Any Mechanical Engineers in here?

[73z-6sp]

Hey guys, just wondering what the engineers here do for a living? Yea.. I know... Engineering...but more specifically, do you work in the automotive industry or something completely different? I've been working towards my ME degree but Im not sure what I am going to do with it. I love working on and building PT cars or any muscle car for that matter. Im just curious what others do and hoping to get some ideas. Im not sure if I can use it to be a better builder and add to the hot rod/PT market, or just use it to better finance my own car building by working somewhere that has nothing to do with cars.

Thanks!

Aaron

[dropit69]

my cousin is a ME for a company called chicago bridge and iron..they make tanks of some sort and he deals with all the drawings and crap..

[73z-6sp]

and crap..

That is my biggest fear! ;)

[Rubes]

You're going to have to deal with "crap" reguardless. I'm an ME (Manufacturing Engineere, though) and have to deal with everything from what srew to use where, to how long to burn-in or "is it ready to ship". I work for Honeywell in their gas detection buisness.

I personally chose to NOT be in the automotive field for a career. I felt there was too much chance that if I get burned out in my career, there goes the hobby...or worse yet, get burned out on your hobby and trash your career. But whatever field you choose to practice mechanical engineering in, I'm sure there will be concepts and such you can take home to the garage to make you a better car builder. There will even be times when being a car builder will help at work. I cant tell you how many times I was the "hero" because I can take something home and weld, machine or paint it rather than have to send it to a vendor.

[73z-6sp]

I know all about the crap. Ive been in the military for ~15 years. I was just being funny. (Or trying rather)

Good point about the career ruining the hobby and vice versa. I hadnt really thought of it that way. People say to do what you are passionate about but getting burned out is a problem. I guess that is where I am...trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up. Im about 12 classes from finishing so I still have a little time but I want to do an internship soon so getting an idea of where I want to focus my attention is important. Thanks for the replies.

[wiedemab]

I'm not sure if this will help, but I'm an ME from Purdue. Here is my career path so far. I hired on at Batesville Casket Co. (yep, dead people boxes!), in 2002. I spent two years in their Engineering Management Development Program. This program allowed me to spend time in many different departments/disciplines and also to spend time at all of there manufacturing facilities. I spent time in Continuous Improvement, Sales, Human Resources, Finance, Strategic Planning, Plant Engineering, Plant Supervision, Total Cost Improvement (Purchasing). Over the two years I learned alot about how a company runs at all different levels.

I would recommend a program like this to anyone that wants to transition into the business world from engineering. I haven't really spent much, if any time as a design engineer.

My next jump was to try a startup car washing franchise with my brother-in-law and his business partner. I was their first employee and helped them get the first two locations up and running. I really liked the mechanical installation part of the process, but once they were up and running I lost interest. I wasn't too excited about managing high school kids and the hours sucked, so I bailed.

I'm now working at a small metal service center - Ferguson Metals. We deal with stainless steels and high temperature alloys for all sorts of industry. We buy master coil and slit or level it to the customers specs. Anyway, my title is Project Manager right now. The size of the company allows me to get involved in just about everything. I manage all of our continuous improvement inititives, machinery upgrades, maintenance and purchases, building expansion, Safety.

I'm also working toward my MBA from Xavier University in Cincinnati.

I guess your career choices depends alot on whether you want to be hardcore engineer, designing parts or end up more involved with the business aspects. Personally, I really like the size of the company that I'm with now. I feel like I'm very well connected with what is going on with the company. I'm learning alot!

Anyway, I know that was a lot of rambling, but that is one example (crazy as it may be) of a career path of an ME.

Later,

Brandon

[WS6]

I am an ME major here at UGA for now. I will be transferring to Ga Tech soon I hope. I asked the same questions you did not too long ago. After hearing some responses I decided that I want to persue something in the oil industry and preferrably Project Engineer. The money is a big issues honestly, but it's not the quantity as much as it is the stability. The oil industry is huge and stable compared to say automotive(I'd be afraid of trying to work with GM right now honestly). It is constantly advancing and full of the latest technology. It's also a very broad field to be in. I too am worried about getting burnt out which is why I was thinking and have been told to consider project engineer. It keeps you from being pigeon-holed in one area. I am moving over to tech simply so I can get internships or co-op. I want ot make sure I will like what I choose before I jump in with no where to go because I am fresh out of college with no experience.

Good luck.

[CarlC]

Another thing to consider are other jobs outside of your chosen degree.

My degree is CE, but my career is based in the mechanical field. Basically, I supervise the installation and repair of large mechanical equipment for steel mills, paper mills, mines, and machine tools. As was mentioned above, focusing strictly on one discipline has advantages and disadvantages, but for me using a wide variety of engineering disciplines is fun since I can apply the classroom to practical situations. The practical side of heavy industry can be quite a bit different and enlightening vs. the classroom.

If variety is something you like, one path would be to join a design/fabrication/supervision engineering firm. These companies offer one-stop shopping for customers who either do not have the in-house expertise or need someone to be the construction manager. Often these are travelling jobs, and if you are willing to travel you can see the world on the company dime. It may mean months away from home, but you can't beat the experience vs. time aspect.

I do agree that a lot can be learned in industry and re-applied to our cars. I think I would get burned out if I was working on cars for both my career and for fun.

[B Schein]

I am a junior here @ the University of North Caroline Charlotte. I worked as a machinist for the army for several years an everyone said you should go get you engineering degree, “former machinists make good engineers” so they say. I came down here to charlotte for the motor sports program they have. At the time I though I wanted to work in automotive. Meanwhile I still work for the army in the summer and got put into a so-called engineering position, which in reality was project management position which I hate. I really don’t want to do design work and have lost all interest in manufacturing. I personal like subjects like thermo and heat transfer so I hope to find some type on research job in those fields either with in the army if I can or move to private industry.

[FASTRC5]

I was rejected for automotive jobs several times out of school. It's what I wanted and just kept going after it. I now have been working in body engineering since getting in at an undisclosed 2 initial auto company. Unfortunately the business has been downsizing for a while and the oportuntity to get in is significantly reduced.
My advice is stay flexible, and be willing to go where needed. I think every engineer out of college thinks there going to be a chassis engineer, at least I did. Thats how I ended up in body because I made it clear that working on cars was more important than what part.

[brn agn]

In 99, I was an intern for GM. The program I enrolled in allowed me to view operations at the Design Center, the Proving Grounds and 2 different vehicle plants. Before that internship, I absolutely adored General Motors. I walked away very dissapointed and turned down a full time position with them 6 months later. Don't get me wrong, there were a lot of interesting jobs, but the company as a whole didn't give me a lot of hope.

I graduated from a small Engineering school in Missouri with a Mechanical Engineering degree. I accepted a job as a Quality Engineer for a company that manufactured thermostatic expansion valves (residential and commercial air conditioning parts). I learned alot, but was bored with the product and frustrated with the job after 5.5 years.

I am now back in the automotive industry (which is what I looked for). I work for a company that builds automatic transmissions for Toyota. The plant I work at makes 5 and 6 speed transmission for the Sequoia, Tacoma and Tundra (including the re-designed 07 Tundra). I am still in Quality. I have learned a lot about the "Toyota Way". I work A LOT more hours than I used to, but it is a rewarding job. I have worked there for 1.5 years. I cannot envision getting burned out to the point that I wouldn't want to work on my own cars. I spend more time working with people and processes during the day, which is completely different than working on my car at night. If you think about joining the automotive industry, here are the pros and cons I have faced:

Cons:
Long hours (I had a 17 hour work day and a 18 hour work day last week, back to back).
High expectations for quality.
High standards for employees (job performance)
High manufacturing output, which means high stress for some people.
Travel.

Pros:
The product is VERY interesting.
The things learned at work can be applied at home while you are buidling your own car.
High expectations for quality.
High standards for employees.
The chance to work with vehicles that are 1-2 years from production.

Of course, the pay varies from company to company, so I cannot list that as a pro or a con.

It will be interesting to see how I respond to this post 4 years from now....

[Nine Ball]

Bachelors in Mech Eng here. I finished school in 98, but started working full time as a project engineer in 96 at the end of my Jr year. They paid me engineering salary, $40K back then, and allowed me to finish my degree for the next three semesters part-time and paid for school. That was working in a chemical plant here in Houston.

Fast forward a few years, I dabbled in manufacturing, then a forging plant, a robotics/machining plant, and then jumped into the offshore oil/gas industry. No regrets here, the offshore industry pays the best and the difficulties of going deeper each year brings fresh technology into the job. You can work 2-3 years in the deepwater group and be an expert in the industry, since the level of technological advancements is non-stop. About 5 years ago, 3K feet water depths were record setting. Now we are pushing 10K feet. Pretty amazing considering that is straight down!

Houston is the mecca for offshore oil/gas here in the states. We also have several of the big oil/gas companies here as their HQ location. There is also plenty of worldwide travel if you enjoy that. Our guys go to Singapore, Africa, India, England, Holland, France, South America, Australia, etc... to attend meetings.

I kept cars as a hobby, but co-founding LS1TECH.com made that hobby an income-making hobby too.

PS, here is another ongoing thread about Engineers you can check out:
http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=591165

Tony

[83hurstguy]

In 99, I was an intern for GM. The program I enrolled in allowed me to view operations at the Design Center, the Proving Grounds and 2 different vehicle plants. Before that internship, I absolutely adored General Motors. I walked away very dissapointed and turned down a full time position with them 6 months later. Don't get me wrong, there were a lot of interesting jobs, but the company as a whole didn't give me a lot of hope.

I just had a similar experience with DCX last summer (2006). Got a full time offer last month (which was a pretty decent offer, really). Just didn't really feel optimistic about a future career there. Engineers were really getting worked like crazy....

[Nine Ball]

If you want a good indication of how much overtime a company might be working, simply drive by their parking lot at 6pm and see if the lot is still full or empty. ;)

[BobB66SS]

Don't forget what a solid ME degree can do for you in general further along in your career. I started as an engineer for one of the then-captive GM parts divisions and eventually transferred to one of the car groups about 5 years later. After doing that for a couple of years at the Tech Center my interest turned toward the technical sales end of the business and I went to work calling on engineers. My background enabled me to speak their language and helped me move my career along significantly. I've been in the automotive sales arena since and love it. My current field doesn't use much engineering directly but my ability to speak 'car' within my field still serves me in ways other degrees couldn't. I've also found that the income potential in the sales field is better than in the core engineering field. Bottom line is that the degree and the difficulty it takes to get one will always be an asset to you and potential employers even outside your primary field if you choose to branch off.

P.S. - - don't forget that the Tuckers of Detroit Speed were both engineers for GM before thgey launched their company.

[wantahertzdonut]

I'm an ME, graduated at the end of 2002. I went into a dead job market and had to work for a city engineer department as an "intern" for nearly 2 years before I found my current job.

Now I work in a test lab for an aerospace company. It's very different from most engineering jobs, it's very hands-on in addition to a lot of design time. I see all of my projects through from beginning to end, so I don't feel like just a cog on a gear. There isn't so much glory in test engineering but I'm a low-key kinda person so I think it suits me pretty well. My only gripe is the location, Cleveland is a dying city.

[73z-6sp]

Wow! Great replies! Thanks to everyone! Lots of good advice. I appreciate it. I like the idea of being part of a team that designs something and does it from start to finish. I dont care too much about money, believe it or not, quality of life is much more important to me. (Im not saying anyone here isnt that way also, just that that is where my mind is at this point in life) I dont care much for the idea of sitting in a cubicle 10+ hours a day designing something that I have no idea about how it fits into the overall plan. I want to be hands on and working. I like to work. I also like to feel some satisfaction from my work which I dont get much of right now. I had started out studying Optics with a minor in Mechanical, and it was very interesting to me, I just could not seem to understand most of what was being taught in class. I always felt like the village idiot! At least with ME I feel a little more confident in what I know and what I am learning. If that makes any sense. I want to do an internship in the summer of 2008. That is my plan. I work full time right now so an internship isnt an option this summer.

Thanks again for the posts. Very cool!

[Fuelie Fan]

I'm working for a company right now, it sounds in line with what you want to do. We do sub contracting for the companies that build concept cars for the OEMs (no, the main design teams at OEMs don't do it). We also build prototype vehicles for the military, and every now and then we'll consult on or build a race car or two. It's a very cool job, but very demanding. Plus, being in orange county, CA, the commute is hell. I leave home at 6 and get back around 8 or 9, so i don't have much time to play with cars, especially during the week. There are many small companies like us that do a lot of cool work that you THINK the big dogs are doing, but aren't. Try to find one of them.

[68sixspeed]

A wise man once told me- "don't make your hobby your business", I took it for better or worse... at least time in the garage is still 'fun' this way.

What pays the bills- designing and building custom assembly machinery- everything from automotive assemblies, medical products, costmetics, etc.-- www.automationdevelopment.com One neat thing, it's always something different and it does pay for the toys. (and I sneak some CNC brackets in the mix too!)

[B Schein]

A wise man once told me- "don't make your hobby your business",

I couldnt agree more that is why I no longer have any intrest in working in the automotive field past graduation.