Engineers are the bedrock of a safe and stable society. And there is hardly ever a dip in demand for them. Every year, at least 24,000 job openings appear for civil engineers alone.
Engineering is a challenging, yet dignified career. It provides invaluable services to businesses and governments.
But there are many different types of engineering. All of them have unique disciplines and requirements.
It’s important that someone who plans to go into the field know about engineering. Civil engineering is just one field.
Keep reading as we discuss some of the most common types of engineering.
Types of Engineering: Civil Engineering
Civil engineers are usually the first to come to mind. Ask a historian, and they may tell you that these are some of the oldest engineers in history.
Civil engineers are those responsible for the creation of essential public infrastructure. These are the people who build bridges, roads, and everything in between. It’s safe to say that modern society would not exist without them.
The importance of engineering cannot be understated. This infrastructure must be safe, effective, and affordable. Many fatalities and injuries can occur with substandard bridges and dams.
This is of course a very broad category. Most civil engineers must specialize in a specific field. For example, transportation or urban planning.
Engineering solutions for civil applications often get the least amount of praise. People don’t realize how difficult it is to make the roads and sidewalks for use on a daily basis.
Chemical Engineering
Chemistry is a complicated field that requires years of study to comprehend. It involves understanding the atomic structure of periodic elements and their reactions. It’s a fascinating discipline that creates many of the modern conveniences that we enjoy.
Just like civil engineering, chemical engineering is a broad field. It encompasses biology and physics.
Chemistry can be used for scientific applications and medical applications. It’s even for the simplest all-purpose bathroom cleaner.
Chemical engineering may not work with wood and steel, but it is engineering nonetheless. Engineers in this field manipulate the elements with highly specialized engineering equipment.
They may create processes to develop solutions and perform experiments. They also help to develop chemical materials.
Industries range from food chemistry to pharmaceutical chemistry, to fuels and microorganisms. Naturally, there is a wide range of disciplines just inside chemical engineering.
Mechanical Engineering
When people imagine engineering, they think of gears and pulleys. What they are thinking of is mechanical engineering. Mechanical engineering involves the machines and tools that we use on a daily basis.
Many things fall under the mechanical engineering umbrella. Vehicles, household appliances, and even ships out at sea.
Civil engineering tackles infrastructure. Mechanical engineering deals with the objects and devices we use in it.
Mechanical engineering uses established technology in innovative ways. Its focus is on creating reliable, safe machines for humans to use.
A good engineer in this field anticipates how people use an item. They make sure it’s intuitive and effective.
A good example of mechanical engineering would be toggle clamps by Sandfield Engineering. An engineer has to figure out how to make these clamps durable, effective, and safe under load. These clamps keep industrial applications running and help them avoid damage or injuries from failure.
Electrical Engineering
Using electricity as a power source is a relatively new invention. Although people have been using electricity in various forms for centuries, this is a complex field. There is far more to it than creating circuits and grounds.
Electricity can be highly dangerous if used improperly. Electrical engineers design systems that are safe for humans. They create stopgaps and failsafes to prevent us from injuring ourselves.
Electrical engineers, like other engineers, work in diverse disciplines. They wire new buildings and develop computer electronics. They even create giant machines like satellites and planes.
You will find most electrical engineers behind a desk. They use industrial software to draw up electrical diagrams. Many electrical engineers find themselves working under large companies or for government contracts.
Industrial Engineering
Industrial engineering is a lot like mechanical engineering, except on a much larger scale. Think of mechanical engineering as micro, and industrial as the macro.
They are creating large scale machines and information systems. They design large industrial building complexes.
Industrial engineering is about creating the machines that create the machines. It is they who design our factories, ports, and resource extraction facilities. These are often B2B jobs that provide industry solutions for professionals.
Since this is a high level occupation, industrial engineering has you working at the biggest echelons. You will be collaborating directly with executives. Industrial engineers have to work under a strict budget and time constraints to get the job done.
There is not much fanfare for industrial engineers. They are the ones who are working tirelessly behind the scenes, ensuring that things get done right. Without them, entire industries would not be able to exist.
Industrial engineering tends to have some of the highest salaries. These are jobs where you will be making big, risky decisions that determine how businesses operate. This can be both a highly rewarding and highly stressful career field.
Become an Engineer Today
There are more types of engineering than we can list in a single article, but these are some of the biggest fields. Engineering encompasses chemistry, mechanics, and even electricity. It is about building and designing the intuitive human tools we use on a daily basis.
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