading documents that set forth cargo loading and securing procedures, capacities, and stability factors.

• Determine types of licenses and safety equipment required, and compute applicable fees such as tolls and wharfage fees.

• Direct crews to reload freight or to insert additional bracing or packing as necessary.

• Inspect loaded cargo, cargo lashed to decks or in storage facilities, and cargo handling devices to determine compliance with health and safety regulations and need for maintenance.

• Inspect shipments to ensure that freight is securely braced and blocked.

• Issue certificates of compliance for vessels without violations.

• Measure heights and widths of loads to ensure they will pass over bridges or through tunnels on scheduled routes.

• Notify workers of any special treatment required for shipments.

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Job Zone

• Name: Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed

• Experience: Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

• Education: Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. Some may require a bachelor's degree.

• Job training: Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers.

• Examples: These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include funeral directors, electricians, forest and conservation technicians, legal secretaries, interviewers, and insurance sales agents.

• Svp range: (6.0 to < 7.0)

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Knowledge

Browse Knowledge

• Mathematics
  Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

• Public Safety and Security
  Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

• Transportation
  Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

• English Language
  Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

• Production and Processing
  Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

• Design
  Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

• Physics
  Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub- atomic structures and processes.

• Law and Government
  Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

• Clerical
  Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

• Administration and Management
  Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

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Skills

Browse Skills

• Mathematics
  Using mathematics to solve problems.

• Reading Comprehension
  Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

• Writing
  Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

• Active Listening
  Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

• Speaking
  Talking to others to convey information effectively.

• Critical Thinking
  Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

• Judgment and Decision Making
  Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

• Monitoring
  Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

• Coordination
  Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

• Quality Control Analysis
  Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

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Abilities

Browse Abilities

• Oral Expression
  The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

• Written Comprehension
  The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

• Problem Sensitivity
  The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

• Number Facility
  The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.

• Oral Comprehension
  The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

• Written Expression
  The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

• Near Vision
  The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

• Deductive Reasoning
  The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

• Information Ordering
  The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

• Category Flexibility
  The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.

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Work Activities

Browse Work Activities

• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material
  Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
  Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.

• Getting Information
  Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

• Documenting/Recording Information
  Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

• Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
  Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.

• Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
  Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
  Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

• Processing Information
  Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.

• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
  Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

• Analyzing Data or Information
  Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.

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Work Context

• Spend Time Standing
  How much does this job require standing?

• Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
  How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?

• Outdoors, Exposed to Weather
  How often does this job require working outdoors, exposed to all weather conditions?

• Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls
  How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?

• Spend Time Walking and Running
  How much does this job require walking and running?

• Consequence of Error
  How serious would the result usually be if the worker made a mistake that was not readily correctable?

• Responsible for Others' Health and Safety
  How much responsibility is there for the health and safety of others in this job?

• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
  How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?

• Spend Time Sitting
  How much does this job require sitting?

• Very Hot or Cold Temperatures
  How often does this job require working in very hot (above 90 F degrees) or very cold (below 32 F degrees) temperatures?

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Interests

Browse Interests

• Conventional
  Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

• Realistic
  Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

• Enterprising
  Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

• Social
  Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.

• Investigative
  Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.

• Artistic
  Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

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Work Values

Browse Work Values

• Moral Values
  Workers on this job are never pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

• Responsibility
  Workers on this job make decisions on their own.

• Security
  Workers on this job have steady employment.

• Independence
  Workers on this job do their work alone.

• Company Policies and Practices
  Workers on this job are treated fairly by the company.

• Autonomy
  Workers on this job plan their work with little supervision.

• Supervision, Technical
  Workers on this job have supervisors who train their workers well.

• Support-Mean Extent
  Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.

• Supervision, Human Relations
  Workers on this job have supervisors who back up their workers with management.

• Activity
  Workers on this job are busy all the time.

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