Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installer Career

Job Description: Apply plasterboard or other wallboard to ceilings or interior walls of buildings. Apply or mount acoustical tiles or blocks, strips, or sheets of shock-absorbing materials to ceilings and walls of buildings to reduce or reflect sound. Materials may be of decorative quality. Includes lathers who fasten wooden, metal, or rockboard lath to walls, ceilings, or partitions of buildings to provide support base for plaster, fireproofing, or acoustical material.


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Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installer Career

What Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers do:

  • Measure and mark surfaces to lay out work, according to blueprints or drawings, using tape measures, straightedges or squares, and marking devices.
  • Fit and fasten wallboard or drywall into position on wood or metal frameworks, using glue, nails, or screws.
  • Hang drywall panels on metal frameworks of walls and ceilings in offices, schools, or other large buildings, using lifts or hoists to adjust panel heights, when necessary.
  • Cut and screw together metal channels to make floor or ceiling frames, according to plans for the location of rooms or hallways.
  • Measure and cut openings in panels or tiles for electrical outlets, windows, vents, plumbing, or other fixtures, using keyhole saws or other cutting tools.
  • Trim rough edges from wallboard to maintain even joints, using knives.
  • Install horizontal and vertical metal or wooden studs to frames so that wallboard can be attached to interior walls.
  • Read blueprints or other specifications to determine methods of installation, work procedures, or material or tool requirements.
  • Coordinate work with drywall finishers who cover the seams between drywall panels.
  • Cut metal or wood framing and trim to size, using cutting tools.
  • Assemble or install metal framing or decorative trim for windows, doorways, or vents.
  • Hang dry lines to wall moldings to guide positioning of main runners.
  • Suspend angle iron grids or channel irons from ceilings, using wire.
  • Remove existing plaster, drywall, or paneling, using crowbars and hammers.
  • Install blanket insulation between studs and tack plastic moisture barriers over insulation.
  • Cut fixture or border tiles to size, using keyhole saws, and insert them into surrounding frameworks.
  • Seal joints between ceiling tiles and walls.
  • Fasten metal or rockboard lath to the structural framework of walls, ceilings, or partitions of buildings, using nails, screws, staples, or wire-ties.
  • Apply or mount acoustical tile or blocks, strips, or sheets of shock-absorbing materials to ceilings or walls of buildings to reduce reflection of sound or to decorate rooms.
  • Scribe and cut edges of tile to fit walls where wall molding is not specified.
  • Inspect furrings, mechanical mountings, or masonry surfaces for plumbness and level, using spirit or water levels.
  • Mount tile, using adhesives, or by nailing, screwing, stapling, or wire-tying lath directly to structural frameworks.
  • Install metal lath where plaster applications will be exposed to weather or water, or for curved or irregular surfaces.
  • Nail channels or wood furring strips to surfaces to provide mounting for tile.
  • Apply cement to backs of tiles and press tiles into place, aligning them with layout marks or joints of previously laid tile.
  • Wash concrete surfaces before mounting tile to increase adhesive qualities of surfaces, using washing soda and zinc sulfate solution.

What work activities are most important?

Importance Activities

Handling and Moving Objects - Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.

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

Performing General Physical Activities - Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.

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

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

Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.

Drafting, Laying Out, and Specifying Technical Devices, Parts, and Equipment - Providing documentation, detailed instructions, drawings, or specifications to tell others about how devices, parts, equipment, or structures are to be fabricated, constructed, assembled, modified, maintained, or used.

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

Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

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

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

Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.

Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.

Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.

Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information - Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.

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.

Controlling Machines and Processes - Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).

Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment - Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.

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

Assisting and Caring for Others - Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.

Developing and Building Teams - Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.

Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates - Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.

Coaching and Developing Others - Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.

Holland Code Chart for a Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installer