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2.1% Chance of Automation

“Refining Engineer” will not be replaced by robots.

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Job Description

Evaluate materials and develop machinery and processes to manufacture materials for use in products that must meet specialized design and performance specifications. Develop new uses for known materials. Includes those engineers working with composite materials or specializing in one type of material, such as graphite, metal and metal alloys, ceramics and glass, plastics and polymers, and naturally occurring materials. Includes metallurgists and metallurgical engineers, ceramic engineers, and welding engineers.

Job Details

The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 17-2131.00
The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 97,050.00
The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 46.00
Currently, there are 26,800 people on this job

☝️ Information based on the reference occupation “Materials Engineers”.

Also Known As…

Tasks for “Refining Engineer”

Design processing plants and equipment.
Analyze product failure data and laboratory test results to determine causes of problems and develop solutions.
Supervise production and testing processes in industrial settings, such as metal refining facilities, smelting or foundry operations, or nonmetallic materials production operations.
Guide technical staff engaged in developing materials for specific uses in projected products or devices.
Plan and implement laboratory operations for the purpose of developing material and fabrication procedures that meet cost, product specification, and performance standards.
Conduct or supervise tests on raw materials or finished products to ensure their quality.
Evaluate technical specifications and economic factors relating to process or product design objectives.
Determine appropriate methods for fabricating and joining materials.
Modify properties of metal alloys, using thermal and mechanical treatments.
Review new product plans and make recommendations for material selection based on design objectives, such as strength, weight, heat resistance, electrical conductivity, and cost.
Conduct training sessions on new material products, applications, or manufacturing methods for customers and their employees.
Supervise the work of technologists, technicians, and other engineers and scientists.
Perform managerial functions, such as preparing proposals and budgets, analyzing labor costs, and writing reports.
Write for technical magazines, journals, and trade association publications.
Solve problems in a number of engineering fields, such as mechanical, chemical, electrical, civil, nuclear, and aerospace.
Teach in colleges and universities.
Replicate the characteristics of materials and their components with computers.
Plan and evaluate new projects, consulting with other engineers and corporate executives as necessary.
Monitor material performance and evaluate material deterioration.
Design and direct the testing or control of processing procedures.

Related Technology & Tools

Tube furnaces
Load frames
Turbidimeters
Computerized numerical control CNC lathes
Compression testing machines
Heated walk-in environmental chambers
Gas chromatographs GC
Micromanipulators
Gauss meters
Muffle furnaces
Ammeters
Stabilometers
Linear variable differential transformers LVDT
Tensile testers
Oscillating water tunnels
Fiberscopes
Safety glasses
Colorimeters
Electrostatic separators
Water burets
Ultrasound inspection equipment
Durometers
Laboratory test sieves
Laser Doppler velocimeters LDV
Computer numerical controlled CNC milling machines
Magnetic separators
Infrared monitors
Atomic force microscopes
Solvent dryers
Ultrasonic baths
Sample presses
Laboratory blenders
Hot blenders
Ball mills
Lapping wheels
Scanning electron microscopes SEM
Abrasion testers
Mass spectrometers
Vacuum coating systems
Current versus voltage IV curve tracers
Jar mills
Impact testers
Masonry cutters
Pycnometers
Isodynamic separators
Melt spinners
Film thickness measurement systems
Inert atmosphere box furnaces
Microwave tube furnaces
Calorimeters
Molecular pumps
Sonometers
Benchtop centrifuges
Twin screw extruders
Drop weight impact towers
Fume hoods
Magnetic susceptibility balances
Solar simulators
Flotation columns
Laboratory microwave ovens
Twin-screw extruders
Adhesion testers
Particle size analyzers
Laboratory pulverizers
Plasma-arc furnaces
Flame photometers
Atomic absorption AA spectrophotometers
Microwave sintering furnaces
Vacuum furnaces
Vibration analysis equipment
Temperature regulated shaking water baths
Personal computers
Digital cameras
Attritors
Strain gauges
Etching equipment
Optical compound microscopes
Differential scanning calorimeters
Infrared cameras
Counter-current mixers
Adiabatic bomb calorimeters
Kneading compactors
High tension separators
Extensometers
Pit depth gauges
Binocular compound microscopes
Electrometers
Analytical balances
Electron microprobe analyzers EMPA
Holding jigs
Diffractometers
Laboratory vacuum pumps
Solid state laser systems
Servohydraulic test machines
Concrete test hammers
Screw-driven test machines
pH testers
Differential thermal analyzers
Tension gauges
Safety gloves
Microwave autoclaves
High temperature material testing systems
Laminators
Water-cooled saws
Thermogravimetric analyzers
Rod mills
Ultrasonic dismembrators
High-vacuum tensile testing chambers
Band saws
Wind tunnels
Energy dispersive x-ray spectrometers EDS
Optical emission spectrometers
Laboratory glove boxes
Jaw crushers
Deionizers
X ray fluorescence XRF analyzers
Mechanical sieve shakers
Slurry blenders
Fourier transform infrared FTIR spectroscopes
Spectrometers
Steam autoclaves
Coordinate measuring machines CMM
Hydraulic presses
Graphite element furnaces
Polishing machines
Friction and wear testers
Freeze-thaw test units
X ray fluorescence XRF spectrometers
Liquid conditioners
Stereo microscopes
Accelerometers
Hardness testers
Roll crushers
High pressure liquid chromatograph HPLC equipment
Rotating furnaces
Balling drums
Injection molding machines
Permeability measuring devices
Thermal analysis systems
Lathes
Gyratory crushers
Digitizing oscilloscopes
Porosity indicators
Electronic toploading balances
Laboratory sample splitters
Viscosity meters
Reflectometers
Polarizing microscopes
Spectrocolorimeters
Sanding machines
Specific gravity balances
Dataloggers
Ultrasonicators
Gas detectors
Charpy impact testers
Accelerated weathering machines
Filter presses
Gel permeation chromatographs GPC
Spectrophotometers
Microscope photo attachments
Acoustic impediography equipment
Vacuum evaporators
Ultraviolet UV exposure units
Cement mixers
Drying ovens

Formula translation/translator FORTRAN
C++
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Visual Basic
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft Office
Computer aided design CAD software
Microsoft Visual Basic.NET
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Visio
National Instruments LabVIEW
Minitab
Web browser software
Presentation software
Image analysis systems
Fault detection isolation and recovery FDIR software
ANSYS Multiphysics
MTS Testworks
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
PTC Creo Parametric
SAP
QMC CM4D
Stereolithography SLA rapid prototyping systems
Data entry software
Autodesk AutoCAD
Digital image correlation DIC software
IBM Notes
Dassault Systemes CATIA
Fused deposition modeling FDM rapid prototyping systems
Graphics software
Word processing software