What does a chemical engineer do?
A chemical engineer provides support for chemical operations and testing new processes. The processes they successfully come up with are used to make different products from gas, oil, food, and drink. It is their job to assist in designing new chemical processes and make improvements. They implement fresh ideas to improve standard quality and efficiency. They must be good planners and schedulers of project activities to help chemical technicians to achieve their project objectives and provide technical support to maintain safe, stable, and reliable operations.
Chemical engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real chemical engineer resumes:
- Manage and supervise projects on the production floor and QC department.
- Lead small project teams of co-op students and interface effectively with plant operators.
- Manage various cross functional teams to do the IQ, OQ, & PQ validation.
- Accomplish extraction of heat and material balance data from HYSYS simulation and generating the relevant process flow diagram.
- Work on windows server 2012 and SQL server 2008.
- Modify FTIR optics for study of combusting flame.
- Analyze nonconformances/complaints (CAPA system) with a problem solving approach.
- Participate HAZOP for edible oil refinery unit and for tank farm.
- Work on SolidWorks to create a 3D print cup holder refrigerator shelf.
- Install servers and solve incidents raise from the clients under windows domain.
- Create PowerPoint presentations to report project progress to project leader and plant managers.
- Team member in 8D , 6 sigma problem solving apply NCM customer complaints.
- Formulate plant wide material balances to ensure facility emissions meet EPA and DEP regulatory limits.
- Design automated process involving PLC software change, process hardware change, and operator training.
- Translate from .models to catpart, iges, rob cad, and various other systems.
Chemical engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Chemical Engineers are proficient in Chemistry, Technical Support, and Co-Op. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Interpersonal skills, and Creativity.
We break down the percentage of Chemical Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Chemistry, 10%
Served as a versatile chemical operations team liaison by reviewing ten different chemistry lab procedures and introducing improvements.
- Technical Support, 5%
Worked with cross-functional teams for competitor market analysis, providing technical support and sale strategy for project bidding proposal.
- Co-Op, 4%
Position: Chemical Engineer Co-op Duties: Assisted with accident investigation, reports and attended hearings.
- Chemical Process, 4%
Researched and developed chemical processes by synthesis of products in laboratory for log sheet improvement and first time scale-up production.
- Troubleshoot, 3%
Developed robust new product formulations by implementing statistical analysis techniques to troubleshoot process instabilities and optimize conditions.
- Project Management, 3%
Developed technical documents on a variety of areas ranging from construction and equipment issues to project management and environmental concerns.
Common skills that a chemical engineer uses to do their job include "chemistry," "technical support," and "co-op." You can find details on the most important chemical engineer responsibilities below.
Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a chemical engineer to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what chemical engineers do because "chemical engineers must be able to evaluate designs and processes and to propose improvements, if necessary." Additionally, a chemical engineer resume shows how chemical engineers use analytical skills: "provided insight into technical aspects of various types of process design and their cost analysis. "
Creativity. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of chemical engineers is creativity. This skill is critical to many everyday chemical engineer duties, as "chemical engineers explore new ways of applying engineering to invent new materials and advance manufacturing techniques in chemical engineering." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "reported and dispositioned off-specification product into the plant inventory management system to support iso certification and improve waste reduction. "
Problem-solving skills. For certain chemical engineer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a chemical engineer rely on this skill, as "chemical engineers must be able to anticipate and identify problems, such as those related to manufacturing processes, and to devise solutions." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what chemical engineers do: "developed unique solutions to process engineering problems that process engineers were not accustomed to handling. "
Math skills. A commonly-found skill in chemical engineer job descriptions, "math skills" is essential to what chemical engineers do. Chemical engineer responsibilities rely on this skill because "chemical engineers use calculus and other advanced math for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." You can also see how chemical engineer duties rely on math skills in this resume example: "sop development start-up of upgrade processes including computerized controls distillation continuous and batch quantitative product testing siloxane chemistry"
The three companies that hire the most chemical engineers are:
- Honeywell33 chemical engineers jobs
- Jacobs Engineering Group
10 chemical engineers jobs
- The Chemours Company10 chemical engineers jobs
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Compare different chemical engineers
Chemical engineer vs. Engineering associate
An engineering associate is an individual whose job duties include analysis of project plans, development of product designs, and maintenance of equipment. The engineering fields where an engineering associate can find a job include civil, mechanical, and environmental. The requirements to qualify for the position include obtaining a bachelor's degree in engineering, familiarity with a specific industry, prior work experience related to the field, and possessing strong technical skills.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, chemical engineer responsibilities require skills like "chemistry," "co-op," "chemical process," and "safety procedures." Meanwhile a typical engineering associate has skills in areas such as "python," "java," "cad," and "c++." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Engineering associates really shine in the energy industry with an average salary of $88,950. Comparatively, chemical engineers tend to make the most money in the energy industry with an average salary of $97,766.engineering associates tend to reach similar levels of education than chemical engineers. In fact, engineering associates are 3.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.2% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Chemical engineer vs. Process engineer internship
A process engineering intern performs various tasks for an organization. These include collaborating with the technical team on cost savings, process efficiency improvements, and technology advancement, attending meetings with leadership teams, and participating in customer trials. Additionally, they may assist with the leadership or management teams in creating standard operating procedures. They are responsible for coordinating with engineers and work on projects assigned by the leadership. Ideal candidates for this role must have a degree in mechanical or industrial engineering, excellent communication skills, and knowledge and experience in process observation.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that chemical engineer responsibilities requires skills like "chemistry," "technical support," "co-op," and "chemical process." But a process engineer internship might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "continuous improvement," "data collection," "cad," and "python."
Process engineer interns earn similar levels of education than chemical engineers in general. They're 0.7% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 2.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for chemical engineers in the next 3-5 years?
Peter Rosado
Associate Professor of Chemistry, Georgia College and State University
Chemical 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.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, chemical engineers are more likely to have skills like "chemistry," "co-op," "chemical process," and "troubleshoot." But a research and development engineer is more likely to have skills like "python," "c #," "solidworks," and "cad."
Research and development engineers earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $107,654. Comparatively, chemical engineers have the highest earning potential in the energy industry, with an average salary of $97,766.When it comes to education, research and development engineers tend to earn higher degree levels compared to chemical engineers. In fact, they're 5.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Chemical 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.
Types of chemical engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
