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The differences between manufacturing systems 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 systems 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 $84,708 average annual salary of a manufacturing systems engineer.
The top three skills for a manufacturing systems engineer include MES, SQL and lean manufacturing. The most important skills for a product engineer are CAD, product design, and project management.
| Manufacturing Systems Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $84,708 | $89,645 |
| Hourly rate | $40.73 | $43.10 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 118,696 | 157,888 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 6 |
A manufacturing systems engineer works to integrate entire manufacturing processes. The role of a manufacturing system engineer includes integrating a wide range of systems from production to supplies and sales, participating in a project from beginning to end, budgeting and performing resource allocation. They must also integrate the manufacturing process to allow for maximum production volume at lower costs and within a shorter time period.
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 systems engineers and product engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Systems Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average salary | $84,708 | $89,645 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $111,000 | Between $68,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | Berkeley, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Education | Technology |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing systems engineer and a product engineer in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Systems Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | 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 systems engineers' and product engineers' demographics:
| Manufacturing Systems Engineer | Product Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 41 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 86.1% Female, 13.9% | Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 14.6% White, 65.6% 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% |