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Job outlook for senior maintenance engineers in the United States
Are senior maintenance engineer jobs in demand?
Senior maintenance engineer job and salary trends over time
Senior maintenance engineer jobs over time
Senior maintenance engineer job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 217 | 0.00% |
| 2020 | 229 | 0.00% |
| 2019 | 239 | 0.00% |
| 2018 | 236 | 0.00% |
| 2017 | 227 | 0.00% |
Average senior maintenance engineer salary over time
Senior maintenance engineer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $87,840 | $42.23 | +2.0% |
| 2025 | $86,155 | $41.42 | +1.2% |
| 2024 | $85,122 | $40.92 | +1.7% |
| 2023 | $83,670 | $40.23 | +2.0% |
| 2022 | $82,024 | $39.43 | +0.7% |
Senior maintenance engineer jobs by state
Most common states for senior maintenance engineers
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 547 | 79% |
| 2 | Delaware | 961,939 | 277 | 29% |
| 3 | California | 39,536,653 | 10,495 | 27% |
| 4 | Alaska | 739,795 | 183 | 25% |
| 5 | Arizona | 7,016,270 | 1,655 | 24% |
| 6 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 1,166 | 21% |
| 7 | New Jersey | 9,005,644 | 1,599 | 18% |
| 8 | Alabama | 4,874,747 | 900 | 18% |
| 9 | Arkansas | 3,004,279 | 421 | 14% |
| 10 | Mississippi | 2,984,100 | 405 | 14% |
| 11 | Oklahoma | 3,930,864 | 475 | 12% |
| 12 | Louisiana | 4,684,333 | 492 | 11% |
| 13 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 0 | 0% |
| 14 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 0 | 0% |
| 15 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 0 | 0% |
| 16 | Ohio | 11,658,609 | 0 | 0% |
| 17 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 0 | 0% |
| 18 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 0 | 0% |
| 19 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 0 | 0% |
| 20 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 0 | 0% |
Most common cities for senior maintenance engineers
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seal Beach | 1 | 4% | $110,198 |
| 2 | Baton Rouge | 1 | 0% | $92,133 |
| 3 | Scottsdale | 1 | 0% | $98,468 |
| 4 | Wichita | 1 | 0% | $84,991 |
Senior Maintenance Engineer job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of senior maintenance engineer experts
Seattle University
University of Minnesota - Duluth
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Wilkes University
Missouri University of Science and Technology
Bellingham Technical College
Duke University
Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology - Okmulgee
University of Wisconsin - Platteville
University of South Alabama
Marshall University
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Tzuyang Yu Ph.D.: Improve communication skills, develop organization skills, continue learning new knowledge in the areas related to work, expand connections by learning what other people do, identify one or two mentors as role models for long-term career development.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Tzuyang Yu Ph.D.: A few tips to share with junior engineers are listed below. Be eager to learn from peers and other senior engineers, be open-minded to make friends, be adaptive to different cultures in the work environment, be professional (e.g., be punctual at deadlines, be mindful in appearance), be empathetic (focus on people, not mobile devices).
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Kambiz Farahmand Ph.D., P.E.: Hit the ground running. If you are asked to put in 40 hours work 50 hours. Prove yourself and always take on new challenges since that is how you grow.
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Julie Brandis: Oregon State University provides support in salary negotiation, also students can work with mentors who are familiar with company hiring practices and wage structures. If you have internship experience, that can help to boost your starting salary.
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Davide Masato: The high demand for plastics engineers facilitates maximizing starting salaries. Graduates with co-op experience enjoy a competitive edge. To grow both as engineers and team members, young professionals should actively seek professional development opportunities. Continuous learning and seeking advancement within the organization or externally are key. Pursuing advanced degrees or certifications, even remotely, enhances qualifications and marketability.
Christopher Misorski FASM
Brunswick Technical Fellow-Materials Product Development & EngineeringWhat will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Christopher Misorski FASM: Maximizing salary potential at the start of your career is not a clear pathway generally. One way that you can be considered more valuable, and hence worth a better salary, is to have participated in a co-op or internship program with a company in your field. This experience gives employers some confidence that you were able to carry out assignments and thrive in a workplace environment. The employer that you worked for may be inclined to offer you a position upon graduation and you are now worth more because you have already proven to them your abilities. Even if they don’t offer you a job (no appropriate open position may be available) your ability to discuss your experiences with the HR recruiter or hiring manager at another company can instill confidence in your selection as a hire. Just remember, if you tell them you did a project, be prepared to explain it so it doesn’t appear you were just in the background of this project, just going along for the ride.
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Thomas Congedo PhD: That comes from your ability to focus on technical product of the highest quality, always seeking to truly understand the customer’s needs. For example, often a customer will phrase a problem by stating the solution he or she assumes. Taking the time to respectfully draw out the thinking further can make you the customer’s hero, and this makes you the person likely to be selected for the challenging and most rewarded assignments.
Jhon Smith
Associate Professor and Director of MS in Structural EngineeringSeattle University
Civil Engineering
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Jhon Smith: Do not be afraid to ask questions to your supervisors (although do not take it to an extreme and become demanding—show initiative). You get the fundamentals of engineering at school and you are equipped to use them but it takes a few years to feel comfortable. Engineering is a profession of practice and it is only through practice that you best learn it.
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Jhon Smith: Expand your network, join professional organizations and committees, become valuable in whatever company you work for, never stop learning, seek for opportunities for professional work, get your PE license. After these you will become more valuable naturally and could comfortably ask for a promotion or a salary increase because you’d know you deserve it.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Jhon Smith: Professional skills such as being able to communicate clearly, being flexible, open-minded, eager to take on challenges, adept and working with others and taking ownership of the projects tasks given to you. Staying grounded to the fundamental concepts you learn in school so every time you run a sophisticated piece of software to do design you must be able to use those fundamentals to check the results.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Richard Davis: Engineering offers career opportunities across various industries, from technology and healthcare to infrastructure and environmental sustainability. With technological advancements and the increasing complexity of global challenges, such as climate change, food and clean water, and urbanization, engineers are in high demand to develop innovative solutions. For example, environmental engineers are crucial in developing sustainable solutions to reduce pollution and conserve resources. Engineering provides opportunities for creativity and problem-solving, making it a rewarding career choice for those who enjoy tackling complex problems. The global focus on sustainability and renewable energy presents exciting prospects for engineers to contribute to meaningful projects that positively impact society and the environment.
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Mishah Salman Ph.D.: An underappreciated skill that I think will become more sought-after is the ability to validate computer-made decisions and their shortcomings. With the growing prominence of AI use in design, problem solving, and decision making, the engineering field will need experts to error-check decisions made using these technologies. Sometimes there are unexplored gaps that these technologies overlook, and sometimes there are biases or inappropriate assumptions baked into AI-based results. Humans are inherently imaginative and creative. We excel at picking up on things that computer algorithms may miss. Talented experts that recognize and address these issues will remain invaluable in the workforce. Another indispensable skill that is often overlooked in engineering is effective interpersonal communication. Whether in a teamwork context, a leadership role, or a client interaction, competent communication is crucial. This can take the form of conversation, live presentations, written correspondence, and beyond. People that hone their communication skills are often recognized, and tend to be the individuals that are promoted to more senior roles.
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Mishah Salman Ph.D.: To maximize salary potential, I recommend growing your professional network and being flexible within your career. Attending professional gatherings and rubbing shoulders goes a very long way. It’s amazing how you can casually bump into some well-respected team leader that’s trying to fill an opening or glean information about a new project that needs fresh talent. Network with people in diverse fields and roles. You never know who knows who. Making a positive impression and having someone recognize your name down the line can go a very long way!
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Mansooreh Mollaghasemi Ph.D.: Concurrent with building technical skills, they must build soft skills such as communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and leadership. These skills are often the differentiators between good and great engineers.
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Michael Denn: 1. Become the expert in whatever you do. 2. Understand how your work fits into the bigger picture and keep that in mind when you do your work. 3. Keep learning! Your engineering degree is not the end of your education! 4. Take stretch assignments and opportunities whenever you can.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Michael Denn: The answers to this question are largely the same as the answer to question 1. However, here are some additional points: 1. Excel in your job. Become the person everyone goes to for whatever type of work you do. 2. Develop and maintain a career plan. Make sure your assignments and tasks align with your plan. When you have the opportunity to change positions, keep you plan in mind.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Marleen Troy Ph.D., P.E., BCEE: It is an exciting time to be an engineer – there are a lot of challenges as well as a lot of opportunities to make a difference. I would suggest thinking about where you want your career to be in five and ten years and determine what steps you need to get there. Join and become active in a professional society such as the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) to develop your leadership skills. Plan out the steps you need to take to become a licensed professional engineer (PE). Also determine what you enjoy and how you can successfully balance your work / home-life schedule. Take advantage of every opportunity to try something new or develop a new skill, even if it is out of your comfort zone.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Dr. Kelvin Erickson: a. Artificial Intelligence - The use of artificial intelligence as a tool in engineering has been around for awhile, but there have not been many successes. There is a lot more interest now, which I expect will eventually find some uses. Programming - The programming may not be in the “traditional” language sense. But, one will be faced with an occasional programming task like writing an Excel macro, or a JavaScript or Python script.
Kyle Miller
Welding Technologies instructor - Pipe TradesBellingham Technical College
Precision Metal Working
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Kyle Miller: Certifications and Qualifications. A worker can only build experience at a somewhat fixed rate based off of time in the field. Certifications however are a way for people on nearly all trades to augment their earning potential. I have often seen instances where the person who was the most willing to pursue a needed certification quickly became an indispensable asset amongst the crew/staff.
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Jimmie Lenz D.B.A.: Engineering encompasses so many areas of modern life that it’s impossible to provide a comprehensive answer here. The training that engineers receive, both the technical and the applied nature, make these individuals quite attractive to all types of industries. Perhaps the most surprising to many people are the significant number of engineers employed in financial services.
Jim Gordon
Faculty- Construction ManagementOklahoma State University Institute of Technology - Okmulgee
Electromechanical Technologies/Technicians
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Jim Gordon: First, always be learning, the more you know the more value you have as an employee. Show up on time ready to work and always give your best effort.
What will help Senior Maintenance Engineers increase their earning potential?
Prof. Harold Evensen: Engineering Physics students and graduates like gaining an understanding of the “physics” of why or how something works, and then applying this knowledge to make judgments and improvements. They also like learning and applying knowledge from several disciplines. A common “dislike” is beyond their control: some employers may not understand what “Engineering Physics” is, or may have incorrect preconceived notions. At UW-Platteville, employers are familiar with this major, which is approaching 30 years on campus. Additionally, faculty work with students on how to present their “story” to employers. Engineering Physics students need to be able to present their strengths and abilities to employers, and often can’t rely only on “name recognition.” In the long run, this is better, anyway. Overall, we have had success: among accredited Engineering Physics degree programs in the U.S., UW-Platteville puts the most graduates directly into industry!
Edmund Spencer
Associate ProfessorUniversity of South Alabama
Electrical, Electronics, And Communications Engineering
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Edmund Spencer: Look for jobs that have the highest technical content, and try to develop entrepreneurial skills early.
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Daniel Armentrout: The excessive number of baby boomer engineers are retiring at high rates and you as a new engineering graduate are desperately needed to make up for their loss in the workforce. You will face challenges in your career we could not anticipate or prepare you for in your education. You will have to adapt and continue to learn new fields of study which did not exist when you graduated. We have given you tools to learn and you will have to use those tools to remain relevant throughout your career. Find your place as an engineer when you can be effective, help humanity, and have fun. Plot a career path where you can utilize your strengths and challenge your mind to do new things. Contribute to making a better world and you will be able to enjoy immense satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment.
Dr. Yousef Sardahi
Associate Professor of Mechanical EngineeringMarshall University
Engineering
What general advice would you give to a Senior Maintenance Engineer?
Dr. Yousef Sardahi: In the next 3-5 years, several skills are expected to become increasingly important in the mechanical engineering field: Advanced Computational Skills, Robotics and Automation, Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing, Renewable Energy Technologies, Data Analysis and IoT, Materials Science, Systems Engineering and Integration, Project Management and Leadership, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Communication and Soft Skills.
What Senior Maintenance Engineer skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Dr. Yousef Sardahi: In the next 3-5 years, several skills are expected to become increasingly important in the mechanical engineering field:
Advanced Computational Skills: Proficiency in simulation and modeling software (like ANSYS, SolidWorks, or MATLAB) will be crucial as these tools become more integral in designing and testing complex systems.
Robotics and Automation: With industries moving towards automation, skills in robotics, automated systems, and knowledge of AI integration will be highly sought after.
Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing: Expertise in 3D printing and additive manufacturing techniques will be valuable as these technologies revolutionize product development and manufacturing processes.
Renewable Energy Technologies: As the world shifts towards sustainable energy sources, mechanical engineers with knowledge in solar, wind, and other renewable energy technologies will be in high demand.
Data Analysis and IoT: Skills in data analytics and understanding the Internet of Things (IoT) will be important as more mechanical systems are connected and produce large amounts of data.
Materials Science: Knowledge in advanced materials, such as composites or smart materials, will be crucial for developing more efficient and sustainable products and systems.
Systems Engineering and Integration: The ability to understand and integrate various subsystems within a larger system will be key, especially in complex projects.
Project Management and Leadership: As projects become more complex, skills in project management and leadership will be essential for overseeing projects and leading teams effectively.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration: The ability to work effectively across disciplines, understanding aspects of electrical engineering, computer science, and even business, will be increasingly important.
Communication and Soft Skills: Strong communication skills, both for technical and non-technical audiences, along with teamwork and problem-solving skills, will always be invaluable in the engineering field.