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The differences between manufacturing engineers and product development engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a manufacturing engineer, becoming a product development engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a product development engineer has an average salary of $86,075, which is higher than the $78,522 average annual salary of a manufacturing engineer.
The top three skills for a manufacturing engineer include lean manufacturing, CAD and solidworks. The most important skills for a product development engineer are CAD, solidworks, and product development.
| Manufacturing Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $78,522 | $86,075 |
| Hourly rate | $37.75 | $41.38 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 115,384 | 202,155 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 43 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
Manufacturing Engineers are responsible for handling and developing an efficient manufacturing system or procedure that will help a company produce up to standard products while in adherence to the policies, regulations, and expected cost and schedule. Furthermore, Manufacturing Engineers must also monitor quality control, identify or detect errors, provide and suggest improvements, oversee the procurement of materials involved in the production, and coordinate with various teams or departments within the company to ensure the effectiveness of innovations or new developments.
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.
Manufacturing engineers and product development engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average salary | $78,522 | $86,075 |
| Salary range | Between $60,000 And $102,000 | Between $64,000 And $113,000 |
| Highest paying City | Palo Alto, CA | Sunnyvale, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Amazon |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing engineer and a product development engineer in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Georgia Institute of Technology | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between manufacturing engineers' and product development engineers' demographics:
| Manufacturing Engineer | Product Development Engineer | |
| Average age | 43 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 88.8% Female, 11.2% | Male, 86.8% Female, 13.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 10.8% Asian, 17.0% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 16.7% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 5% | 5% |