Mechanical Engineering - Careers, Salary, Jobs, Scope

Why MECHANICAL ENGINEERING?

Mechanical Engineering is a professional branch of engineering which deals with operation and handling of heavy tools and machinery, and designing of mechanical systems. Studying mechanical engineering, you will learn about transmission lines, electricity grids, wiring in a building, and also the design and working of motors, generators, vehicles, aircrafts, etc. You will also need to go get knowledge about software necessary for this specialization, for example, software that deals with the computer aided design and mathematical modeling.

Top colleges offering mechanical engineering course are:

• Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IITB)
• Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, (IITD)
• Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, (IITK)
• Birla Institute of Technology & Science, Pilani
• Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad

Mechanical engineering graduates are generally employed by Engineering, transport, manufacturing, construction and process companies, Research and development organizations, Consultancies, Utilities companies, The Civil Service, The armed forces and Government agencies.

Working hours can be longer than normal office hours, but there are usually no weekend working or shifts. There are regular visits to factories, construction sites or workshops. There is generally no travel or extensive outdoor work involved.

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING: Jobs and Career Opportunities

There can be various job profiles you can hold after getting a degree in mechanical engineering. Some of them are mentioned below with necessary details-

Aerospace Engineer

This is one of the most lucrative areas you can go and work for. This field will have you working internationally with cutting edge technology. An aerospace engineer tests, develops and maintains aircraft, missiles, satellites, space vehicles and weapon systems.

They are also entrusted with improving flight safety and minimize risk to safety and life, increase fuel efficiency and cut costs. Various specializations in aerospace engineering include aerodynamics, avionics, materials and structures, propulsion and systems integration.

Automotive Engineer

This area is the one for you if you have a keen sense of commercial awareness. Automotive engineers design and develop vehicles like cars, motorcycles, buses and trucks.

It requires skill to build an efficient machine within budget and deadlines, and after you have gained experience, you are likely to specialize in a particular area, such as structural design or exhaust systems. Automotive engineers mainly specialize in design, production, or research and development.

Control and Instrumentation Engineer

These engineers are mainly responsible for designing, constructing and installing systems to monitor and control engineering systems, machinery and/or processes.

Instrumentation and Control engineers are employed both by companies who manufacture these systems as well as by those who use them, like nuclear power plants and renewable energy companies. You will need to have a thorough understanding of your company’s or client’s needs for instrumentation, and your job is essentially multidisciplinary as it requires you to coordinate with various departments and people within the company.

Maintenance Engineer

The task of a maintenance engineer is to ensure all the machinery and processes are running continuously, smoothly and without glitches. They are also required to oversee periodical maintenance and repair using computerized systems.

Maintenance engineers are also occasionally involved in construction and development of systems that are used for maintenance. They collaborate with other professionals to increase efficiency, reduce incidental breakdowns, and to improve the overall production and expenditure on the plant.

Mechanical Engineer

A mechanical engineer is entrusted with providing solutions to the development of machinery and processes, ranging from the smallest components to the heaviest machinery.

They can be involved in any stage of the manufacturing process, from research and development to the final installation and commissioning. Mechanical engineering is one of the most diverse fields, and you can work in any of the following- aerospace, automotive, biomedical, construction, manufacturing, power, railway.

Other job positions that can be held are as follows-

• Nuclear engineer
• Mining engineer
• Contracting civil engineer
• Technical sales engineer
• Water engineer

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING: Salary

The average salary of a mechanical engineer in India is close to Rs. 3, 40, 000 per annum. Fresh graduates can earn an average of Rs. 3, 00, 000 per annum, while a mechanical engineer in the middle of his career can earn about Rs. 5, 50, 500 per annum. Bonuses can range from Rs. 2000 to Rs. 98, 000.

The useful skills for this specialization would be C++, ANSYS and Engineering Design. The demand for mechanical engineers is always high, because of growth in automobile and space industries. Mechanical engineers are also employed by government sector companies for various heavy machinery- related authorities, like the railways.

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING: Recruiters

The core government and private sector companies recruiting mechanical engineers are mentioned as follows-

• ISRO – Indian Space Research Organization
• BHEL – Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited
• NTPC – National Thermal Power Corporation Limited
• OIL/IOCL/BPCL – Indian Oil Corporation
• NPCIL – Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited
• BARC – Bhabha Atomic Research Centre
• DRDO – Defense Research and Development Organization
• SAIL – Steel Authority of India

Top Private Companies:

• L&T
• Brahmos Aerospace
• Maruti Suzuki
• Tata Motors/ Tata Group
• Reliance Group
• Mahindra Group
• Adani Group
• Schlumberger
• General Motors India
• Bajaj Automobiles
• Godrej & Boyce
• Mercedes Benz India
• John Deere
• Thermax

Specialisations

Since mechanical engineering is a very vast area of study and offers lot of scope, hence it becomes necessary for a student to pick an area of specialization to focus his/ her mind and time on, and to succeed in her/ his chosen career.  A list of popular specializations that can be taken up in mechanical engineering is mentioned below-

• Automotive
• Biomechanics Engineering / Biomaterial
• Combustion / IC Engine Modeling (Experimental, Computational)
• Controls, Robotics
• Dynamics, Controls & Vibrations
• Energy / Heat & Mass transfer / Thermal Science
• Fluid Mechanics / Computational Fluid Mechanics
• Manufacturing
• Materials / MEMS / NANO – 3D Printing
• Solid Mechanics – Computational mechanics

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING: Syllabus

The subjects you will be studying as a part of your training to become a mechanical engineer is mentioned below. Note that the exact combinations and details of the subjects will vary from university to university, and may be slightly changed in some of the colleges as per that university’s curriculum.

• Computational Fluid Dynamics and Heat Transfer
• Computer Aided Design of Thermal Systems
• Fundamentals of casting and solidification
• Industrial Engineering and Operation Research
• Modeling of Turbulent Combustion
• Principle of Vibration Control
• Railroad Vehicle Dynamics
• Robot Manipulators Dynamics and Control
• Transition and Turbulence
• Wave propagation in solids

Popular Colleges offering MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

There is no dearth of reputed government and private colleges that offer mechanical engineering. The top colleges to pursue mechanical engineering in India is as follows-

Requirements for MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

You should consider opting for the profession of a civil engineer if you are confident about your aptitude in the sciences (Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics). Keep in mind that especially during the early part of your career, you will have to do some groundwork and supervise in plants and factories, which are potentially noisy and uncomfortable.

The working hours are normal office hours, which can extend to late hours and weekend work when project deadlines are approaching. For a few specializations within mechanical engineering, your job will require you to constantly be outdoors for supervising and maintaining the processes and machinery.

Why should you choose MECHANICAL ENGINEERING?

Mechanical Engineering covers aspects like testing among others, and hence the work will demand supervision on live projects of thermal and nuclear power plants, which always hold an element of slight risk to health. So, opt for these jobs only if you are ready to put in a considerable amount of out- of- door work and supervision.

The upcoming fields in this area are renewable energy, automobiles, quality control, Industrial automation and mechanobiology, among others. These are going to increase manpower in the work profile of mechanical engineering and would offer employment opportunities.