Helpers--Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, and Stucco Masons

Right now, most painter/plaster helper tasks are still done by people. Robots and AI tools mostly tackle big, repetitive jobs. For example, advanced robots can spray plaster or paint entire walls while a person watches from the ground ^[1].

Similarly, new machines can lift and connect scaffolding pieces under computer control ^[2]. These systems use AI sensors and remote controls to speed up heavy or dangerous steps. But helpers’ usual tasks – like carefully applying masking tape, hand-filling small cracks with putty, cleaning up, and holding tools – still need a human touch ^{[3] [2]}.

Construction sites are messy and varied, so machines find these fine, one-off jobs hard to do. In short, AI and robots are starting to “augment” (help) some parts of the job (big lifts, spraying), but most day-to-day helper duties remain manual ^{[1] [2]}.

Whether advanced helpers’ tools roll out quickly depends on many factors. One big driver is cost. Robots and AI gear are expensive, and painter-helper wages are fairly low, so companies must save a lot of money or improve safety to justify them ^{[4] [2]}.

Luckily, construction labor is in short supply and getting older, so machinery that lets small crews go further is attractive. For example, one startup notes that scaffolding assembly is very dangerous and recruiting new workers is hard, so robots that lift parts can make jobs safer and open to fewer, smaller teams ^{[4] [2]}. Safety is a big selling point: falls and injuries on scaffolds are common, so any tool that reduces risk is welcome ^{[2] [4]}.

In tests, machine-driven scaffolding systems and spraying robots have cut build time and accident risk ^{[1] [2]}.