What does a Mechanical Design Engineer do?
A mechanical design engineer specializes in designing various mechanical devices that will be vital in developing machinery or large structures. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around conducting thorough research and analysis, establishing layouts and prototypes, producing progress reports, and working alongside fellow engineers and skilled professionals. Typically assigned in an office setting, a mechanical design engineer must visit construction sites or factories to test and observe equipment qualities. Furthermore, during production, there are instances when a mechanical engineer must coordinate with suppliers, contractors, and clients.
Mechanical design engineer responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real mechanical design engineer resumes:
- Manage installation and troubleshooting documents for ultra precision CNC grinding machines.
- Manage the successful release to manufacturing of several generations of Ethernet switches.
- Engineer, manage and implement configuration and installation of complex Ethernet network backbones.
- Manage automation projects including purchasing, scheduling fabrication and assembly, debugging, and delivery to customer.
- Provide mechanical design and sustaining engineering expertise to troubleshoot manufacturing defect trends and achieve a more robust and producible product.
- Supervise product development in coherence with UL standards and manufacturers.
- Perform structural analysis on critical parts and assemblies using ANSYS and Pro-Mechanica.
- Create 3D drawings in AutoCAD of stitching machine compaction system.
- Generate 3D models, assemblies, and manufacturing drawings using PTC CREO.
- Aid in the design of automate programmable control equipment using PLC's and proximity switches for the paper industry.
- Develop FPGA code for in-circuit emulators, which enable software development for flash memory products that are not yet available.
- Design new adjustable arm with tilt swivel mechanism in compliance with NEMA 12, UL 50, and UL 746C specifications.
- Coordinate with die techs throughout the tooling assembly and tryout; update design cad to reflect any require changes or improvements.
- Complete a certification training in CFD
- Develop RTL micro-architecture specifications for various blocks.
Mechanical design engineer skills and personality traits
We calculated that 14% of Mechanical Design Engineers are proficient in CAD, Mechanical Design, and GD. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Listening skills, and Math skills.
We break down the percentage of Mechanical Design Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- CAD, 14%
Demonstrated advanced CAD skills in creating new components/ assemblies and analyzing existing designs to implement mechanical improvements while reducing costs.
- Mechanical Design, 12%
Direct, coordinate and exercise functional authority for planning, organization, integration and completion of Mechanical design projects/programs.
- GD, 5%
Employed GD & T to generate 2-D prints' dimensions by means of the dimensional management technique.
- Creo, 5%
Utilize CREO 2.0 CAD System to Create 2D Orthographic Production Drawings as related to Sheet Metal Radiation Shielding Panels.
- FEA, 4%
Performed FEA evaluations of components and assemblies utilizing ANSYS DesignSpace for durability and reliability prediction to meet product duty cycle.
- UL, 3%
Drafted engineering documentation and testing procedures while working with UL auditors and Quality Assurance.
"cad," "mechanical design," and "gd" are among the most common skills that mechanical design engineers use at work. You can find even more mechanical design engineer responsibilities below, including:
Creativity. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a mechanical design engineer to have is creativity. Their role and responsibilities require that "mechanical engineers design and build complex pieces of equipment and machinery." Mechanical design engineers often use creativity in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "created assembly drawings, including bill of materials and detail drawings using autodesk inventor and autocad. "
Listening skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling mechanical design engineer duties is listening skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "mechanical engineers often work on projects with others, such as architects and computer scientists." According to a mechanical design engineer resume, here's how mechanical design engineers can utilize listening skills in their job responsibilities: "communicated with operations managers and tenant coordinators to investigate existing conditions of sites and hvac systems. "
Math skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of mechanical design engineers is math skills. This skill is critical to many everyday mechanical design engineer duties, as "mechanical engineers use the principles of calculus, statistics, and other advanced subjects in math for analysis, design, and troubleshooting in their work." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "devise & implement real-time data collection, retention, and organization of statistics to conform to iso 9001 purchasing procedures. "
Mechanical skills. A big part of what mechanical design engineers do relies on "mechanical skills." You can see how essential it is to mechanical design engineer responsibilities because "mechanical skills allow engineers to apply basic engineering concepts and mechanical processes to the design of new devices and systems." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical mechanical design engineer tasks: "provided detailed mechanical, fabrication, and assembly drawings. "
Problem-solving skills. Another common skill required for mechanical design engineer responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." This skill comes up in the duties of mechanical design engineers all the time, as "mechanical engineers need good problem-solving skills to take scientific principles and discoveries and use them to design and build useful products." An excerpt from a real mechanical design engineer resume shows how this skill is central to what a mechanical design engineer does: "conceptualized the electrical and plumbing design solution for trailer body using the routing module in solidworks. "
The three companies that hire the most mechanical design engineers are:
- Tesla95 mechanical design engineers jobs
- Honeywell62 mechanical design engineers jobs
- RFA Engineering
26 mechanical design engineers jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable mechanical design engineer resume templates
Build a professional mechanical design engineer resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your mechanical design engineer resume.
Compare different mechanical design engineers
Mechanical design 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.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a mechanical design engineer are more likely to require skills like "mechanical design," "gd," "creo," and "ul." On the other hand, a job as an engineer requires skills like "python," "cloud," "c++," and "c #." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Engineers earn the highest salaries when working in the automotive industry, with an average yearly salary of $97,672. On the other hand, mechanical design engineers are paid more in the automotive industry with an average salary of $87,483.On average, engineers reach similar levels of education than mechanical design engineers. Engineers are 1.0% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Mechanical design engineer vs. Product engineer
A product engineer specializes in designing and developing commercial materials and services. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis of the latest trends and marketing conditions to come up with new ideas and products for the public. Moreover, they are also responsible for producing reports and presentations, coordinating with the development team of their company. Product engineers also reach out to vendors and suppliers for the raw materials, set regulations and standards for the product, and even conduct a rigorous and regular quality check.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real mechanical design engineer resumes. While mechanical design engineer responsibilities can utilize skills like "mechanical design," "creo," "engineering design," and "mechanical systems," product engineers use skills like "c++," "solidworks," "continuous improvement," and "data analysis."
Product engineers may earn a higher salary than mechanical design engineers, but product engineers earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $90,301. On the other hand, mechanical design engineers receive higher pay in the automotive industry, where they earn an average salary of $87,483.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Product engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than mechanical design engineers. In fact, they're 1.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for Mechanical Design Engineers in the next 3-5 years?
Dan Rodenbaugh
Vice President of Education, Director, ADDA
Mechanical design 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.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, mechanical design engineers are more likely to have skills like "mechanical design," "gd," "creo," and "fea." But a staff engineer is more likely to have skills like "java," "python," "architecture," and "software development."
Staff engineers earn the best pay in the telecommunication industry, where they command an average salary of $119,079. Mechanical design engineers earn the highest pay from the automotive industry, with an average salary of $87,483.staff engineers typically earn similar educational levels compared to mechanical design engineers. Specifically, they're 4.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 2.8% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Mechanical design engineer vs. Equipment engineer
The duties of an equipment engineer depend on one's organization or industry of employment. Typically, their responsibilities revolve around designing and developing mechanical and electronic equipment, analyzing and improving existing systems, performing customization according to customers' preferences, installing and removing attachments, and conducting regular maintenance procedures. An equipment engineer must also address issues and complaints, providing corrective measures promptly and efficiently. Furthermore, it is essential to coordinate with team members and other specialists, inspect and test new systems, and adhere to the company's policies and regulations.
Types of mechanical design engineer
Updated January 8, 2025
