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Building engineer vs maintenance assistant

The differences between building engineers and maintenance assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a building engineer and a maintenance assistant. Additionally, a building engineer has an average salary of $76,446, which is higher than the $31,915 average annual salary of a maintenance assistant.

The top three skills for a building engineer include HVAC, ladders and plumbing. The most important skills for a maintenance assistant are plumbing, HVAC, and customer service.

Building engineer vs maintenance assistant overview

Building EngineerMaintenance Assistant
Yearly salary$76,446$31,915
Hourly rate$36.75$15.34
Growth rate5%5%
Number of jobs13,44095,815
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 32%High School Diploma, 35%
Average age4747
Years of experience44

What does a building engineer do?

The job of building engineers is to provide advice on design, installation, and maintenance of energy-efficient and cost-effective systems for all building services, including lighting, water, and air conditioning. These professionals are responsible for the distribution of water supply and electricity and resolving tenants' maintenance problems such as plumbing and electrical systems. Additional duties of the building engineers include conducting tests on systems, ensuring compliance with health and safety requirements, and liaising with construction professionals like surveyors and electricians.

What does a maintenance assistant do?

A maintenance assistant is responsible for maintaining the company's facilities' cleanliness, ensuring that all the equipment and machinery are in working condition, and escalating high defective items for repair. Maintenance assistants should adhere to the organization's safety standards at all times to prevent hazards in operations. They also assist with monitoring inventories and requesting office supplies, inspect electrical wirings and systems for inconsistencies, respond to cleaning and repair requests, and assist guests to the correct departments.

Building engineer vs maintenance assistant salary

Building engineers and maintenance assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

Building EngineerMaintenance Assistant
Average salary$76,446$31,915
Salary rangeBetween $49,000 And $116,000Between $24,000 And $41,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CALas Vegas, NV
Highest paying stateCaliforniaHawaii
Best paying companyAppleBrigham and Women's Hospital
Best paying industryTechnologyGovernment

Differences between building engineer and maintenance assistant education

There are a few differences between a building engineer and a maintenance assistant in terms of educational background:

Building EngineerMaintenance Assistant
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 32%High School Diploma, 35%
Most common majorHeating And Air ConditioningBusiness
Most common college--

Building engineer vs maintenance assistant demographics

Here are the differences between building engineers' and maintenance assistants' demographics:

Building EngineerMaintenance Assistant
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 94.6% Female, 5.4%Male, 86.6% Female, 13.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.2% Asian, 4.5% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage2%2%

Differences between building engineer and maintenance assistant duties and responsibilities

Building engineer example responsibilities.

  • Coordinate with team leads to determine needs and how best to implement JIRA within department.
  • Create python script to automate the deployment process which deploys the application and restarts the servers.
  • Manage service MEP vendor contracts (elevators, fire life support, annual test and inspections).
  • Manage and sustain manufacturing processes via monitoring, SPC, and data analysis to maintain overall process health and stability.
  • Contribute PowerShell functions to a PowerShell module used to automate software upgrades.
  • Provide property preventive maintenance, electrical repair, HVAC maintenance/troubleshooting, construction, plumbing, custom carpentry and renovations.
  • Show more

Maintenance assistant example responsibilities.

  • Manage long-term working relationships with many local service providers including professional septic, plumbing, electrical and HVAC providers.
  • Program and adjust PLC systems and associate communications.
  • Coordinate inspection and verify work of roofing vendors.
  • Conduce control testing on PLC's for crane trolleys.
  • Change grease for fryers and occasionally cook on the grill.
  • Maintain the integrity and dexterity of the hospital's appearance.
  • Show more

Building engineer vs maintenance assistant skills

Common building engineer skills
  • HVAC, 13%
  • Ladders, 12%
  • Plumbing, 12%
  • Preventive Maintenance, 10%
  • Emergency Situations, 9%
  • Roofing, 8%
Common maintenance assistant skills
  • Plumbing, 15%
  • HVAC, 10%
  • Customer Service, 9%
  • Patients, 5%
  • Electrical Equipment, 5%
  • Maintenance Tasks, 4%

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