Anyone notice a saturation in Engineering / design roles in manufacturing?

[BMWTurboDzl]

I wish car companies would require their designers and engineers to do a 5 year apprenticeship in a flat rate dealership

Great idea but I don't think it would matter because engineers aren't the only stakeholders.

 

[Silver]

Great idea but I don't think it would matter because engineers are the only stakeholders.

And what if they wondered onto the sales floor and got their brain sucked out and replaced with a dollar sign minted in solid gold?

 

[PandaBear]

As someone who is the very end of the Millennial generation, all we ever heard in school was “go to college! You have to go to college!” and in high school it was even worse, especially because I had absolutely zero desire to go to college. They put these “office” jobs on a pedestal while putting down anyone who didn’t have a degree, it drives my mother in law up the wall that all I have is a high school diploma. I still get the occasional “you could have done so much more! Why don’t you go back and finish your apprenticeship? You’ll at least get a certificate!” comment from her

I’m quite happy as a machinist, I get to make cool things all day.

In GenX time, there was a "guarantee for jobs" and "higher pay" for college-educated folks, because basically if you can go to college and not drop out you are at least committed to finish something you started and will follow instruction to learn. It was not a system to separate people who can or cannot afford to go like today, but rather a "do you want to commit" system.

These days engineering degree still has a value especially if you are going into the higher pay jobs that involve software or web. It is a good time because we are in another wave of industrial evolution, and it may last at least another 10 years of guaranteed employment (not guaranteed on pay however). Liberal Art and Social Study degrees are now basically useless, even if you have a master or PhD on those.

Regarding to being a machinist, the problem would be whether CNC and other automation would shrink your job opportunities in the future. Same with many other office jobs, there is no guarantee these days on anything, other than paying off your debt early and reduce your future living expenses.

 

[PandaBear]

Yes but it is not a priority at all. They do not want it easy to fix cars any longer. They want it complicated so you have to take it to the dealer. Also they want it expensive so you can justify getting rid of it and buy a new one. And, to scare you into buying repair insurance or an extended warranty. The next big financial services business. That seems to be the direction of the business model. It is not in consumers or owners best interest. How often have you heard that the dealers make more money on the financing and extended warranty of the car than the actual sale. Car companies answer to their board of directors and shareholders. Customers have become marks. Not respected partners.

When you design industrial machinery the customers spec should have maintenance requirements. If they know what they are doing. Then the designers are contractually required to design in ease of maintenance, as best they can. A huge distinction between a consumer good and a piece of capitol equipment.

That is why I liked designing machines and tooling for manufacturing. I don't think I could have designed consumer products. I would not have lasted long.

Industrial stuff they still want easy maintenance, you see that in their design and they are not selling on the initial sales price.

Commercial stuff targeting housewives and the Jones, they don't really care as long as they look good, make them happy, and they can buy a new one when the old one dies. We get exactly what we deserve when we threw away solid wood antique and 20 year old sturdy fridge and washers to buy fashion appliances and furnitures, and the manufacturers sell us exactly what we want to buy.

 

[nbpt100]

Regarding to being a machinist, the problem would be whether CNC and other automation would shrink your job opportunities in the future. Same with many other office jobs, there is no guarantee these days on anything, other than paying off your debt early and reduce your future living expenses.

Even trying to be debt free and have low overhead is a non guarantee any more. Something may change. Still a worthy goal however. You need to be flexible and not give up. That is all you can do.

 

[UG_Passat]

I used to spend my days as an engineering fixing the mistakes of engineers that don't know how to read a drawing and then giving me attitude about me fixing their costly mistakes.

My favorite story is a GD&T callout for profile of the surface. The contractor and the engineers approved a 2D method at a single orientation. I come in and fixed the callout by changing to "profile of a line", and I get flack from the contractor AND my fellow engineers, as they have been doing it the wrong way for 20+years... which I told them they had 2 choices:
a) bring their measurement in compliance to the current drawing (ie, using a CMM or equivalent)
or
b) accept my fix to the drawing, and they don't have to do anything additional for compliance.

They reluctantly accepted my change.