AI exposure: Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians
Apply theory and principles of civil engineering in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of structures and facilities under the direction of engineering staff or physical scientists.
Reading this score
computed39.7% of this occupation's weighted task load is exposed, which puts Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians at the 70th percentile of 923 occupations. The capability is largely there. Its average task scores 2.5 out of 4 on what a current system can produce, and the frictions that hold other jobs in place are comparatively weak here.
What holds the line here is context. Across this occupation's 14 tasks it averages 1.86 out of 3, the highest of the five friction dimensions. In plain terms, the work depends on knowledge the model cannot hold. Much of this job runs on things that were never written down: what this particular organisation does, what happened last week, what the person across the table actually meant. That context is the barrier, and it erodes as systems are given more access.
The most exposed thing this job does is Prepare reports and document project activities and data, at 73.3%. The least is Plan and conduct field surveys to locate new sites and analyze details of project sites, at 0.0%. A gap of 73.3% between two parts of the same job is the reason this index publishes at task level. An occupation-wide number would have hidden both.
Within architecture and engineering occupations, this one is more exposed than most. The median across the 56 roles in the group is 37.5%, and only 15 of them score higher than this. Occupational families are not uniform, and the spread inside them is often wider than the gap between them.
What would move this score. Of 14 tasks, 9 are currently banded exposed, 2 assisted and 3 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take cheaper ways to verify output, since the cost of checking is currently doing more to hold this work in place than the cost of producing it. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Task by task
14 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare reports and document project activities and data. | 73.3% | 26.7% | 0.0% | 3.84 | exposed |
| Develop plans and estimate costs for installation of systems, utilization of facilities, or construction of structures. | 61.3% | 26.2% | 12.5% | 4.01 | exposed |
| Respond to public suggestions and complaints. | 61.3% | 26.2% | 12.5% | 3.64 | exposed |
| Develop project budgets by estimating the cost of project activities. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.82 | exposed |
| Calculate dimensions, square footage, profile and component specifications, and material quantities, using calculator or computer. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.24 | exposed |
| Analyze proposed site factors and design maps, graphs, tracings, and diagrams to illustrate findings. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.85 | exposed |
| Read and review project blueprints and structural specifications to determine dimensions of structure or system and material requirements. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.10 | exposed |
| Report maintenance problems occurring at project site to supervisor and negotiate changes to resolve system conflicts. | 40.0% | 35.0% | 25.0% | 3.37 | exposed |
| Confer with supervisor to determine project details such as plan preparation, acceptance testing, and evaluation of field conditions. | 35.0% | 40.0% | 25.0% | 3.88 | assisted |
| Negotiate with contractors on prices for new contracts or modifications to existing contracts. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 3.59 | exposed |
| Draft detailed dimensional drawings and design layouts for projects to ensure conformance to specifications. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.07 | assisted |
| Conduct materials test and analysis, using tools and equipment and applying engineering knowledge. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.04 | untouched |
| Inspect project site and evaluate contractor work to detect design malfunctions and ensure conformance to design specifications and applicable codes. | 8.3% | 16.7% | 75.0% | 4.13 | untouched |
| Plan and conduct field surveys to locate new sites and analyze details of project sites. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.68 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
Where the score comes from
judgedEvery task is scored through the standardised work activities it maps to. These are this occupation’s averages on the six rubric dimensions. Capability is what AI can do; the other five are what stands in the way.
| Dimension | Mean | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | 2.50 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 0.79 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.68 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 1.43 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.86 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 1.68 | 0-3 |
What this means in practice
Where most of a role's weighted task load is exposed, the work that survives is usually the part of the job nobody wrote into the job description: deciding what should be produced rather than producing it, and being answerable for the result. The tasks lowest on this page are a better guide to where to spend your time than any general advice about the future of work.
Occupations either side of this one
The four closest scores in the same occupational family, then the four closest anywhere in the index.
Read this carefully. Exposure is not displacement. A high score means current AI systems can produce this work, not that anyone will stop paying a person to do it. Adoption depends on economics, regulation and inertia that this index deliberately does not model. How the score is built.