PathLensSOUTH AFRICA · CLEARER PATHS. BRIGHTER OPTIONS.
Optical Mechanic
OFO Code: 661502
Last checked 7 October 2026
1. Occupation identity
- OFO code
- 661502
- Occupation
- Optical Mechanic
- Classification
- OFO 2021
- Major group
- SKILLED AGRICULTURAL, FORESTRY, FISHERY, CRAFT AND RELATED TRADES WORKERS
- Unit group
- 6615 · Glass Makers, Cutters, Grinders and Finishers
Official description
Glass makers, cutters, grinders and finishers blow, mould, press, cut, trim, grind and polish glass, shape molten glass according to patterns.
Trade occupation in the OFO source
More official OFO detail
Specialisations: Slitter Optical Glass, Optical Glass Grinder, Contact Lens Technician, Optical Instrument Maker and Repairer, Optical Glass Cutter, Fine Optician, Optical Glass Polisher, Optical Laboratory Assistant, Optical Technician
- Laying out cutting and grinding optical and other glass to specified dimensions and weight for moulding into lens blanks and for use as watch crystals
- Transferring pattern for individual stained glass parts from full size drawing to pattern paper, using stylus to trace drawings
- Regulating oven temperatures according to glass types to be processed
- Positioning pattern or drawing on glass, measuring dimensions, and marking cutting lines, using glass cutting tools and cutting glass along marked outlines or around pattern
- Heating glass to pliable stage, using gas flames or ovens, and rotating glass to heat it uniformly
- Reading work orders to determine dimensions, cutting locations, and quantities to cut
- Blowing and bending glass tubing into specified shapes to form scientific apparatus like flasks, retorts, pipettes
- Observing gauges, computer printouts and video monitors to verify specified processing conditions and make adjustments as necessary
- Inspecting, weighing, and measuring products to verify conformance to specifications, using instruments such as micrometers, callipers, magnifiers, and rulers
- Examining glass stock and finished products and marking or discarding items with defects such as spots, stains, scars, snags, chips, scratches, or unacceptable shapes or finishes
- Finishing and smoothening and polishing rough edges, using belt sander or polishing wheels
- Spraying silver solution on glass to provide mirrored surface, using spray gun
2. Demand status
Demand evidence unavailable
No approved governed OIHD graph relationship is available on this deployment for this OFO code.
PathLens does not fall back to legacy specimen demand flags when governed evidence is unavailable.
A national demand signal is not a promise of a vacancy in your town.
3. Salary evidence
No approved governed salary observation or sourced snapshot salary record is available for this OFO code yet.
Open remuneration history & calculator →4. Quick EE check
How much might Employment Equity matter in this job context?
Answer three quick questions for a rough read. This is workforce context, not a hiring decision.
Select the employer size and your profile to get a quick read.
5. Qualification
Qualification evidence pending.
Understand NQF levels, institutions & recognition → Build my qualification pathway →6. Study funding
Check all funding options, eligibility & obligations →A funding match will only be shown once a recognised qualification or study route has been identified.
7. Industry, sector and provincial context
National occupation classification. Industry and provincial context are shown only where a separate official source supports the link.
No source-backed modern OFO↔SIC 7 industry link has been ingested for this occupation yet. PathLens does not infer one from the job title.
Browse the official South African industry classification →8. Next steps — official links
9. Decision tools
10. Sources for this page
- DHET Organising Framework for Occupations (OFO 2021) · Ingested · identity spine active
Canonical OFO identity data has been ingested and validated. 1511 occupation records are recorded in the ingest artifact. - DHET Occupations in High Demand · Validated pipeline · graph publication not confirmed
The governed OIHD pipeline is active, but a successful populated graph run is not currently confirmed on this deployment. - Critical Skills List · Monitored · occupation linkage pending
Official migration sources are monitored, but PathLens does not infer visa eligibility or occupation-level eligibility from monitoring alone. - QCTO qualifications and occupational certificates · Candidate staging ready · not published
Qualification staging and human review are implemented; no qualification↔OFO relationship is published without an explicit source identifier or governed human review. - Stats SA Quarterly Labour Force Survey · Acquisition active · no approved evidence on this deployment
Official QLFS artifact discovery is active. Dataset-specific schema, weighting, reliability and review gates remain separate; a discovered artifact or executable estimator does not itself create a public claim. - SETA Sector Skills Plans / hard-to-fill vacancy tables · Partial · explicit source links only
PathLens preserves explicit source-backed SETA/activity links where present and does not infer modern SIC relationships from occupation titles.