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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 “Research Engineer”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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