INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING

What Is Industrial Engineering?

Industrial engineering, in its current form, began in the early 20th century, when the first engineers began to apply scientific theory to manufacturing. Factory owners labeled their new specialists 'industrial' or management engineers.

Industrial engineering is commonly defined as the integration of machines, staff, production materials, money, and scientific methods. While many current industrial engineers still deal in these areas, the scope of their work has become more general. Today's industrial engineers work in many more settings than just factories; in recent years, fields like energy and IT have become particularly reliant on the skills of industrial engineers. These flexible professionals may also be employed in: 

• Hospitals and other health-care operations
• Transportation
• Food processing
• Media
• Banking
• Utilities
• Local, regional and national governments

The requirements for a college degree in industrial engineering are very diverse and, compared to otherengineering degree disciplines, very people-oriented. Budding industrial engineers learn to plan, design and implement complex systems for a given industry. They do this by taking into account every conceivable variable, from budgets to machine capabilities to human imagination and error. Online degree programs in industrial engineering are increasingly available to working engineers who want to advance their careers without sacrificing valuable income and work experience by attending school full-time.

In a nutshell, industrial engineering majors learn to use engineering and scientific principles to design, manufacture, or improve systems that involve both goods and services. Industrial engineers deal with how products are created, the quality of those products, and the cost of making the products.

Industrial engineers also deal with the design and workings of the factories that make products. They design the workstations, automation, and robotics for systems all along the supply chain. Industrial engineers are often highly involved in any managerial aspects of modern businesses. These duties range from floor manager all the way up to CEO.

In addition, industrial engineers are concerned with employee safety and workplace environments. They balance the implementation of responsible processes with the other requirements of making a product or providing a service of high quality.

In today's global marketplace, industrial engineering is fast becoming international engineering. Global boundaries are diminishing, requiring industrial engineers to be fluent in foreign languages and customs. International travel could very well be the norm for engineers, as companies expand and conduct more and more business with foreign governments.

Career Education in Industrial Engineering

Due to the fact that career options are nearly limitless for industrial engineering majors, they must get a well-rounded education. This requires the study of:

• Computer systems
• Mathematics
• Statistics
• Design
• Management

In addition, it is wise for the industrial engineering major to focus on the physical and social sciences, including economics.

Industrial Engineering Coursework

Students entering into an industrial engineering degree program should expect to enroll in many of these types of classes:

• Engineering Economy
• Manufacturing Processes
• Operations Research
• Simulation
• Industrial Cost Control
• Robotics and Automation
• Inventory Control
• Facility Design
• Organizational Management
• Quality Control
• Human Factors
• Methods & Work Measurement
• Production Control

On-Campus and Online Degree Programs in Industrial Engineering

Although some campus and online colleges offer associate degrees in industrial engineering technology, most careers in the field of industrial engineering require a bachelor's degree at minimum. Since the field is so specialized, and since proper training and education are vital to the safety of so many people, a bachelor's degree is usually required for entry-level positions. Online degrees are rarely available at this level, since so much hands-on training is required.

A bachelor's degree generally takes four years to complete. Courses typically include core engineering classes available to all disciplines in addition to specialized industrial engineering classes.

What Can You Do With a College Major in Industrial Engineering?

Industrial engineers determine the most effective way to use the basics of any production - people, machines, materials, information, money, and energy - in order to make a product or provide a service. Some of the most productive and successful professionals in the industrial engineering field share many of these common traits:

• Oral and written communication skills
• Organizational ability
• Computer literacy
• Creativity
• A knack for designing and improving systems
• Mathematics ability
• Problem solving
• People skills

The industrial engineer provides the key to achieving the performance goals of ownership or management. Unlike engineers in other specialties, the industrial engineer is primarily concerned with increasing productivity through the management of people, the methods of organization and the available technology.

In order to solve problems encountered in product manufacturing and service industries, industrial engineers must study the product and its requirements. They use mathematical models to figure out production requirements and to design manufacturing and information systems. They develop and manage systems that aid in financial planning for individual products. This is also an effective method of cost analysis.

Industrial engineers design financial systems and improve, upgrade, and reconfigure these systems. Those engineers on the management track may also develop wage, payroll, and salary administration systems and other job performance and evaluation systems. These engineers are so deeply involved with every nuance of the corporate system that they are often the best source for overall company evaluation.

Health and safety engineers are very similar to industrial engineers. They both deal with the entirety of a production process. Health and safety engineers promote worksite safety and corporate health by applying models and systems of the industrial process. These engineers must be able to recognize and then diffuse hazardous situations before they come to pass.

In addition to manufacturing and service industries, industrial engineers apply their knowledge to a variety of industries and positions. An industrial engineering major might work as a:

• Management Engineer: The management engineer is primarily responsible for the systems and procedures that make employees more effective, individually and as a unit.
• Ergonomist: An industrial engineer who is concerned with the proper tool usage and health systems that prevent stress and injury.
• Operations Analyst: Responsible for integrating people and machines effectively and safely.
• Quality Engineer: Measures, tests and ensures the quality and safety of products or services.

Industrial engineering graduates might find themselves working on projects like these:

• Designing the admissions procedure at a hospital.
• Discovering a new way to assemble a product that will prevent worker injury.
• Representing a company in the design and construction of a new plant.
• Performing motion and time studies.
• Developing prototype units for the cellular phone car adapter market.
• Simulation modeling.
• Developing a hardware protection program for spacecraft.
• Developing a supplier quality program.
• Implementing lean manufacturing concepts.
• Developing and launching a complete material handling system.
• Developing the conceptual layout of a dockyard and ship repair facility.
• Working on a medical device to treat sleep apnea.
• Representing manufacturing and purchasing concerns on a design team.
• Teaching industrial engineering courses.

• These are just a few areas in which businesses use industrial engineers. In essence, when a company functions at the highest level of productivity, an industrial engineer probably designed and implemented the systems that brought the company to that point.

Certification, Licensure and Associations

No national licensing body certifies industrial engineers. Most employers rely on the solid training that graduates receive during their degree programs. Instead, most licensing and certification is reserved for the products designed and developed by industrial engineers.
Since an industrial engineer can effectively function in any field, s/he must conform to the certification bodies that oversee his or her particular specialty. Some states do require additional licensing as an engineer. Consult your local statute and licensing boards for more information.

Industrial Engineering Jobs

Industrial engineering can entail a wide variety of things, so it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what to expect on the job or even what is fair compensation. Here are some job profiles that will give you an idea of how varied this profession can be:

Healthcare Management Engineer

The healthcare industry is a very interesting and exciting area where industrial engineers play an integral role. Often called “management engineers” as opposed to industrial engineers, these professionals act as internal or external consultants to hospitals and other healthcare systems. Their main role is to be problem solvers who have a well-established understanding of the industry.

Projects can include everything from determining staffing levels to implementing new technology to streamlining office processes. While pay is competitive with other industries, expect a lower-than-average salary if you are working for a nonprofit.

Lean Coordinator

“Lean” is a popular business practice of reducing waste so that what you are left with are only value-adding processes and activities. Lean coordinators are found in all types of industries, but most commonly in manufacturing.

Duties include lean training and various lean implementation tasks related to process improvement, cost reduction, and workplace organization. A lean coordinator identifies areas for improvement, and then leads a team in making improvements. For example, a lean coordinator may notice a bottleneck in part of the production line due to a cluttered environment; the lean coordinator would then plan a more effective layout and implement the idea.

Theme Park Industrial Engineer

Industrial engineers generally work in theme parks as internal consultants. Much like other industrial engineers, these engineers are asked to assist in solving issues and streamlining processes.

One aspect of industrial engineering in a theme park is being part of the development of a new product or attraction. For those types of projects, industrial engineers are consulted to determine the best process for launching the product or the best way to take a guest through the attraction.

Another important aspect of industrial engineering is understanding and analyzing guest flow to better balance the guest population throughout the park.

Supply Chain Solutions Engineer

These industrial engineers are quickly growing in numbers, as companies understand how valuable they are to save money. Their focus is to determine the best way to arrange people, organizations, information, technology, and activities to move a product or service from the supplier to the customer. To do this, supply chain solution engineers must analyze costs, processes, materials, and technology to determine the logistics to maximize profits and customer satisfaction. For industrial engineers just getting started in their careers, this is an ideal area because it is growing and in high demand.

Quality Assurance Engineer

Quality assurance engineers are found in almost every manufacturing industry, and their main task is to ensure that products are consistently high quality. Quality engineers’ objectives are to determine the level of quality, what areas of a process are disrupting quality, and how to resolve those quality issues. An engineer must do all these things through audits to make sure the process is standardized and low-cost. Some quality issues that these engineers concern themselves with include strength of a product and product lifecycle.

Project Managers

Many industrial engineers of all types eventually find themselves in the position of project manager. As project managers, industrial engineers are in charge of coordinating a team to accomplish a set of objectives.

The project manager will assign responsibilities to team members and monitor the project’s progress. It is also the project manager’s responsibility to act as a problem solver. Industrial engineers make excellent project managers since they possess an understanding of many different engineering disciplines, and tend to have good leadership and people skills.

How to Become an Industrial Engineer
,To attain one of the jobs discussed above, you must first have a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering. It is not necessary to get a master’s degree, as it is not required for most entry-level positions. Plus, many industrial engineers pursue an MBA degree as opposed to a master’s degree once they are in the work force.

Courses

Undergraduate coursework includes:

Depending on where you go to school, the learning emphasis may be on different aspects of the field, but the general education should be the same. For example, many Midwest schools place more focus on manufacturing than Southern schools, as many Midwest industrial engineering jobs are in the manufacturing industry.

My husband and I both have industrial engineering degrees: My husband received a very theoretical education at Georgia Institute of Technology, while my education at the University of Florida focused more on practical application, even though we took the same courses with the same exact textbooks.

Top Schools

Not only will you want to keep in mind what aspects of industrial engineering a university program will emphasize, but you may also want to consider the national ranking of a school when choosing your college. According to US News, these schools offer the top industrial engineering programs in the United States for 2012:

How can a student prepare to attend one of these prestigious schools to get a degree in industrial engineering? The best course of action is to take as many math and science classes as possible, particularly those at a college level.

Additionally, high school students can further prepare by taking an introductory course to computer programming. It’s also a good idea for a high school student to shadow a few industrial engineers in various industries to get a better idea of what the career is like on a day-to-day basis.

Reasons to Consider Majoring in Industrial Engineering

Besides playing an important role in giving companies a competitive edge, industrial engineering can be exciting and rewarding.
1. The Field Is Broad
Industrial engineering is an exceptionally broad field, which means you will not be stuck doing the same thing day-in and day-out for the next 30 to 40 years. Besides being able to switch roles within an industry, you can try out a different industry if you desire a change.

For instance, if you start your career in manufacturing but decide later that your real passion is healthcare, there is certainly a place for you in the healthcare industry. If you are working on streamlining processes, but find your real talent lies in working with people, you’ll fit right into a position within project management.

2. Pay Is Exceptional
Currently, the average starting salary of an entry-level industrial engineer is between $55,000 and $65,000. Furthermore, your salary will continue to rise throughout your years of employment. The average salary of industrial engineers as of May 2010 was $78,450, with the top 10% earning more than $112,000 a year. Even the lowest 10% earn close to $50,000, which is above the $44,410 average salary of all occupations.

3. Career Offers Movement
Once an industrial engineer gets some experience, it is not uncommon to be promoted to a managerial position. In fact, for someone whose ultimate goal is to get into management, industrial engineering offers a quick and easy pathway.

While industrial engineers receive similar business training as business students, they have a leg up due to their additional math, science, and technology training. Furthermore, industrial engineers often complete summer internships, which also make them more marketable and desirable to employers, and they also frequently minor in business administration or sales to complement their major. Many industrial engineers round out their education by earning an MBA, either directly after their bachelor’s degree or after a few years of experience.

4. Demand Is High
Due to the wide range of services that industrial engineers provide, it only makes sense that the number of available jobs would continue to grow. With so many businesses looking to cut costs, the hiring of an industrial engineer pays for itself, thus making it a great career field for the future.

With nearly 203,000 employed in this field mid-2010, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects this number to continue to grow at a rate of 14% over the next decade – faster than the average of all other occupations. Regardless of the overall state of the economy, companies will always have a need for industrial engineers to continually help reduce costs and improve processes.

5. Degrees Are Available
While not every college offers a degree in industrial engineering, they are becoming more prolific. Accredited degree programs are now available at more than 70 schools nationwide, with Georgia Institute of Technology ranked at the top of the pack.

When choosing a college to attend, there is a good chance that you’ll consider one with an industrial engineering program. Furthermore, some trade schools, such as the Milwaukee School of Engineering, do offer industrial engineering programs, so it is not necessary to attend a traditional university to get an accredited industrial engineering education.

6. Scholarships Are Available
College scholarships are available for industrial engineering students through various organizations, the most notable being the Institute for Industrial Engineers, which offers several scholarships each year. Other organizations offering scholarships to industrial engineering students include the Society of Women Engineers, the National Society of Black Engineers, and the Association of Iron and Steel Technology Foundation.

Is Industrial Engineering Right for You?

Industrial engineering is a suitable career for anyone who enjoys problem solving and finding not just any solution, but the best one. Math, science, statistics, and programming skills are heavily emphasized, so it is important to excel in these areas. Industrial engineering also suits those who like to think outside of the box and use their creativity. Initiative, leadership skills, discipline, diligence, and people skills all make an industrial engineer successful.

On the other hand, if your math and science abilities are lacking or you are uninterested in those subjects, industrial engineering is probably not for you. If you lack attention to detail, you may also find this career to be out of your comfort zone. Furthermore, if you do not desire to hold a leadership or management role, you may fail to grow in your career, as many industrial engineers eventually get promoted to such positions.

Final Word

To major in industrial engineering is to get an education that you will likely not regret. Not only will you receive a well-rounded foundation in math, science, business, and technology, you’ll be entering a career field that is ever-changing and never boring. You’ll solve puzzles to save your company money while improving efficiency, productivity, and quality.

Have you had any experience in industrial engineering? What other industrial engineering careers are out there?