Will Mechanical Engineers Be Needed In The Future? I am sure this question has entered the minds of many individuals who are starting their career, studying at university or even deep into their career. With the recent developments of electrical systems and electronics, especially in automation, there is reason to ask yourself this question. Especially with it becoming increasingly popular for engineers to start programming, including microcontroller boards, which can be found in engine control systems. However, there is no need to worry about your future, if you wish to have a career in mechanical engineering, as we will discuss the reasons why.
Reasons Mechanical Engineers Will Be Needed in The Future
Nanoengineering
In every sector, performance is something we always want to improve, so we are getting better. The prime path this will take is further improvements to materials. Materials are used everywhere and play a pivotal role. To further improve material performance, we will have to start investigating them deeper on a nano level. The investigation of materials on a nanoscale will allow stronger composites, more sustainable materials and energy storage systems to be developed. This field is a rapidly growing field that has a plentiful supply of opportunities for mechanical engineers.
Biomechatronics
This topic comes with the growth of robotics. With the rapidly growing demand and development of robots, mechanical engineers will find opportunities in biomechatronics. Biomechatronics is the combination of biology and mechatronics to mimic the movements of the human body. The majority of the work will be covered by designing and testing different devices and prototypes. Mechanical engineers will be needed in the future for the designing and testing of devices such as mechanical sensors, controllers and actuators. The nature of this work will most likely result in you working within the medical industry.
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is an industry that is always wanting more, and rightly so. If companies can make products quicker while maintaining quality standards, they will be attractive suppliers. Additionally, furthering manufacturing processes can lead to improved reliability of the process and result in better quality. These two factors are considerable influences on manufacturing ability and attractiveness to customers.
The primary development to meet this demand is by utilising and developing automation and robotics, an area in which mechanical engineers are vital. With this the chosen path to improve manufacturing processes, mechanical engineers will be essential to its development.
Growing Job Market
The market for mechanical engineers is growing, with it predicted to have a growth of 4% between 2019 – 2029, approximately 1,000 new jobs a year. The reason for this continued growth is the increase in demand for products and emerging sectors. A good example of this is electric vehicles and the role they will play in the future. All major car manufacturing companies are developing electric cars. A growing job market is a good strength indicator for a sector, and by the looks of it, engineers aren’t going anywhere. As the demand in the industry grows, mechanical engineers will be needed in the future to fill the opportunities.
Transferable Skills
This one is slightly different from what we have covered already. Engineers learn and master a wide range of skills during university and their career. If you’re uncertain if you want to enter engineering after university, the skills you learnt will put you in stead and make you an attractive proposition to companies in different sectors, e.g. finance. Additionally, if you start a career in engineering and decide you would like a change, you can move into an alternative sector as a result of all the skills you have developed.
A great piece of evidence for this is that around 33% of the worlds most successful companies have someone in a leadership position with a background in engineering!
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