What does an electrical design engineer do?
An electrical design engineer develops electrical systems for different applications. Electrical design engineers create system layouts and specifications. They test the systems and make some adjustments whenever necessary. The solutions they create range from component designs to large systems. The set of skills imperative for this job include good technical abilities, teamwork, motivation for extra work hours, ability to execute job under pressure, and enthusiasm. They should also be savvy in technology and innovation.
Electrical design engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real electrical design engineer resumes:
- Utilize LabView software package to automate testing.
- Used Perl and Linux script to help automate the ASIC design and test flow.
- Work with approval agencies to achieve UL, CSA, CE, FCC and IC certifications.
- Coordinate with senior electrical engineers and achieve hands-on experience on coal fire plant power generation and power transformers, circuit breakers.
- Perform RF checkout, aperture field probing and user sign-off of chambers and test equipment for various types of chambers.
- Analyze and simulate low power circuits, front-end amplifiers and develop analog signal conditioning circuitry interfacing the digital control systems.
- Program Allen-Bradley SLC500 and PLC5 controls and various operator interfaces.
- Involve in loading data from LINUX file system to HDFS.
- Radio transmission are used to communicate to/from Wonderware and the ROC 's
- Work on VFD's and how they are wire for controls.
- Programme several application codes with Linux script and Matlab for various projects.
- Implement IPMI, I2C, PMBus and UART serial communication interfaces from scratch.
- Perform Allen Bradley ControlLogix conversion from legacy PLC5 platform for tissue paper machine.
- Implement a map search system in JAVA which contains geographic information of campus.
- Perform analysis of time current curves and over current protection device coordination using SKM software.
Electrical design engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Electrical Design Engineers are proficient in Electrical Design, Revit, and Electrical Systems. They’re also known for soft skills such as Concentration, Initiative, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Electrical Design Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Electrical Design, 10%
Familiarized with Southern California Edison standards, including electrical construction station, electrical design station and other Southern California Edison processes.
- Revit, 5%
Produce high-quality AutoCAD and Revit Architecture models and drawings for schematic design, design development, and issued for construction documents.
- Electrical Systems, 5%
Hold responsibility for requirements gathering, designing electrical systems, load calculations, equipment selection, project management and coordination.
- CAD, 4%
Prepare CAD drawings and responsible for resolving associated mechanical and fabrication problems.
- Analog, 4%
Created analog, digital and mixed signal circuit designs along with technical specifications for electrical power generation packages.
- Engineering Design, 4%
Prepared engineering design packages based from approved substation relay protection schemers: Convert OneLine into physical layout of substation equipment.
"electrical design," "revit," and "electrical systems" are among the most common skills that electrical design engineers use at work. You can find even more electrical design engineer responsibilities below, including:
Concentration. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for an electrical design engineer to have is concentration. Their role and responsibilities require that "electrical and electronics engineers design and develop complex electrical systems and electronic components and products." Electrical design engineers often use concentration in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "designed system monitor systems using abb plc's and including data concentration and climatecontrols. "
Initiative. Many electrical design engineer duties rely on initiative. "electrical and electronics engineers must apply their knowledge to new tasks in every project they undertake," so an electrical design engineer will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways electrical design engineer responsibilities rely on initiative: "design implementation of 2011 nec, california title 24, cal green, and leed initiatives. "
Math skills. This is an important skill for electrical design engineers to perform their duties. For an example of how electrical design engineer responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "electrical and electronics engineers must use the principles of calculus and other advanced math in order to analyze, design, and troubleshoot equipment." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an electrical design engineer: "utilized microsoft office products to create large databases and mathcad design software to validate complex field equation calculations. ".
Speaking skills. For certain electrical design engineer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "speaking skills." The day-to-day duties of an electrical design engineer rely on this skill, as "electrical and electronics engineers work closely with other engineers and technicians." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what electrical design engineers do: "review design specification conforming to certification requirements presented by appropriate agencies namely ul (ul508a), csa and vdu. "
Writing skills. Another common skill required for electrical design engineer responsibilities is "writing skills." This skill comes up in the duties of electrical design engineers all the time, as "electrical and electronics engineers develop technical publications related to equipment they develop, including maintenance manuals, operation manuals, parts lists, product proposals, and design methods documents." An excerpt from a real electrical design engineer resume shows how this skill is central to what an electrical design engineer does: "possessed detailed technical knowledge of writing control system code (plc and hmi). "
The three companies that hire the most electrical design engineers are:
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Compare different electrical design engineers
Electrical design engineer vs. Senior field engineer
A senior field engineer is in charge of overseeing and providing technical support on-site, helping operations run smoothly and efficiently. Among their responsibilities include performing installations and upgrades, performing research and analysis, managing staff, producing progress reports, and conducting inspections, ensuring compliance with state laws and regulations. They must also perform regular maintenance checks on equipment, performing corrective repairs and adjustments when necessary. Furthermore, as a senior field engineer, it is essential to lead and serve as a mentor to junior engineers while implementing the site's safety policies and regulations.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, electrical design engineer responsibilities require skills like "electrical design," "revit," "electrical systems," and "cad." Meanwhile a typical senior field engineer has skills in areas such as "excellent interpersonal," "technical problems," "linux," and "dod." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Senior field engineers tend to make the most money working in the energy industry, where they earn an average salary of $107,400. In contrast, electrical design engineers make the biggest average salary, $93,022, in the technology industry.The education levels that senior field engineers earn slightly differ from electrical design engineers. In particular, senior field engineers are 4.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an electrical design engineer. Additionally, they're 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Electrical design engineer vs. Radio frequency engineer
A radio frequency engineer, also known as RF engineer, specializes in designing and developing communication systems using radio waves. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around creating networks and systems and testing equipment. They make sure that equipment is up to high standards by traveling to different areas as needed, troubleshooting issues to identify the root of problems and performing corrective measures required. Furthermore, a radio frequency engineer must continuously optimize equipment quality and ensure efficiency while adhering to the laws and regulations.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that electrical design engineer responsibilities requires skills like "electrical design," "revit," "electrical systems," and "cad." But a radio frequency engineer might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "antenna," "system performance," "troubleshoot," and "macro."
On average, radio frequency engineers earn a higher salary than electrical design engineers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, radio frequency engineers earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $94,522. Whereas electrical design engineers have higher pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $93,022.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Radio frequency engineers tend to reach higher levels of education than electrical design engineers. In fact, they're 8.1% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Electrical design engineer vs. Engineer
Engineers are highly trained professionals who determine the feasibility of various projects, usually related to the construction industry. They are considered experts in mathematics and science, two disciplines that they need to use in designing and coming up with plans for projects. They should also be well-versed in different construction or industrial materials, and they ensure that appropriate materials are used for the project. They also ensure that the projects meet the requirements of the groups that hired them. They create spaces that would both address the needs of the end-users and the industry standards. They also ensure that the projects they make would stand the test of time.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an electrical design engineer is likely to be skilled in "electrical design," "revit," "analog," and "engineering design," while a typical engineer is skilled in "python," "cloud," "c #," and "aws."
Engineers make a very good living in the automotive industry with an average annual salary of $97,672. On the other hand, electrical design engineers are paid the highest salary in the technology industry, with average annual pay of $93,022.Most engineers achieve a similar degree level compared to electrical design engineers. For example, they're 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Electrical design engineer vs. Junior engineer
A Junior Engineer helps design, build, or maintain engines, machines, or public works. They work under the supervision of an engineer.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between electrical design engineers and junior engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an electrical design engineer might have more use for skills like "electrical design," "revit," "cad," and "analog." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of junior engineers require skills like "java," "c #," "windows," and "troubleshoot. "
In general, junior engineers earn the most working in the technology industry, with an average salary of $72,489. The highest-paying industry for an electrical design engineer is the technology industry.The average resume of junior engineers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to electrical design engineers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 2.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.Types of electrical design engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
