Mechanical Engineering

We explained how to be a good design engineer before with a very comprehensive article in Mechanicalland. The ‘how to be a good Mechanical Engineer?’ problem also depends on the same phenomena. But if we think about this area itself, there must have some special characteristics. In this article;

• Who is a ‘Mechanical Engineer’?
• What do these areas students must do?
• What kinds of software that a Mechanical Engineer must know?
• What are the branches of this area?
• What are the job opportunities in this area?
• What kinds of work Mechanical Engineers are doing in their jobs?

Who is a ‘Mechanical Engineer’?

A mechanical engineer who took this area’s certification by finishing a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at authorized schools. So you can be a mechanical engineer if you do this kind of thing. But it does not mean that you will be a good one if you finish one of the related schools. Being a good mechanical engineer is not easy stuff actually and we will try to explain how to be a good one.

Yes, education quality is also a very important factor to be a good mechanical engineer. For example in some institutes such as MIT, engineering education is superior. We can say that only passing the exams in this area education of at MIT will be enough to be a somewhat good mechanical engineer. But these kinds of this area are very exceptional if we consider them all around the world. Every engineering field school in the world is not good as MIT or other prominent engineering institutes. So you need to have other achievements or qualifications that will make you precious like an MIT student.

What Mechanical Engineering Students Must Do?

This question has not an exact answer. You are a student, and you have lots of time generally. You need to be aware of this time, and you need to use that time to be a good engineer. In general, you will be busy only with visa and final examinations in your engineering student life. To fill that time, you need to be aware of, what are your advantages, what are your institute’s advantages to deal with being a good engineer.

For example in some schools or institutes, there can be very good events or student clubs that are dealing with specific tasks such as preparing a racing car for attending a specific competition with other institutes.

If you be a part of that kind of team after starting your mechanical engineering student life, you will graduate with a very precious amount of experience and knowledge for your career. Because you were the part of an engineering group that was making a ‘car’.

Your institution can have very good advantages like this example. So, be aware of the advantages of your institution to advance yourself in this area of engineering. There can be very good voluntary events in your institution. You can take a part in these kinds of things to experience being a team player which is also a very important experience for your career.

You can also think about an academic career. Your goal can be to become a scientist in a specific area of this area of engineering. What you need to do for this is, take part in academic work with your masters in your institution. And study your lessons to achieve a very high GPA for a master’s degree in a prominent institution.

What Kinds Of Software That A Mechanical Engineer Use?

The answer to that question changes according to the specific area in this area of engineering that you are working on. But, there are some kinds of general qualifications and computer skills that every mechanical engineer must have.

A good engineer must know mathematics in a very professional way. But we do not mean maths solving skills such as solving derivation or integral problems with hand. Yes, this is also a very important skill to asses your solutions but the most important mathematical skill is the mathematical modeling of an engineering problem. Every engineering problem has its own mathematical and physical condition. To specify the unknowns in a physical or engineering problem, a good engineer can obtain the mathematical model of that problem to solve it.

Solving these mathematical models is also very important stuff for a good engineer. Computer skills are very important in this phase. These are the most used software to solve mathematical problems by mechanical engineers. Every good engineer must know some of these software or programming languages to solve obtained mathematical problems or models.

Microsoft Excel

It is the most important and most used numerical analysis software in this area of engineering. There are lots of kinds of data analysis tools, and mathematical commands in Excel. And also it is a part of Microsoft that almost every computer has this software. So if you want to start to learn software for your mechanical engineering career, you need to start to learn Microsoft Excel.

MatLab

It is also one of the most known software for numerical analysis and data analysis in this area of engineering. Because of its advanced programming language for maths, it is a superior and more professional software to solve engineering problems. Also, Matlab has a very good engineering simulation tool we call Simulink. Learning MatLab will make you an outstanding mechanical engineer

As a mechanical engineer, you will deal with physical phenomena and will design physical products or something like that. So computational design ability is very important for them. Designing or drawing a 3D model of a physical model in CAD software is a very important skill to be a very good mechanical engineer. We suggest some 3D CAD software that they generally use.

Solidworks

Probably it is the most known and used CAD tool to design 3D models. With the versatile tools of Solidworks, you can obtain your 3D design as a very good one. Also, Solidworks has lots of additional tools such as molding, FEA(Finite Element Analysis), etc.

Siemens NX

It is a very superior CAD tool that professional mechanical engineers are using today. The commands of Siemens NX are the most versatile ones to create 3D designs compared with other tools. And also CAM software of Siemens NX which is called Unigraphics CAM is also the most important CNC programming software. The informative sources of Siemens NX are very few compared with other CAD tools again.

Technical drawing skills are also very important for a good mechanical engineer. Technical drawing in engineering is the common language between engineers, technicians, and workers that shows the whole features of related engineering systems. In other words, technical drawing is the language of engineering. So, you need to learn about reading technical drawings and creating the technical drawing that the system that you designed. You can create your technical drawings with the technical drawing tools of Siemens NX, Solidworks, and other CAD software. But we strongly recommend to you learn AutoCAD 2D to create your technical drawings.

AutoCAD 2D

This is one of the most used CAD software to create 2D technical drawings of engineering systems. So we strongly recommend you to learn the technical drawing standards in mechanical engineering and draw these technical drawings in AutoCAD 2D.

Because of developed computational technology, engineering simulations of real-world systems are also very prominent in this area of engineering. In general, they make these simulations on the base of finite element methods(FEM, FEA). If you progress yourself in FEA, you will be a very precious engineer. So we will recommend some kinds of FEA software that you can learn.

ANSYS

This is one of the most used FEM software in mechanical engineering. You can build the physical computational model of various kinds of engineering systems such as fluids, solids, electrical or specific tasks such as gas turbines, etc.

ABAQUS

This is also very important and generally used Finite Element Analysis software that we recommend you to learn. Think about a mechanical engineer that can design systems with their mathematical basis, and solve these mathematical models to find out unknowns, also make the computer simulation of that system to see if the mathematical model and the physical simulations are consistent. Yes, he/she is a very good engineer!

Most Useful Programming Languages for a Mechanical Engineer

A mechanical engineer works on machines that convert one form of energy into another, with the fundamental laws of physics and principles of other disciplines. They usually work in different companies, private institutions, factories, or public institutions, depending on their area of expertise. They are responsible for designing and manufacturing machines with basic knowledge such as statics, dynamics, fluid mechanics, strength, machine dynamics, robotics, and motors. 

The working area of them is extensive. Their aim is to produce the best quality product with the cheapest methods, to make basic calculations correctly and completely.

They can work in areas that include keeping occupational health and safety at the forefront and following new information on mechanical and energy conversion to increase efficiency. And working on issues such as cost reduction and process improvement is one of their fields. 

The most important qualification expected from a mechanical engineer is strong judgment. They may encounter various challenges during the design or manufacturing process, and they must have high concentration and judgment to overcome these problems.

Other qualifications expected from a mechanical engineer are having the ability to think analytically and to have imagination and creativity. Having dexterity even at a low level will also help. Being able to produce and develop solutions, the ability to reason mathematically, being suitable for teamwork, and having high communication skills are among the criteria.

Most useful Programming Languages for a Mechanical Engineer

Today, one of the indispensable qualifications for an engineer is the ability to use one or more programming languages. Apart from the design programs commonly used by mechanical engineers such as SolidWorks, AutoCAD, MATLAB, and Catia, they may also need to use software programs

Python

Programmers recommend it because learning the Python software language is more effortless and less time-consuming compared to others. Python has a very simple structure and a defined syntax. Compared to other programming languages, Python is quite simple to read. It has a large library. Thanks to its cross-platform compatibility, we can port easily with systems such as Windows, UNIX, and Macintosh. It is a well-known fact that Python has a portable structure. The biggest indicator and result of this is knowing that it has the same interface on all platforms. In addition, it is possible to say that you can use this programming language on many hardware platforms.

Java

Although the Java programming language was developed primarily for small devices, today it has become a world standard language with 9 million Java developers all over the world. One of the reasons it is recommended is that Java allows multiple computers to work together as an integrated system on a single network. It carries all the advantages of objective-oriented programming values such as participation, polymorphism, debugging, modular programming, and code reuse, by offering many important capabilities to its user. One of the features that make Java popular is that it has a platform-independent structure.

C++

C++ is characterized as an intermediate or even difficult language compared to other programming languages. What makes the C++ programming language important is that it allows object-oriented programming. Thanks to this feature, it has possibilities such as encapsulation, polymorphism, and inheritance in object-oriented programming. C++ programming language has gained importance over time since it can be used in all operating systems.

What are the Fields of Mechanical Engineering?

This area of engineering is a very wide area that you can progress yourself in one of these specific areas. Here are some of the mechanical engineering areas;

Thermodynamics and Heat Technics

This branch of this area of engineering is related to all engineering systems. Heat is everywhere and engineers must consider the thermal situation of the system that is designed. Building the heat and thermodynamical model of engineering systems is a very important area of this area of engineering.

Automotive

Do not think about automotive being directly related to automobiles. Yes, automobiles are also part of an automotive branch of mechanical engineering, but also internal combustion engines, electrical engines for automobiles, transmission systems of automotive products… all the phenomena inside automobiles are related to automotive. The technologies of these things are also related with automotive.

Materials And Manufacturing

Like an automobile, these branches are also separated from this area of engineering in most institutions. But materials science and engineering and manufacturing engineering are a part of mechanical engineering. You can progress in these areas by studying mechanical engineering. Individually, materials engineering and manufacturing engineering are very wide areas.

Classical Mechanics

This is the area where mechanical engineering was born. It is directly related to dynamic systems and analyses of them and mechanics of materials such ad strength etc. We think that this is the best area to be (a design engineer).

Control Systems And Vibration Control

This area shares lots of things with electronics. Because this area includes the programming of robotic systems and the hardware of robotics. With control engineering, unwanted vibrations are also eliminated from engineering systems. Designing control systems to eliminate mechanical vibrations is also a very important area in this area of engineering. If you were interested in robotic programming, you can progress yourself in this area in this area of engineering.

Energy

It is the biggest sector in this branch that mechanical engineering students are very prone to this area. Petrolium, natural gas, wind turbines… All these things are related to that area of this area of engineering.

Hydromechanics

This area deals with engineering systems that include fluids. The major examples of hydromechanics applications; are gas turbines, jet engines, turbomachinery, hydraulic systems, etc. These systems are working with various kinds of fluid. So fluid mechanics is prominent in this area of this field of engineering.

Construction Techniques

This area’s principles depend on classical mechanics. But classical mechanics is more theoretical. Construction techniques are used to design much more complex mechanical systems by using various kinds of machine elements. If you were interested in general machinery systems, you can progress yourself in this area of mechanical engineering.

Probably you understand that mechanical engineering is a very wide range area. A Bachelor’s degree in this area of engineering education gives you only the fundamentals of these areas. You need to select one of these areas to develop yourself in your career. Or you can develop yourself in these specific areas with a master’s degree education in this field of engineering.

What are the Job Opportunities of Mechanical Engineering?

You read the areas of this area of engineering right above and probably you understand the job opportunities it is limitless. This situation answers why mechanical engineers are very common in the industry and other sectors. Selecting to study this area is not selecting what will you do in your future or career. You need to select a subject like the above, and your actual job will be defined. You can be a design engineer in an R&D office or manufacturing planner or a procurement officer. These are very different qualifications, but all of them are related to this area of engineering. So, you can select, what kind of job you want to do in your future while you are studying mechanical engineering. Career opportunities are very big.

What Kinds of Works Do Mechanical Engineers Do in Their Jobs?

We answered this question in the previous section. It is a very wide range of different areas in that they can work. But most of them are employed in production and manufacturing. Designing and production of a part are very big businesses. A mechanical engineer can design the vibrational characteristics of a product in the R&D department of a manufacturing site and another quality and control engineer can assess the qualities of produced parts in quality control departments. Another production engineer can design the production process of a part or product on the production site. All of these engineers can be graduated from school.

There are millions of engineers willing to work in the US because of high salaries in US Dollar currency and other reasons. Engineers generally gain required experience in their own countries to be eligible specialist engineers in a specific area. They use this experience and knowledge to find the best-fit job for themselves in the US or other developed countries like Germany or the UK. 

In the US, experienced engineers can also find the most advanced studies and works in the world, to add this knowledge and experience to themselves. This makes them one of the most wanted engineers in their specific areas, in the world. For example, if you are working in a factory as a mechanical engineer, you can find a job in the US same position. And probably, your knowledge will enhance because of the latest methods and technologies used in US factories and industries. Maybe you can turn to your country back as a manager, to implement your enhanced experience and knowledge. 

Mechanical Engineering in The World

This engineering area may be the most fundamental discipline around engineering topics. There are lots of kinds of sub-categories of this area of engineering, and we can make a salary analysis in the US separately. First of all, let’s take a look at the sub-categories of the sub-branches of mechanical engineering. 

• Design engineer: Or mechanical design engineer who is designing physical products or parts according to mechanical engineering design principles, such as the strength of materials. 
• Manufacturing Engineer: Most manufacturing engineers graduated from this area of engineering faculties. They are dealing with the manufacturing of goods in factory sites, by implementing the manufacturing techniques and by developing them also. 
• Materials engineer: Materials science is a very important branch of mechanical engineering. They are generally responsible for selecting and developing required materials with the required characteristics and properties for different projects. 
• Installation engineer: In modern society, there are lots of kinds of infrastructures such as sewage systems, gas installations, freshwater installations, electrical installations… There are lots of them dealing with the design and implementation of these systems. 
• Quality and control engineer: In a manufacturing site, produced products must be of specific standards and qualities. These standards can be decided by customers or countries. In the market, there are lots of mechanical engineers that are working in the quality and control departments of institutions and factories. 

These are the positions that most mechanical engineers are working in different companies. So, we can analyze the salaries that these specific positions can earn in the US.

Design Engineer Salaries in the US

Design engineers are generally employed in the R&D departments of companies to design the components of products. Maybe this branch of mechanical engineering is the most joyful one among others. 

According to the Indeed data, design engineers are earning around 77000$ per year. But, you need to consider the seniority in this job. If you have 5 years of experience in design engineering, you may receive a much more salary. 

Manufacturing Engineer Salaries in the US

Manufacturing engineers may be the most employed branch of this engineering area. In a standard factory or manufacturing site, there are lots of manufacturing engineers are employed. Again, the salaries depend on the experience in the same field. For example, you can be a 5S expert or occupational health and safety expert. According to Glassdoor data, the average salary of manufacturing engineers in the US is around 78000$. If you are a new starter in your career in the US, you can receive a little bit less from that value. 

Materials Engineer Salaries in the US

In this branch of mechanical engineering, we would like to share information about entry-level salaries. If you are employed as a materials scientist or materials engineer in the US, you can earn around 61000$ per year according to CollageGrad data. Like the other branches, you can earn much more from it. 

Installation Engineer Salaries in the US

Installation engineers are generally working on project-based. For example, your company or you get the business of implementing a natural gas installation of a building. You will probably have an agreement. And as an installation engineer, you can be in a position of signature of approval or system designer. If you are a system designer in a project, you can earn up to 85000$ per year according to Glassdoor data. If you are employed as an approval engineer, you can make a pie from the agreed price which will be more profitable in many cases. 

Quality and Control Engineer Salaries in the US

This branch of mechanical engineering may be the least type of employment for engineers. This can be a great opportunity for you to find a job and this is a very joyful position in different departments of manufacturing sites. Again, according to Glassdoor data, the average salaries of quality and control engineers may be up to 71464$. 

Comparison with the EU?

In the US, engineers are earning much more than in the EU because of the taxation systems. But in general, jobs in the US will be much more busy and intensive and working hours can be quite longer than in the EU. If you are searching for a more comfortable job life, you can prefer the EU… 

Required Steps to Succeed in Mechanical Engineering

Having a good level of technical knowledge is an inevitable requirement to be successful as a mechanical engineer. Still, this alone is not enough being successful in this area of engineering requires some skills as well as the education received. In addition, having competencies such as analysis and programming enables a mechanical engineer to work better. In the meantime, having some skills to be successful allows an engineer to stand out in business life and become a great one.

Developing in Technology as a Mechanical Engineer

With the development of technology, it has become a necessity for them to use the computer at a reasonable level. Being able to use the CAD (Computer Assisted Design) program is extremely useful. Knowing CAD is essential for every engineering field. In addition, specializing in programs that have vital importance in the operation of machines will bring numerous benefits in business life. In this digital age, mechanical engineers can climb the ladder of success faster if they have at least 1 programming interpretation. It will be useful to have a good command of programs such as Microsoft
Excel or MatLab to save, analyze and sort data because these programs are definitely used in professional life. A practical one is worthy of accolades everywhere.

How to Tell a Successful Mechanical Engineer?

The contribution of a mechanical engineer to the company is questioned. One of the criteria for success is meeting expectations. The quality of a mechanical engineer’s service and the work s/he does is controlled. The goal of a successful one is not only to wait by doing the given task but also to produce a value with the energy s/he spends. In this way, the engineer does not just work -works efficiently. Success comes with dedication.

Percentage of Women in Mechanical Engineering

Men are more oriented in this area of engineering profession due to the perception of gender in the businesses. Compared to previous years, when male mechanical engineers were the majority, female engineers began to increase today and successfully sign many large projects. It varies according to the preferred Engineering field.

What is the Preferred Engineering Fields?

• Electrical Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Civil Engineering
• Computer Engineering
• Mechatronics Engineering
• Environmental Engineering

It can be listed as. Engineering has a wide field. Some engineers are engaged in research in most sciences and are not limited to the above. Engineering, as mentioned above, is among the most preferred in this article. We will be mechanical engineering.

What is the Mechanical Engineering?

Mechanical engineering is one of the most established branches of engineering.

• It is an old and well-established field. From Al-Jazari, known as the first of them, to this time, this area of engineering has expanded its area every day. It has led to the education of qualified and successful engineers trained in many fields more than simple mechanical machine building.
• He has many quotas. The first item that is so old and well-established, with a range almost all the Universities of engineering education in the Department of this area of engineering of the faculty in terms of the most generous quota so that every year more and more university registration performs Mechanical Engineer, already on our list, 2. the most important reason for moving to the queue is that there are more than enough of them in our country within the quota opening.
• We can call it the Swedish pocket knife of engineering. Swedish pocket knives have many functions in one structure and are multifunctional and practical. Or, when we take the production area as a basis, we can look at them exactly like a Swedish pocket knife. Mechanical Engineering can find jobs in more than 27 fields and sectors. However, it has not created popularity in the perception that it is called “I am a mechanical engineer.”

To be a mechanical engineer, first as its name implies, to be linked to a machine to do a job got a car, this could be a straightforward motor system, so if the automotive vehicle industry, renewable energy sources, wind energy, solar energy, fluid mechanics, such as water pump, air conditioning, structural control on the motion of objects if you have interest in mechanical techniques, the machine will be a good choice for you.

What is the Place of the Women in Mechanical Engineering?

It is believed that women may not be interested since mechanical engineering is a profession that includes mechanical parts, and this is an entirely wrong idea. Women may be interested in many areas that men are interested in. Women’s achievements in this area of engineering have been proven to have achieved great success in many national projects. This has now started to reduce gender inequality situation. Since femininity is in the minority in engineering, it is possible to observe changes in feelings and movements in people, but we have too many examples of successful female engineers. The way to reduce this inequality is to break down prejudices and show that the success stories of female engineers’ role models affect everyone. It will help to exchange ideas with people who have experience in this field. It will be a light for other engineers to include women in large-scale projects.

Conclusion

As you see above, this engineering area is very broad. You can find various kinds of application areas and fields. A person who is dealing with this must know some computer programs for the design and analysis of complex engineering problems. Among these programs, Solidworks, Autocad, and ANSYS are the most common ones.

There are also very common application fields of mechanical engineering such as automotive, aerospace, etc. So, it is very important to know which kind of application area you want to work in.

In different parts of the world, this field can find job opportunities in different areas. Because the opportunities are very common. For example in the US, mechanical engineers are earning lots of money on the yearly basis.

Unfortunately, the percentage of women in this area is not high as the number of men as expected in this century. But, there are lots of investments in inciting women in mechanical engineering to add extra value to this field.

Finally, do not forget to leave your comments and questions below about mechanical engineering.

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FAQs About Mechanical Engineering