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The differences between manufacturing project engineers and product engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a manufacturing project engineer, becoming a product engineer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a product engineer has an average salary of $89,645, which is higher than the $82,447 average annual salary of a manufacturing project engineer.
The top three skills for a manufacturing project engineer include project management, lean manufacturing and capital projects. The most important skills for a product engineer are CAD, product design, and project management.
| Manufacturing Project Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $82,447 | $89,645 |
| Hourly rate | $39.64 | $43.10 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 70,267 | 157,888 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A manufacturing project engineer specializes in designing and developing a variety of equipment and systems, ensuring compliance with the industry's laws and standards. It is their duty to determine and identify the needs of every project, conceptualize plans, coordinate with staff and other experts, create prototypes and test structures, and develop guidelines. They may also provide technical support, assess existing systems, and implement solutions when necessary. Furthermore, they must maintain an active communication line with the workforce while implementing the facility's safety policies and regulations.
A product engineer specializes in designing and developing commercial materials and services. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis of the latest trends and marketing conditions to come up with new ideas and products for the public. Moreover, they are also responsible for producing reports and presentations, coordinating with the development team of their company. Product engineers also reach out to vendors and suppliers for the raw materials, set regulations and standards for the product, and even conduct a rigorous and regular quality check.
Manufacturing project engineers and product engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Project Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average salary | $82,447 | $89,645 |
| Salary range | Between $59,000 And $113,000 | Between $68,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fremont, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Massachusetts | California |
| Best paying company | Cirrus Aircraft | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Education | Technology |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing project engineer and a product engineer in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Project Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Mechanical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Michigan Technological University |
Here are the differences between manufacturing project engineers' and product engineers' demographics:
| Manufacturing Project Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 90.6% Female, 9.4% | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 12.7% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 17.0% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 5% |