AI exposure: Weatherization Installers and Technicians
Perform a variety of activities to weatherize homes and make them more energy efficient. Duties include repairing windows, insulating ducts, and performing heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) work. May perform energy audits and advise clients on energy conservation measures.
Reading this score
computedAt 24.1% of weighted task load, Weatherization Installers and Technicians sits at the 45th percentile, below the point where a job's centre of gravity has moved. 62.5% of what this role does is untouched, meaning current systems cannot produce that work at all, whatever the commercial incentive.
What holds the line here is embodiment. Across this occupation's 20 tasks it averages 2.05 out of 3, the highest of the five friction dimensions. In plain terms, the work has to happen in physical space. A language model cannot move matter. Until the robotics to do this work is both good enough and cheap enough to deploy widely, capability in software does not reach it.
The most exposed thing this job does is Prepare or assist in the preparation of bids, contracts, or written reports related to..., at 73.3%. The least is Wrap water heaters with water heater blankets, 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 construction and extraction occupations, this one is more exposed than most. The median across the 61 roles in the group is 5.0%, and only 2 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 20 tasks, 7 are currently banded exposed, 0 assisted and 13 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take robotics cheap and reliable enough to deploy at scale, not a better language model. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
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 | 1.52 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 2.05 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.38 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 0.85 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.30 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 1.18 | 0-3 |
Task by task
20 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare or assist in the preparation of bids, contracts, or written reports related to weatherization work. | 73.3% | 26.7% | 0.0% | 3.65 | exposed |
| Recommend weatherization techniques to clients in accordance with needs and applicable energy regulations, codes, policies, or statutes. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 4.13 | exposed |
| Contact residents or building owners to schedule appointments. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 4.05 | exposed |
| Explain recommendations, policies, procedures, requirements, or other related information to residents or building owners. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 3.91 | exposed |
| Explain energy conservation measures, such as the use of low flow showerheads and energy-efficient lighting. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 3.75 | exposed |
| Prepare cost estimates or specifications for rehabilitation or weatherization services. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.05 | exposed |
| Maintain activity logs, financial transaction logs, or other records of weatherization work performed. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.87 | exposed |
| Test combustible appliances, such as gas appliances. | 15.0% | 10.0% | 75.0% | 4.60 | untouched |
| Determine amount of air leakage in buildings, using a blower door machine. | 11.7% | 13.3% | 75.0% | 4.41 | untouched |
| Test and diagnose air flow systems, using furnace efficiency analysis equipment. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.29 | untouched |
| Inspect buildings to identify required weatherization measures, including repair work, modification, or replacement. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.19 | untouched |
| Install storm windows or storm doors and verify proper fit. | 5.8% | 6.7% | 87.5% | 3.50 | untouched |
| Install and seal air ducts, combustion air openings, or ventilation openings to improve heating and cooling efficiency. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.29 | untouched |
| Apply insulation materials, such as loose, blanket, board, and foam insulation to attics, crawl spaces, basements, or walls. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.09 | untouched |
| Make minor repairs using basic hand or power tools and materials, such as glass, lumber, and drywall. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.09 | untouched |
| Wrap air ducts and water lines with insulating materials, such as duct wrap and pipe insulation. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.05 | untouched |
| Prepare and apply weather-stripping, glazing, caulking, or door sweeps to reduce energy losses. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.05 | untouched |
| Clean and maintain tools and equipment. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.00 | untouched |
| Apply spackling, compounding, or other materials to repair holes in walls. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.00 | untouched |
| Wrap water heaters with water heater blankets. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.47 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
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.
What this means in practice
Most of this work is not reachable by current systems, so the immediate pressure is on the administrative edges of the role rather than its core: the scheduling, the reporting, the written records. That is where time is recovered.