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Principal process engineer vs planning engineer

The differences between principal process engineers and planning engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a principal process engineer and a planning engineer. Additionally, a principal process engineer has an average salary of $126,348, which is higher than the $82,521 average annual salary of a planning engineer.

The top three skills for a principal process engineer include process engineering, continuous improvement and engineering design. The most important skills for a planning engineer are project management, infrastructure, and transmission planning.

Principal process engineer vs planning engineer overview

Principal Process EngineerPlanning Engineer
Yearly salary$126,348$82,521
Hourly rate$60.74$39.67
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs82,35856,792
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 73%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Average age4242
Years of experience44

What does a principal process engineer do?

A Principal Process Engineer is responsible for analyzing process technologies and proposal support for the engineering activities of the organization. They may work in various industries, such as chemical, petrochemical, agriculture, software development, and biotechnological.

What does a planning engineer do?

A planning engineer is in charge of developing plans and systems to organize and schedule project procedures, ensuring efficiency and timeliness. Their responsibilities revolve around learning and understanding the extent of all operations, setting schedules and objectives, liaising with external parties such as vendors or distributors, and maintaining an active communication line with other departments. Furthermore, a planning engineer must monitor the progress of the workflow and the performance of the workforce, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Principal process engineer vs planning engineer salary

Principal process engineers and planning engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Principal Process EngineerPlanning Engineer
Average salary$126,348$82,521
Salary rangeBetween $93,000 And $171,000Between $61,000 And $110,000
Highest paying CityTucson, AZSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateArizonaCalifornia
Best paying companyGoogleMeta
Best paying industryFinanceEnergy

Differences between principal process engineer and planning engineer education

There are a few differences between a principal process engineer and a planning engineer in terms of educational background:

Principal Process EngineerPlanning Engineer
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 73%Bachelor's Degree, 75%
Most common majorChemical EngineeringElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeUniversity of Michigan - Ann ArborNorthwestern University

Principal process engineer vs planning engineer demographics

Here are the differences between principal process engineers' and planning engineers' demographics:

Principal Process EngineerPlanning Engineer
Average age4242
Gender ratioMale, 84.4% Female, 15.6%Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 15.7% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 15.6% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage4%4%

Differences between principal process engineer and planning engineer duties and responsibilities

Principal process engineer example responsibilities.

  • Manage customer complaint resolution, root cause analysis, maintaining conformance for ISO certification.
  • Utilize SolidWorks 3D modeling in the development of new designs and components.
  • Generate detailed manufacturing process descriptions to meet FDA and global documentation requirements for medical device manufacturing.
  • Develop a method to get AutoCad isometric drawings relevant to relief valve transferred electronically to the relief valve sizing package.
  • Develop and refine device life models base on first-principles material degradation effects within ring laser gyro electronics.

Planning engineer example responsibilities.

  • Create and automate customize KPI dashboard reports using a combination of SQL and visual basic scripts.
  • Manage retrofit projects for progressive stamping equipment.
  • Manage IP address inventory and bandwidth capacity.
  • Manage multiple projects involving both internal and vendor resources affecting national production infrastructure.
  • Manage Jenkins security by providing specific access to authorize developers/testers using project base matrix authorization strategy.
  • Configure OSPF and BGP on the L3 switches, route redistribution.
  • Show more

Principal process engineer vs planning engineer skills

Common principal process engineer skills
  • Process Engineering, 9%
  • Continuous Improvement, 7%
  • Engineering Design, 6%
  • RF, 5%
  • Process Control, 5%
  • Process Improvement, 5%
Common planning engineer skills
  • Project Management, 11%
  • Infrastructure, 10%
  • Transmission Planning, 8%
  • NERC, 7%
  • Cost Estimates, 4%
  • Transmission Systems, 4%

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