What does a project development engineer do?
A project development engineer designs and develops projects according to the client or company's goals and requirements. They typically perform extensive research and analysis, establish prototypes and test structures, coordinate with fellow experts, and study existing projects to identify their strengths and weaknesses, implementing solutions against problem areas. They may also provide technical guidance and support to staff, train junior engineers, and develop strategies to optimize project operations. Moreover, a project development engineer must maintain an active communication line with teams while enforcing safety policies and project regulations.
Project development engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real project development engineer resumes:
- Manage multiple crews for installation, implementation and service of RF and telecommunications systems throughout Florida.
- Develop & test commercial grade HVAC products for large scale facilities such as airports, schools or complexes.
- Communicate with other engineering disciplines to complete overall design and construction of projects including electrical, HVAC, structural and mechanical.
- Design and create complete web business applications for internal departments, including system architecture, front-end UI and back-end database functionality.
- Help develop a wide variety of industrial/consumer composite packaging products utilizing polymer extrusion processes.
- Develop proposals for in-house extrusion coating options that include the product offering and capital proposal.
- Engineer specialized electro-mechanical fluid control components for NASA and military spacecraft.
Project development engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 12% of Project Development Engineers are proficient in Renewable Energy, Project Management, and Cost Estimates. They’re also known for soft skills such as Speaking skills, Writing skills, and Listening skills.
We break down the percentage of Project Development Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Renewable Energy, 12%
Designed renewable energy lab environment for prototyping and evaluation of micro-grid, smart grid and renewable energy systems and components.
- Project Management, 8%
Project management activities involve maintaining schedules and budgets, creating and implementing internal processes, and coordination of technical design.
- Cost Estimates, 7%
Provided cost estimates, basic engineering and scope definition for on-site nitrogen gas generators.
- CAD, 6%
Worked shoulder to shoulder with JV design teams, using SolidWorks peer-to-peer CAD tools to address issues and opportunities.
- Technical Reports, 6%
Review manuals, periodicals, and technical reports to learn ways to develop processes that meet user requirements.
- Development Projects, 6%
Led new interconnect product development projects from concept through customer proposal stage to final product delivery.
Most project development engineers use their skills in "renewable energy," "project management," and "cost estimates" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential project development engineer responsibilities here:
Speaking skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a project development engineer to have is speaking skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "industrial engineers sometimes have to explain their instructions to production staff or technicians before they can make written instructions available." Project development engineers often use speaking skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "represented company by giving two presentations at solidworks world 2017. "
Writing skills. Another essential skill to perform project development engineer duties is writing skills. Project development engineers responsibilities require that "industrial engineers must prepare documentation for other engineers or scientists, or for future reference." Project development engineers also use writing skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "review of cad drawings writing technical specifications for bidding documents calculations for project materials, weight and pricingwork experience - continued"
Listening skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of project development engineers is listening skills. This skill is critical to many everyday project development engineer duties, as "these engineers often operate in teams, but they also must solicit feedback from customers, vendors, and production staff." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "communicated with other engineering disciplines to complete overall design and construction of projects including electrical, hvac, structural and mechanical. "
Creativity. project development engineer responsibilities often require "creativity." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact 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." This resume example shows what project development engineers do with creativity on a typical day: "developed machine controls standardization plan to reduce spare parts inventory and reduce technical support complexity. "
Math skills. Another crucial skill for a project development engineer to carry out their responsibilities is "math skills." A big part of what project development engineers relies on this skill, since "industrial engineers use the principles of calculus, trigonometry, and other advanced topics in mathematics for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." How this skill relates to project development engineer duties can be seen in an example from a project development engineer resume snippet: "designed the ul 489 short-circuit measurement acquisition system, mathematics, and software. "
Problem-solving skills. While "problem-solving skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to project development engineer responsibilities. Much of what a project development engineer does relies on this skill, seeing 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." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of project development engineers: "provide lighting and energy efficiency solutions to clients' projects. "
The three companies that hire the most project development engineers are:
- Ameresco11 project development engineers jobs
- Timmons Group10 project development engineers jobs
- Pape-Dawson Engineers10 project development engineers jobs
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Compare different project development engineers
Project development 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.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between project development engineers and engineer. For instance, project development engineer responsibilities require skills such as "renewable energy," "technical reports," "development projects," and "data collection." Whereas a engineer is skilled in "python," "cloud," "aws," and "java." This is part of what separates the two careers.
Engineers tend to make the most money working in the automotive industry, where they earn an average salary of $97,672. In contrast, project development engineers make the biggest average salary, $94,482, in the energy industry.The education levels that engineers earn slightly differ from project development engineers. In particular, engineers are 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a project development engineer. Additionally, they're 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Project development engineer vs. Quality engineer
A quality engineer's responsibilities include ensuring that the manufacturing processes are efficient and accurate, documenting findings that would raise concerns, conducting quality tests while observing parameters, and implementing changes as necessary to meet the highest quality standards. Quality engineers need to have excellent problem-solving and observation skills to detect any irregularities and possible malfunctions. They also must be able to communicate effectively with the clients for feedbacks and corrective adjustments, address complaints, and immediately resolve any inconsistencies made.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real project development engineer resumes. While project development engineer responsibilities can utilize skills like "renewable energy," "project management," "cost estimates," and "cad," quality engineers use skills like "corrective action," "continuous improvement," "quality standards," and "product quality."
Quality engineers earn a lower average salary than project development engineers. But quality engineers earn the highest pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $84,890. Additionally, project development engineers earn the highest salaries in the energy with average pay of $94,482 annually.quality engineers earn similar levels of education than project development engineers in general. They're 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for project development engineers in the next 3-5 years?
Dr. Richard Onyancha
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Department Head, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Project development engineer vs. Junior engineer
A Junior Engineer helps design, build, or maintain engines, machines, or public works. They work under the supervision of an engineer.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, project development engineers are more likely to have skills like "renewable energy," "cad," "development projects," and "technical specifications." But a junior engineer is more likely to have skills like "java," "windows," "troubleshoot," and "linux."
Junior engineers earn the highest salary when working in the technology industry, where they receive an average salary of $72,489. Comparatively, project development engineers have the highest earning potential in the energy industry, with an average salary of $94,482.Most junior engineers achieve a lower degree level compared to project development engineers. For example, they're 5.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Project development engineer vs. Staff engineer
Staff engineers are responsible for designing, developing, and inspecting various products, equipment, or structures. These professionals may perform varied duties depending on their specialization that includes overseeing the design and construction of buildings, bridges, sewer systems, and other infrastructure, estimating the financial costs of construction projects, and ensuring compliance with health and safety laws and regulations. Other duties include designing and developing machinery, tools, and engines, solving design problems, and building the manufacturing equipment needed to create their products.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between project development engineers and staff engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a project development engineer might have more use for skills like "renewable energy," "development projects," "technical specifications," and "business development." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of staff engineers require skills like "java," "python," "architecture," and "software development. "
The telecommunication industry tends to pay the highest salaries for staff engineers, with average annual pay of $119,079. Comparatively, the highest project development engineer annual salary comes from the energy industry.In general, staff engineers hold similar degree levels compared to project development engineers. Staff engineers are 0.7% more likely to earn their Master's Degree and 2.8% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of project development engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
