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The differences between senior manufacturing technicians and product development technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a senior manufacturing technician, becoming a product development technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a product development technician has an average salary of $82,950, which is higher than the $53,077 average annual salary of a senior manufacturing technician.
The top three skills for a senior manufacturing technician include troubleshoot, harvest and GMP. The most important skills for a product development technician are R, product development, and lab equipment.
| Senior Manufacturing Technician | Product Development Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $53,077 | $82,950 |
| Hourly rate | $25.52 | $39.88 |
| Growth rate | 3% | - |
| Number of jobs | 53,820 | 131,939 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 45 | 50 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
A senior manufacturing technician is responsible for the manufacturing of commercial products of the company. You have to troubleshoot problems and provide necessary solutions with your creative skills. You also need to have an associate degree to apply for this job. You must have gained proficiency in the manufacturing industry. The job also requires you to maintain a consistent record of production. To qualify for this post, you need to have five to seven years of related experience. In this job, you have to train and maintain new technicians as well. You must be proficient in reading diagrams and understanding the blueprints of manufacturing.
Product development technicians are responsible for expanding and providing improvement to new products and implementing appropriate tests. They help grow a team framework for the organization. Their duties include arranging oral and written reports for each product development projects and examine their performance. Also, they preserve a clean and neat laboratory area and make sure of the viability of all equipment. Additionally, they create drafts for each product and work instructions documents, as well as install and examine all test equipment for modification.
Senior manufacturing technicians and product development technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Manufacturing Technician | Product Development Technician | |
| Average salary | $53,077 | $82,950 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $73,000 | Between $61,000 And $111,000 |
| Highest paying City | Fremont, CA | Austin, TX |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | Texas |
| Best paying company | Boehringer Ingelheim | Western Digital |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior manufacturing technician and a product development technician in terms of educational background:
| Senior Manufacturing Technician | Product Development Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Biology |
| Most common college | Purdue University | Purdue University |
Here are the differences between senior manufacturing technicians' and product development technicians' demographics:
| Senior Manufacturing Technician | Product Development Technician | |
| Average age | 45 | 50 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 80.8% Female, 19.2% | Male, 67.5% Female, 32.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 16.1% Asian, 11.7% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | 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 Percentage | 6% | 8% |