Architecture & Engineering
Manufacturing Engineers
Also called: Facility Engineer, Manufacturing Engineer, Plant Engineer, Process Engineer
US median pay
$102,440
per year, 2025
Job growth 2025–35
+12.4%
faster than average
Openings a year (US)
23,100
365,100 employed
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
Preparation 4/5 · Considerable preparation
What this job is
Design, integrate, or improve manufacturing systems or related processes. May work with commercial or industrial designers to refine product designs to increase producibility and decrease costs.
What they do day to day
- Troubleshoot new or existing product problems involving designs, materials, or processes.
- Investigate or resolve operational problems, such as material use variances or bottlenecks.
- Identify opportunities or implement changes to improve manufacturing processes or products or to reduce costs, using knowledge of fabrication processes, tooling and production equipment, assembly methods, quality control standards, or product design, materials and parts.
- Apply continuous improvement methods, such as lean manufacturing, to enhance manufacturing quality, reliability, or cost-effectiveness.
- Provide technical expertise or support related to manufacturing.
- Incorporate new manufacturing methods or processes to improve existing operations.
- Review product designs for manufacturability or completeness.
- Determine root causes of failures or recommend changes in designs, tolerances, or processing methods, using statistical procedures.
- Prepare reports summarizing information or trends related to manufacturing performance.
- Prepare documentation for new manufacturing processes or engineering procedures.
Skills and knowledge that matter most
Skills
- Complex Problem Solving4.0/5
- Operations Monitoring3.9/5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.9/5
- Systems Evaluation3.8/5
- Systems Analysis3.8/5
- Technology Design3.6/5
- Troubleshooting3.5/5
- Time Management3.5/5
Knowledge
- Production and Processing4.4/5
- Engineering and Technology4.4/5
- Mechanical4.1/5
- Design4.0/5
- Mathematics4.0/5
- Computers and Electronics3.8/5
Importance rated by people working in the job (1 = not important, 5 = extremely important).
Education and preparation
Preparation level 4 of 5 — Considerable preparation. Usually a bachelor's degree and several years of related experience.
Typical entry education (BLS): Bachelor's degree.
Highest education of people in this job:
- Bachelor's degree76%
- Associate's degree16%
Who this job suits
Mostly Realistic
Hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
Investigative
Ideas, research and solving problems
Conventional
Organising data, details and procedures
Based on the Holland (RIASEC) interest profile for this occupation.