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Industrial health engineer vs industrial hygienist

The differences between industrial health engineers and industrial hygienists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an industrial health engineer and an industrial hygienist. Additionally, an industrial hygienist has an average salary of $68,173, which is higher than the $58,264 average annual salary of an industrial health engineer.

The top three skills for an industrial health engineer include EHS, safety analysis and ALARA. The most important skills for an industrial hygienist are OSHA, environmental health, and indoor air quality.

Industrial health engineer vs industrial hygienist overview

Industrial Health EngineerIndustrial Hygienist
Yearly salary$58,264$68,173
Hourly rate$28.01$32.78
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs94,95823,048
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age4242
Years of experience22

What does an industrial health engineer do?

To avoid or remedy hazardous environmental conditions in the workplace, industrial safety and health engineers design, execute, and organize safety systems using engineering principles and technology. They ensure that employees and people who come into their organization are kept safe from injuries resulting from accidents in the workplace. They inspect the buildings, machinery, and safety equipment to detect and correct possible risks. Part of this role involves developing safety and health programs that will help prevent and minimize damage to both health and property.

What does an industrial hygienist do?

An Industrial Hygienist plans and conducts health programs to educate employees about cleanliness, safety, and sanitation in the workplace. They investigate adequacy of ventilation, exhaust equipment, lighting, and other conditions that can affect employees' health, comfort, or efficiency.

Industrial health engineer vs industrial hygienist salary

Industrial health engineers and industrial hygienists have different pay scales, as shown below.

Industrial Health EngineerIndustrial Hygienist
Average salary$58,264$68,173
Salary rangeBetween $35,000 And $94,000Between $45,000 And $102,000
Highest paying City-Berkeley, CA
Highest paying state-Louisiana
Best paying company-Exxon Mobil
Best paying industry-Energy

Differences between industrial health engineer and industrial hygienist education

There are a few differences between an industrial health engineer and an industrial hygienist in terms of educational background:

Industrial Health EngineerIndustrial Hygienist
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 70%Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common majorBusinessPublic Health
Most common collegeUniversity of Michigan - Ann ArborDuke University

Industrial health engineer vs industrial hygienist demographics

Here are the differences between industrial health engineers' and industrial hygienists' demographics:

Industrial Health EngineerIndustrial Hygienist
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 76.3% Female, 23.7%Male, 74.0% Female, 26.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 10.5% White, 73.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 9.8% White, 69.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between industrial health engineer and industrial hygienist duties and responsibilities

Industrial health engineer example responsibilities.

  • Manage environmental compliance programs including all water, air, waste issues, EPA and OSHA environmental issues.
  • Manage hazardous and special waste programs and profiles including audits/inspections, vendor compliance, documentation and recordkeeping.
  • Provide IH oversight during work activities, evaluate and monitor excavation activities, and assist management team on issue resolution.
  • Check imported materials and maintain their circulation in manufacturing by ERP system.

Industrial hygienist example responsibilities.

  • Manage hazardous and special waste programs and profiles including audits/inspections, vendor compliance, documentation and recordkeeping.
  • Perform laboratory analysis of radiological product in support of company QA/QC protocol.
  • Conduct IAQ investigations for office buildings.
  • Perform internal audits for safety and ISO.
  • Escort MSHA compliance inspectors in the mine and help answer questions.
  • Conduct IAQ studies resulting in successful remediation by diagnosing HVAC deficiencies and developing moisture control strategies.
  • Show more

Industrial health engineer vs industrial hygienist skills

Common industrial health engineer skills
  • EHS, 77%
  • Safety Analysis, 17%
  • ALARA, 6%
Common industrial hygienist skills
  • OSHA, 10%
  • Environmental Health, 8%
  • Indoor Air Quality, 5%
  • Ventilation, 5%
  • Respirators, 4%
  • Corrective Action, 4%

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