What does a product quality engineer do?
A product quality engineer is responsible for conducting quality check procedures for outputs and manufacturing processes to ensure high-quality deliverables according to business requirements and client specifications. Product quality engineers implement quality assessment criteria with strict adherence to internal guidelines and regulatory policies. They inspect the tools and equipment used for the production and solve inconsistencies, recommending and writing process reports to prevent fault reoccurrence that may affect product standards and market quality and cause distribution delays.
Product quality engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real product quality engineer resumes:
- Manage quality requirements on current and future door trim interior programs via (APQP).
- Manage supplier commodities and support manufacturing operations ensuring product conformance to print specification and monitoring production processes on the line level.
- Support external FDA and UL audits as backroom support to accurately field questions.
- Participate in annual ISO 9001 plant wide audits.
- Provide technical assistance and training to QA colleagues.
- Implement a myriad of data collection systems for key product SPC and critical environmental variables.
- Used statistical analysis (SPC) to validate dimensional capability for components and finish clubs.
- Provide problem solving support to manufacturing and Tesla customers; assist QA department peers as requested.
- Participate on successful launch of new steering shaft including project planning, APQP, and PPAP approval.
- Create and implement service FMEA process to ensure service kits would be robust enough to fulfill the proper requirements.
- Correct a processing error that appear on over a hundr files, protecting the company from failing an FDA audit.
- Coordinate field warranty analysis and PPAP submission.
- Key contributor in the preparation of the distribution center successfully passing their initial external ISO audit certification.
- Facilitate FMEA to establish approval criteria to identify quality failure concerns for both internal and supplier parts/assemblies.
- Facilitate customer NPI qualification for fastener hardware to closure.
Product quality engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 11% of Product Quality Engineers are proficient in Product Quality, Continuous Improvement, and Sigma. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Listening skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Product Quality Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Product Quality, 11%
Authored and maintained technical documentation in accordance with ISO 9001 including Product Quality Specifications, Test Methods and Operating Procedures.
- Continuous Improvement, 5%
Partner with Operations to perform evaluations of process quality and performance attributes to identify continuous improvement initiatives related to quality systems.
- Sigma, 5%
Improved Quality Management System processes and activities geared toward Six Sigma quality efforts in conjunction with Operational Excellence.
- Corrective Action, 4%
Achieved fast turnaround and comprehensive corrective actions on returned mobile station module devices by aggressively driving debug and data gathering activities.
- ISO, 4%
Ensured improvement and effectiveness of Quality Management System through conducting internal ISO audits.
- Data Analysis, 3%
Provided data analysis for tooling qualification, process qualification, and tolerance adjustment.
Common skills that a product quality engineer uses to do their job include "product quality," "continuous improvement," and "sigma." You can find details on the most important product quality engineer responsibilities below.
Creativity. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a product quality engineer to have is creativity. Their role and responsibilities require that "industrial engineers use creativity and ingenuity to design new production processes in many kinds of settings in order to reduce the use of material resources, time, or labor while accomplishing the same goal." Product quality engineers often use creativity in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "led a cross-functional team to implement permanent corrective actions that improved product quality and inventory turns. "
Listening skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling product quality engineer duties is listening skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "these engineers often operate in teams, but they also must solicit feedback from customers, vendors, and production staff." According to a product quality engineer resume, here's how product quality engineers can utilize listening skills in their job responsibilities: "communicated quality issues and requests with venders, this could be by telephone, email or visitation. "
Math skills. product quality engineers are also known for math skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to product quality engineer responsibilities, because "industrial engineers use the principles of calculus, trigonometry, and other advanced topics in mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." A product quality engineer resume example shows how math skills is used in the workplace: "designed and conducted design of experiment, root cause analysis, using or not using statistics by minitab, spss. "
Problem-solving skills. For certain product quality engineer responsibilities to be completed, the job requires competence in "problem-solving skills." The day-to-day duties of a product quality engineer rely on this skill, as "in designing facilities for manufacturing and processes for providing services, these engineers deal with several issues at once, from workers’ safety to quality assurance." For example, this snippet was taken directly from a resume about how this skill applies to what product quality engineers do: "identified and resolved product design, serviceability and business process issues that drove warranty expense. "
Speaking skills. Another crucial skill for a product quality engineer to carry out their responsibilities is "speaking skills." A big part of what product quality engineers relies on this skill, since "industrial engineers sometimes have to explain their instructions to production staff or technicians before they can make written instructions available." How this skill relates to product quality engineer duties can be seen in an example from a product quality engineer resume snippet: "represented quality assurance on cross-functional product design team during concept development through clinical phase. "
Writing skills. Lastly, "writing skills" is an important element of what a product quality engineer does. Product quality engineer responsibilities require this skill because "industrial engineers must prepare documentation for other engineers or scientists, or for future reference." This resume example highlights how product quality engineer duties rely on this skill: "functioned as one of the architects in developing leica's iso 9001 quality manual, writing procedures and selecting the registrar. "
The three companies that hire the most product quality engineers are:
- Apple9 product quality engineers jobs
- Baxter International6 product quality engineers jobs
- Johnson & Johnson6 product quality engineers jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable product quality engineer resume templates
Build a professional product quality engineer resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your product quality engineer resume.
Compare different product quality engineers
Product quality engineer vs. Engineer
Engineers are highly trained professionals who determine the feasibility of various projects, usually related to the construction industry. They are considered experts in mathematics and science, two disciplines that they need to use in designing and coming up with plans for projects. They should also be well-versed in different construction or industrial materials, and they ensure that appropriate materials are used for the project. They also ensure that the projects meet the requirements of the groups that hired them. They create spaces that would both address the needs of the end-users and the industry standards. They also ensure that the projects they make would stand the test of time.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a product quality engineer are more likely to require skills like "product quality," "continuous improvement," "sigma," and "corrective action." On the other hand, a job as an engineer requires skills like "python," "cloud," "c++," and "c #." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Engineers earn the highest salaries when working in the automotive industry, with an average yearly salary of $97,672. On the other hand, product quality engineers are paid more in the technology industry with an average salary of $99,645.engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than product quality engineers. In fact, engineers are 2.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.1% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Product quality engineer vs. Quality lead
A quality assurance (QA) lead is responsible for organizing and managing the testing of products prior to its release. Your duties will include defining testing standards and strategies, establishing formal QA processes, and overseeing all aspects of QA, such as using best practices and establishing metrics. Additionally, you are responsible for supervising and mentoring QA team members, and developing and implementing scripts, test cases, and procedures. You are also responsible for managing off quality products and developing and institutionalizing ISO complaints.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real product quality engineer resumes. While product quality engineer responsibilities can utilize skills like "product development," "failure analysis," "gd," and "product design," quality leads use skills like "project management," "customer service," "gmp," and "strong analytical."
On average, quality leads earn a lower salary than product quality engineers. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, quality leads earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $92,715. Whereas product quality engineers have higher pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $99,645.quality leads earn similar levels of education than product quality engineers in general. They're 2.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for product quality engineers in the next 3-5 years?
Dr. Galen Duree
Head of the Department of Physics and Optical Engineering and Professor, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Product quality engineer vs. Planning engineer
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.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a product quality engineer is likely to be skilled in "product quality," "continuous improvement," "sigma," and "data analysis," while a typical planning engineer is skilled in "project management," "infrastructure," "transmission planning," and "nerc."
Planning engineers make a very good living in the energy industry with an average annual salary of $86,256. On the other hand, product quality engineers are paid the highest salary in the technology industry, with average annual pay of $99,645.planning engineers typically earn similar educational levels compared to product quality engineers. Specifically, they're 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Product quality engineer vs. Manufacturing engineer
Manufacturing Engineers are responsible for handling and developing an efficient manufacturing system or procedure that will help a company produce up to standard products while in adherence to the policies, regulations, and expected cost and schedule. Furthermore, Manufacturing Engineers must also monitor quality control, identify or detect errors, provide and suggest improvements, oversee the procurement of materials involved in the production, and coordinate with various teams or departments within the company to ensure the effectiveness of innovations or new developments.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between product quality engineers and manufacturing engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a product quality engineer might have more use for skills like "data analysis," "supplier quality," "failure analysis," and "qms." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of manufacturing engineers require skills like "solidworks," "project management," "cnc," and "troubleshoot. "
In general, manufacturing engineers earn the most working in the technology industry, with an average salary of $81,429. The highest-paying industry for a product quality engineer is the technology industry.manufacturing engineers reach lower levels of education compared to product quality engineers, in general. The difference is that they're 5.9% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of product quality engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
