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Contract mechanical engineer vs general contractor

The differences between contract mechanical engineers and general contractors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a contract mechanical engineer, becoming a general contractor takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, a contract mechanical engineer has an average salary of $84,269, which is higher than the $66,602 average annual salary of a general contractor.

The top three skills for a contract mechanical engineer include solidworks, assembly drawings and autocad. The most important skills for a general contractor are plumbing, safety regulations, and contract negotiations.

Contract mechanical engineer vs general contractor overview

Contract Mechanical EngineerGeneral Contractor
Yearly salary$84,269$66,602
Hourly rate$40.51$32.02
Growth rate2%8%
Number of jobs84,50366,218
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 81%Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age4146
Years of experience68

Contract mechanical engineer vs general contractor salary

Contract mechanical engineers and general contractors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Contract Mechanical EngineerGeneral Contractor
Average salary$84,269$66,602
Salary rangeBetween $64,000 And $110,000Between $41,000 And $107,000
Highest paying City--
Highest paying state--
Best paying company--
Best paying industry--

Differences between contract mechanical engineer and general contractor education

There are a few differences between a contract mechanical engineer and a general contractor in terms of educational background:

Contract Mechanical EngineerGeneral Contractor
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 81%Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common majorMechanical EngineeringBusiness
Most common collegeMichigan Technological UniversityCalifornia Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

Contract mechanical engineer vs general contractor demographics

Here are the differences between contract mechanical engineers' and general contractors' demographics:

Contract Mechanical EngineerGeneral Contractor
Average age4146
Gender ratioMale, 91.5% Female, 8.5%Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 13.9% White, 69.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 2.8% White, 71.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage5%4%

Differences between contract mechanical engineer and general contractor duties and responsibilities

Contract mechanical engineer example responsibilities.

  • Provide mechanical design and sustaining engineering expertise to troubleshoot manufacturing defect trends and achieve a more robust and producible product.
  • Document as built drawing ECN's, ECO's, & ECR's into archive files.
  • Utilize SolidWorks and FEA analysis, and classical analysis to develop products.
  • Design of plastic injection & sheet metal components, perform FEA's and other design relate functions.
  • Upload files into PDM and EPDM.
  • Used SolidWorks PDM to save files.
  • Show more

General contractor example responsibilities.

  • Manage the repair/replacement of mechanical, plumbing, electrical, and structural of primarily historical residences.
  • Manage third party contractors including safety oversight, environmental design specification compliance, and similar construction specifications and requirements.
  • Perform electrical, mechanical (HVAC), plumbing, framing, roofing and finishing construction for residential and commercial buildings.
  • Remodel restaurants, which include painting, dry wall, tiling, plumbing, electrical and laying carpet.
  • Assist and perform all duties with installation of cabinets, flooring, sheetrock, framing, concrete, and basic plumbing.
  • Experience in roofing, painting, digging of footers, and tile setting.
  • Show more

Contract mechanical engineer vs general contractor skills

Common contract mechanical engineer skills
  • Solidworks, 16%
  • Assembly Drawings, 6%
  • Autocad, 6%
  • Prototype, 4%
  • FEA, 4%
  • R, 4%
Common general contractor skills
  • Plumbing, 17%
  • Safety Regulations, 12%
  • Contract Negotiations, 11%
  • Drywall Installation, 7%
  • Construction Projects, 4%
  • Payroll, 4%

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