Mechanical Engineers

Nature of the Work
Employment
Job Outlook

(D.O.T. 007.061, .161-022, -034, and -038, and .267-010)

• Nature of the Work

  Mechanical engineers plan and design tools, engines, machines, and other mechanical equipment. They design and develop power-producing machines such as internal combustion engines, steam and gas turbines, and jet and rocket engines. They also design and develop power-using machines such as refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment, robots, machine tools, materials handling systems, and industrial production equipment.
  
  The work of mechanical engineers varies by industry and function. Specialties include, among others, applied mechanics, design, energy systems, pressure vessels and piping, and heating, refrigeration, and air conditioning systems. Mechanical engineers design tools needed by other engineers for their work.
  
  Mechanical engineering is the broadest engineering discipline, extending across many interdependent specialties. Mechanical engineers may work in production operations, maintenance, or technical sales; many are administrators or managers.

• Employment

  Mechanical engineers held about 228,000 jobs in 1996. Almost 6 out of 10 jobs were in manufacturing—of these, most were in the machinery, transportation equipment, electrical equipment, instruments, and fabricated metal products industries. Business and engineering consulting services and Federal government agencies provided most of the remaining jobs.

• Job Outlook

  Employment of mechanical engineers is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2006. Graduates of mechanical engineering programs should have favorable job opportunities. Most of the expected job openings, resulting from both employment growth and the need to replace those who will leave the occupation, should be sufficient to absorb the supply of new graduates and other entrants.
  
  Although overall employment in manufacturing is expected to decline, employment of mechanical engineers in manufacturing should increase as the demand for improved machinery and machine tools grows and industrial machinery and processes become increasingly complex. Employment of mechanical engineers in business and engineering services firms is expected to grow faster than average as other industries in the economy increasingly contract out to these firms to solve engineering problems.
  
  
  (See introductory part of this section for information on training requirements, earnings, and sources of additional information.)
  
  

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