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Prototype technician vs instrument technician

The differences between prototype technicians and instrument technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a prototype technician and an instrument technician. Additionally, an instrument technician has an average salary of $56,918, which is higher than the $45,071 average annual salary of a prototype technician.

The top three skills for a prototype technician include CAD, hand tools and CNC. The most important skills for an instrument technician are patients, surgical instruments, and cleanliness.

Prototype technician vs instrument technician overview

Prototype TechnicianInstrument Technician
Yearly salary$45,071$56,918
Hourly rate$21.67$27.36
Growth rate--
Number of jobs48,31045,965
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 38%Associate Degree, 48%
Average age5050
Years of experience1212

Prototype technician vs instrument technician salary

Prototype technicians and instrument technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

Prototype TechnicianInstrument Technician
Average salary$45,071$56,918
Salary rangeBetween $34,000 And $58,000Between $38,000 And $83,000
Highest paying City-Palo Alto, CA
Highest paying state-Hawaii
Best paying company-Phillips 66
Best paying industry-Manufacturing

Differences between prototype technician and instrument technician education

There are a few differences between a prototype technician and an instrument technician in terms of educational background:

Prototype TechnicianInstrument Technician
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 38%Associate Degree, 48%
Most common majorAutomotive TechnologyElectrical Engineering
Most common collegePurdue UniversityNortheastern University

Prototype technician vs instrument technician demographics

Here are the differences between prototype technicians' and instrument technicians' demographics:

Prototype TechnicianInstrument Technician
Average age5050
Gender ratioMale, 87.3% Female, 12.7%Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 10.4% Asian, 8.0% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage8%8%

Differences between prototype technician and instrument technician duties and responsibilities

Prototype technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage and distribute cad standards to contributing design consultants and assist with any design issues as necessary.
  • Wire and solder all connections to FDA standards.
  • Finish SLA and SLS parts for mold development.
  • Experience in reading micrometers, calipers, and blueprints.
  • Assist purchasing department in outside vendor (PCB fabrication) operations
  • Use precision measuring tools including calipers, gages, and torques.
  • Show more

Instrument technician example responsibilities.

  • Lead the planning and coordination of QC instrumentation and software qualification to be compliant with best practices.
  • Lead a team of 10 engineers to develop an infrare telescope that are launched on the NASA high-altitude balloonproject BRRISON/BOPPS.
  • Accomplish team sales of 464K in clinical chemistry and hematology instrumentation.
  • Adhere to safe work practices including lock out/tag out, OSHA regulations, NFPA, and NEC code regulations.
  • Clean and sterilize various surgical instruments for multiple surgery cases.
  • Skil in the installation, maintenance, electrical devices from 24 volt DC to 4160 VAC.
  • Show more

Prototype technician vs instrument technician skills

Common prototype technician skills
  • CAD, 11%
  • Hand Tools, 10%
  • CNC, 7%
  • Prototyping, 6%
  • Calipers, 6%
  • Autoclaves, 6%
Common instrument technician skills
  • Patients, 15%
  • Surgical Instruments, 8%
  • Cleanliness, 6%
  • Hand Tools, 5%
  • Control Systems, 5%
  • PLC, 4%

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