What does an industrial process engineer do?
An industrial process Engineer develops, installs, and monitors the processes and pieces of equipment that transform raw materials into finished products. Besides researching and developing new equipment, industrial process engineers also monitor, test, and maintain equipment pieces in their working states. They complete documentation to indicate and ensure everything runs as per the highlighted protocols and regulations. These professionals ensure high productivity rates at all times by supervising industrial processes and working. Also, they update the industrial management and senior colleagues with data and reports.
Industrial process engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real industrial process engineer resumes:
- Lead continuous improvement and cost reduction projects that lead to kaizen events with a cross functional leadership team.
- Lead and assist maintenance in resolving equipment malfunctions, troubleshoot process problems, and organize and implement preventative maintenance procedures.
- Complete process time studies, change BOM and process routers, PCN's and JD Edwards.
- Implement real time yields and control charts (SPC) at workstation.
- Develop manufacturing requirements for new ERP system (QAD MFG/Pro EB2) implementation.
- Assist in the development of techniques to document standard operating procedures in the machine shop according to ISO and AP9100 requirements.
- Perform statistical analysis of processes (SPC), including process capability analysis, and control chart implementation and monitoring.
- Lead and assist maintenance in resolving equipment malfunctions, troubleshoot process problems, and organize and implement preventative maintenance procedures.
- Participate in the company's and the customer's design reviews including DFM and post build report.
- Work with design teams to provide feedback on DFA design for assembly and DFM design for manufacturing.
- Document and implement process improvements in the areas of banding, etching, sensitizing, and plating.
- Apply yield improvement actions and rework reduction in the areas of etching, sensitizing, and plating.
- Champion ergonomics evaluation team, assess manufacturing projects for ergonomic risk and generate solutions to resolve or mitigate risk exposure.
Industrial process engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 9% of Industrial Process Engineers are proficient in Process Design, Sigma, and Autocad. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Listening skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Industrial Process Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Process Design, 9%
Provide processing engineering support to operation including troubleshooting, process design and testing.
- Sigma, 7%
Sponsored several Six Sigma Black Belt projects focusing on quality and productivity related issues.
- Autocad, 7%
Draft and designed layout of equipment, materials, and workspace to illustrate maximum efficiency using AutoCad.
- Lean Manufacturing, 7%
Developed the manufacturing process of the lean manufacturing cell managing and incorporating ergonomic principles.
- Kaizen, 6%
Trained several of the engineers in the basics of Kaizen, Five S, capacity planning and SMED.
- Data Analysis, 6%
Coordinated capacity metric data analysis within Industrial Engineering group to assist factory level analyses and decision making.
Common skills that an industrial process engineer uses to do their job include "process design," "sigma," and "autocad." You can find details on the most important industrial process engineer responsibilities below.
Creativity. One of the key soft skills for an industrial process engineer to have is creativity. You can see how this relates to what industrial process engineers do because "industrial engineers use creativity and ingenuity to design new production processes in many kinds of settings in order to reduce the use of material resources, time, or labor while accomplishing the same goal." Additionally, an industrial process engineer resume shows how industrial process engineers use creativity: "used design skills to produce drawings for production designed various tooling along with programming cnc machines coordinated tool ordering and inventory"
Listening skills. Many industrial process engineer duties rely on listening skills. "these engineers often operate in teams, but they also must solicit feedback from customers, vendors, and production staff," so an industrial process engineer will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways industrial process engineer responsibilities rely on listening skills: "identified process improvements and communicated these improvements to the proper management personnel. "
Math skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of industrial process engineers is math skills. This skill is critical to many everyday industrial process engineer duties, as "industrial engineers use the principles of calculus, trigonometry, and other advanced topics in mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "used operations research, mathematical and statistical analyses to consult on the effective management of the production process. "
Problem-solving skills. A big part of what industrial process engineers do relies on "problem-solving skills." You can see how essential it is to industrial process engineer responsibilities because "in designing facilities for manufacturing and processes for providing services, these engineers deal with several issues at once, from workers’ safety to quality assurance." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical industrial process engineer tasks: "provided troubleshooting, problem resolution and shop floor support to all personnel and all functional areas. "
Speaking skills. A commonly-found skill in industrial process engineer job descriptions, "speaking skills" is essential to what industrial process engineers do. Industrial process engineer responsibilities rely on this skill because "industrial engineers sometimes have to explain their instructions to production staff or technicians before they can make written instructions available." You can also see how industrial process engineer duties rely on speaking skills in this resume example: "created and presented to senior management a three-year strategy for upgrading our production floor equipment. "
Writing skills. Lastly, "writing skills" is an important element of what an industrial process engineer does. Industrial process engineer responsibilities require this skill because "industrial engineers must prepare documentation for other engineers or scientists, or for future reference." This resume example highlights how industrial process engineer duties rely on this skill: "project management to prioritize jobs for our tech writing group. "
The three companies that hire the most industrial process engineers are:
- FedEx9 industrial process engineers jobs
- Randstad North America, Inc.3 industrial process engineers jobs
- Emerson2 industrial process engineers jobs
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Compare different industrial process engineers
Industrial process engineer vs. Packaging engineer
A Packaging Engineer plans and implements packaging designs to ensure product integrity and appeal. Their primary duties include supervising and managing the complete packaging development process, analyzing engineering drawings, and conducting periodic vendor reviews.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, industrial process engineer responsibilities require skills like "process design," "autocad," "data analysis," and "operational data." Meanwhile a typical packaging engineer has skills in areas such as "cad," "project management," "solidworks," and "astm." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Packaging engineers earn the highest salaries when working in the technology industry, with an average yearly salary of $100,934. On the other hand, industrial process engineers are paid more in the health care industry with an average salary of $79,220.The education levels that packaging engineers earn slightly differ from industrial process engineers. In particular, packaging engineers are 5.9% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an industrial process engineer. Additionally, they're 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Industrial process engineer vs. Manufacturing engineering internship
A manufacturing engineering intern is responsible for assisting the manufacturing engineers on the plant's daily operations, analyzing the manufacturing process and procedures, and recommending strategic solutions to maximize productivity and minimize costs. Manufacturing engineering interns shadow the production staff, inspect the tools and equipment of the manufacturing, analyze the quality control documentation, and perform related administrative tasks to familiarize themselves with the plant structure. A manufacturing engineering intern must have excellent communication and organization skills, as well as the ability to adapt quickly to a fast-paced environment.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, industrial process engineer responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "process design," "autocad," "operational data," and "production schedules." Meanwhile, a manufacturing engineering internship has duties that require skills in areas such as "cad," "solidworks," "pallets," and "shop floor." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Manufacturing engineering interns earn a lower average salary than industrial process engineers. But manufacturing engineering interns earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $49,245. Additionally, industrial process engineers earn the highest salaries in the health care with average pay of $79,220 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Manufacturing engineering interns tend to reach similar levels of education than industrial process engineers. In fact, they're 4.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for industrial process engineers in the next 3-5 years?
Jerry Leth
VP/General Manager, MANA
Industrial process engineer vs. Co-operations engineer
A Co-Operations Engineer ensures that operations-related activities are performed in compliance with company standards and regulations. They optimize the overall efficiency of business.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an industrial process engineer is likely to be skilled in "process design," "autocad," "operational data," and "production process," while a typical co-operations engineer is skilled in "cad," "python," "c++," and "powerpoint."
Co-operations engineers make a very good living in the energy industry with an average annual salary of $51,087. On the other hand, industrial process engineers are paid the highest salary in the health care industry, with average annual pay of $79,220.co-operations engineers typically earn lower educational levels compared to industrial process engineers. Specifically, they're 7.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Industrial process 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.
Types of industrial process engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
