Mechanical contractor vs senior mechanical designer

The differences between mechanical contractors and senior mechanical designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a mechanical contractor and a senior mechanical designer. Additionally, a senior mechanical designer has an average salary of $103,765, which is higher than the $72,882 average annual salary of a mechanical contractor.

The top three skills for a mechanical contractor include plumbing, CAD and preventive maintenance. The most important skills for a senior mechanical designer are CAD, mechanical design, and GD.

Mechanical contractor vs senior mechanical designer overview

	Mechanical Contractor	Senior Mechanical Designer
Yearly salary	$72,882	$103,765
Hourly rate	$35.04	$49.89
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	28,897	71,958
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	6	6

Mechanical contractor vs senior mechanical designer salary

Mechanical contractors and senior mechanical designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Mechanical Contractor	Senior Mechanical Designer
Average salary	$72,882	$103,765
Salary range	Between $53,000 And $100,000	Between $81,000 And $131,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Google
Best paying industry	-	Automotive

Differences between mechanical contractor and senior mechanical designer education

There are a few differences between a mechanical contractor and a senior mechanical designer in terms of educational background:

	Mechanical Contractor	Senior Mechanical Designer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Mechanical Engineering	Mechanical Engineering
Most common college	Michigan Technological University	Carnegie Mellon University

Mechanical contractor vs senior mechanical designer demographics

Here are the differences between mechanical contractors' and senior mechanical designers' demographics:

	Mechanical Contractor	Senior Mechanical Designer
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 90.3% Female, 9.7%	Male, 94.1% Female, 5.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 10.3% White, 72.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 11.4% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between mechanical contractor and senior mechanical designer duties and responsibilities

Mechanical contractor example responsibilities.

Lead all CFD and FEA (shock and vibration) efforts, including product-performance optimization and impact of DFMA.
Lead weekly toolbox safety meetings, and monitor work to ensure full compliance with OSHA / HAZWHOPPER compliance requirements.
Manage paperwork associate with HVAC procedures.
Perform service calls on all types of heating and a/c equipment.
Service A/C units up to 40 ton.
Install 2 to 4 PVC and CPVC piping for wastes off of equipment.

Senior mechanical designer example responsibilities.

Lead FPGA development of key digital communication component used in successful demonstration of spacecraft radio link.
Create and modify very large assemblies in Creo which are used to create drawings for top level spacecraft assemblies.
Generate fabrication and assembly drawings for fabrication of commercial/Industrial water heaters and boilers base on ISO 9000 and AWA standards.
Perform complex interference fit checks, motion studies, and tolerance stack-up analysis on large assemblies using Pro/E - Creo software.
Verify all design factors including performance, tolerances, fitting, materials, surface finish and BOM for components and systems.
Improve dynamic response of microscope using ANSYS vibration simulation.

Mechanical contractor vs senior mechanical designer skills

Common mechanical contractor skills

Plumbing, 14%
CAD, 9%
Preventive Maintenance, 8%
Mechanical Systems, 7%
Ice Machines, 4%
Heat Pumps, 4%

Common senior mechanical designer skills

CAD, 12%
Mechanical Design, 11%
GD, 5%
Creo, 5%
Autocad, 4%
FEA, 4%

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Mechanical Contractor vs Senior Mechanical Designer

Updated January 8, 2025

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