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The differences between manufacturing technicians and engineering technicians 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 technician, becoming an engineering technician takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an engineering technician has an average salary of $60,273, which is higher than the $37,853 average annual salary of a manufacturing technician.
The top three skills for a manufacturing technician include GMP, continuous improvement and hand tools. The most important skills for an engineering technician are technical support, data collection, and test equipment.
| Manufacturing Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $37,853 | $60,273 |
| Hourly rate | $18.20 | $28.98 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 76,490 | 111,343 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
A manufacturing technician, or often called a manufacturing production technician, is an individual who is responsible for setting and testing manufacturing machinery or equipment. To set up the machines, manufacturing technicians will use electronic, electrical, mechanical, or computer technologies. They are responsible for gathering data from their part in the manufacturing process and reporting it to their production or manufacturing engineers. When handling machines or equipment, manufacturing technicians must strictly follow their health and safety procedures and protocols.
An Engineering Technician's duties vary according to the industry or company, whether mechanical, industrial, civil, agricultural, or more. However, most of the time, the responsibilities often revolve around resolving technical issues, working with and assisting Engineers in building, assembling, designing, gathering and testing data, and conducting more manual activities. Furthermore, Engineering Technicians can specialize and work in various fields after a certain training period, closely mentored or monitored by an engineer or someone with extensive expertise.
Manufacturing technicians and engineering technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manufacturing Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Average salary | $37,853 | $60,273 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $52,000 | Between $37,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | Framingham, MA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Washington |
| Best paying company | Qorvo | Western Digital |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a manufacturing technician and an engineering technician in terms of educational background:
| Manufacturing Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 46% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Purdue University |
Here are the differences between manufacturing technicians' and engineering technicians' demographics:
| Manufacturing Technician | Engineering Technician | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 74.4% Female, 25.6% | Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.9% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.7% Asian, 9.2% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |