What does a body engineer do?
Body engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real body engineer resumes:
- Manage the manufacturing of defense and aerospace electro-mechanical print circuit boards from prototype to production level.
- Validate parts requirements through FEA simulations.
- Mentore a team of four engineers on standard FEA of exterior subsystems of a vehicle.
- Work on vehicle body NVH testing and analysis; work with program engineer to provide NVH design recommendations.
- Expedite and simplify the quotation process for solar water heating systems by accurately representing solar water heating system performance through MATLAB models
- Create and present technical PowerPoint presentations to customers which are instrumental in wining new business.
Body engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 18% of Body Engineers are proficient in CATIA, GD, and DFMEA. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Listening skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Body Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- CATIA, 18%
Used APQP, PAP and CATIA effectively in meeting vehicle's compressed timing schedule.
- GD, 17%
Position required interfacing with customers and suppliers, data translation, data management and creation of drawings utilizing GD &T.
- DFMEA, 14%
Created and maintained overall development schedule, profitability plan, DFMEA, performance and durability specifications, and validation test requirements.
- NVH, 12%
Body attachment point NVH analysis and targets setting for DEW 98, Big-Bang etc.
- Vehicle Programs, 6%
Performed modal, durability, and stiffness analyses of BIW and exterior subsystems of various global vehicle programs.
- FEA, 5%
Mentored a team of four engineers on standard FEA of exterior subsystems of a vehicle.
Common skills that a body engineer uses to do their job include "catia," "gd," and "dfmea." You can find details on the most important body engineer responsibilities below.
Creativity. One of the key soft skills for a body engineer to have is creativity. You can see how this relates to what body engineers do because "mechanical engineers design and build complex pieces of equipment and machinery." Additionally, a body engineer resume shows how body engineers use creativity: "trained in cad modeling software including inventor and solidworks. "
Listening skills. Many body engineer duties rely on listening skills. "mechanical engineers often work on projects with others, such as architects and computer scientists," so a body engineer will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways body engineer responsibilities rely on listening skills: "tracked and communicated design changes for two manufacturing facilities (mao & gao). "
Math skills. body engineers are also known for math skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to body engineer responsibilities, because "mechanical engineers use the principles of calculus, statistics, and other advanced subjects in math for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." A body engineer resume example shows how math skills is used in the workplace: "direct designers with cad packaging, math and drawings specification, gd&t;, and stack analysis. "
Mechanical skills. For certain body engineer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "mechanical skills." The day-to-day duties of a body engineer rely on this skill, as "mechanical skills allow engineers to apply basic engineering concepts and mechanical processes to the design of new devices and systems." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what body engineers do: "lead six sigma project to improve mechanical robustness of the scr def and hc mixers. "
Problem-solving skills. Another common skill required for body engineer responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." This skill comes up in the duties of body engineers all the time, as "mechanical engineers need good problem-solving skills to take scientific principles and discoveries and use them to design and build useful products." An excerpt from a real body engineer resume shows how this skill is central to what a body engineer does: "implemented $7 million in design cost reduction solutions. "
The three companies that hire the most body engineers are:
- CNH Industrial2 body engineers jobs
- Lucid Motors2 body engineers jobs
- RGBSI1 body engineers jobs
Compare different body engineers
Body engineer vs. Research and development engineer
Research and development engineers generally execute research and tests on product ideas, develop new products, and perform redesigns. They are employed in many industries, including manufacturing, electrical, and science-based companies. Their duties vary and depend on the industries they work in. Responsibilities of these engineers include developing new technologies, designing products, and managing the projects until they are completed. Additionally, they lead the project team members to manage their schedules, design the project plans, and collaborate with key departments in developing new products.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, body engineer responsibilities require skills like "catia," "ls-dyna," "nvh," and "vehicle programs." Meanwhile a typical research and development engineer has skills in areas such as "python," "c #," "solidworks," and "cad." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Research and development engineers earn the highest salaries when working in the technology industry, with an average yearly salary of $107,654. On the other hand, body engineers are paid more in the automotive industry with an average salary of $107,927.research and development engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than body engineers. In fact, research and development engineers are 3.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 3.9% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Body engineer vs. Technical services engineer
A technical services engineer is responsible for assisting customers on their systems and network issues, providing them the best technical solutions, and guiding them on step-by-step procedures for troubleshooting. Technical services engineers must have excellent communication and technical skills, especially on identifying customers' system failures by asking them a few questions. They also escalate high-level complaints to internal teams, ensuring that they present the client's issues for reference. A technical services engineer also handles systems configuration and recommending process improvement techniques to optimize network infrastructure.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that body engineer responsibilities requires skills like "catia," "gd," "dfmea," and "ls-dyna." But a technical services engineer might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "customer service," "technical support," "technical service," and "project management."
Technical services engineers may earn a lower salary than body engineers, but technical services engineers earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $86,876. On the other hand, body engineers receive higher pay in the automotive industry, where they earn an average salary of $107,927.technical services engineers earn lower levels of education than body engineers in general. They're 12.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 3.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Body engineer vs. Mechanical design engineer
A mechanical design engineer specializes in designing various mechanical devices that will be vital in developing machinery or large structures. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around conducting thorough research and analysis, establishing layouts and prototypes, producing progress reports, and working alongside fellow engineers and skilled professionals. Typically assigned in an office setting, a mechanical design engineer must visit construction sites or factories to test and observe equipment qualities. Furthermore, during production, there are instances when a mechanical engineer must coordinate with suppliers, contractors, and clients.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a body engineer is likely to be skilled in "catia," "ls-dyna," "nvh," and "vehicle programs," while a typical mechanical design engineer is skilled in "cad," "mechanical design," "creo," and "ul."
Mechanical design engineers make a very good living in the automotive industry with an average annual salary of $87,483. On the other hand, body engineers are paid the highest salary in the automotive industry, with average annual pay of $107,927.mechanical design engineers typically earn lower educational levels compared to body engineers. Specifically, they're 10.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.6% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Body engineer vs. Product development engineer
A Product Development Engineer is responsible for creating and testing new product designs. They collaborate with market researchers to evaluate market needs, existing competition, and potential costs.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between body engineers and product development engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a body engineer might have more use for skills like "catia," "ls-dyna," "nvh," and "vehicle programs." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of product development engineers require skills like "cad," "solidworks," "product development," and "project management. "
The technology industry tends to pay the highest salaries for product development engineers, with average annual pay of $86,062. Comparatively, the highest body engineer annual salary comes from the automotive industry.product development engineers reach lower levels of education compared to body engineers, in general. The difference is that they're 6.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.6% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of body engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
