Plastics engineer

Earnings (Yearly Median): $104,100 (Materials Engineers; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2023)

Employment and Outlook: 5% (Faster than average) (Materials Engineers; Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2022–32)

O*NET-SOC Code: 17-2131.00 M(aterials Engineers)

Related Career Clusters: Manufacturing; Architecture & Construction; Health Science

Scope of Work

Plastics engineers perform a wide range of jobs related to designing, processing, and applying various plastic products in several fields, from the automobile industry to the computer- and toy-manufacturing industries. With a strong background in chemistry and physics, plastics engineers develop new kinds of plastics, or semiliquid polymers that exhibit plasticity (malleability), with individual manufacturers to create products according to their needs. Development is a large part of plastic engineers’ jobs, though they also test existing products and look for ways to improve them.

Education and Coursework

The road to a career in plastics engineering begins in high school. Students serious about engineering should take advanced classes in math, such as trigonometry and calculus, along with biology, chemistry, and physics. When class is out of session, several universities offer intensive summer programs and internships, giving some young engineers an edge over their colleagues.

Entry-level jobs require a bachelor’s degree, preferably from a specialized program emphasizing plastics design and manufacturing. Students in these programs will learn to work with polymer plastics, rubbers, paints, and adhesives. Some programs advance from foundations in mathematics and science to analysis and design. Other programs place engineering courses early in the curriculum so that students can decide whether the discipline is right for them. The engineering courses can include engineering mechanics (also called applied mechanics), systems dynamics, and engineering technologies. Plastics courses include plastics safety, organic chemistry, polymer chemistry, polymeric materials, plastics processing, fluid dynamics, and mold engineering. An emphasis is placed on laboratory work and engineering design projects that prepare engineers to apply research and theory in the evolving plastics marketplace.

Employers prefer candidates who have attended programs with accreditation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET), which requires students to study the natural sciences and advanced mathematics and take design classes. A master’s degree will provide training in advanced theory and practice. This degree is typically required of plastics engineers anticipating advancement in their field. Degree candidates might specialize in plastics design, plastics materials, processing, medical plastics design and manufacturing, or elastomeric materials.

Career Enhancement and Training

One must earn a license to be called a professional engineer in the US or Canada. Though requirements for licensure in the US differ from state to state, typical prerequisites begin with a degree from an ABET-accredited university program. (The Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) must accredit Canadian undergraduate programs.) One must then complete a pair of comprehensive exams, starting with the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, which lasts six hours and features 110 multiple-choice questions covering everything from chemistry to ethics and engineering fundamentals. Degree holders who pass the exam become engineers in training (EITs).

Completing the second exam, the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE), takes time. EITs must first gain a certain required amount of experience, typically four years, usually under the supervision of a professional engineer. After fulfilling work experience requirements, EITs may attempt the PE exam, the final step toward becoming licensed professional engineers. Many states require engineers to attend further courses to keep their licenses.

One way professional plastics engineers can continue to develop their skills is by earning certification in particular areas. This is often the best option for adults working in plastics who need formal education. Areas of specialization include plastics processing and product design. As technology ushers in changes to the plastics industry, particular certifications can help professional engineers maintain an edge. More knowledge and experience leads to greater independence and autonomy.

Advancement in the field can occur in many ways. Many engineers move on to work as technical specialists or engineering managers, overseeing teams of engineers and technicians. The latter is an option for those interested in business and administration. Many also pursue opportunities in sales. The in-depth product knowledge gathered throughout an engineering career can be vital in the marketplace.

Daily Tasks and Technology

Plastics engineers hold various jobs based on individual interests, expertise, and experience. Professional engineers working in materials research will determine methods for mixing or intensifying materials. This process involves communicating with a company’s business workforce to identify, analyze, and provide technical solutions to development problems. Most jobs in plastics engineering apply some variation on those tasks. They can be broken down into three categories: development, testing, and problem-solving.

Development primarily refers to product design, which entails working in labs to determine design and assess cost, risk, safety, timing, and manufacturing feasibility. Product designers might spend their days creating and modifying engineering drawings while working with teams to generate prototypes for testing. For process engineers, the tasks move beyond developing products into creating and implementing systems for constructing and manufacturing those products. They are also responsible for manufacturing processes' design, layout, and sequence.

Process engineers are also involved in testing. For example, they are responsible for constructing experiments to evaluate manufacturing processes, after which other engineers test the products to determine their sustainability. Product designers might perform weather, strength, and thermal testing. Engineers must return to the development stage when these tests provide less-than-optimal results.

Throughout an engineer’s day, problem-solving is a continuous concern. A standard day of creating and testing products often raises unforeseen issues that the engineers must solve. Production planners, for example, consult with factory workers and analyze efficiency records to introduce changes in equipment or labor.

Plastics engineers primarily work within a laboratory setting or in an office, utilizing computer-aided design (CAD) programs such as PTC Pro/ENGINEER or computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software for producing models, prototypes, and production parts.

Earnings and Employment Outlook

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median pay for a materials engineer was $104,100 in 2023, with the lowest 10 percent earning less than $63,340 and the top 10 percent earning more than $165,580.

Employment of materials engineers is expected to increase by 5 pecent from 2022 to 2032. Still, the development of new products in traditional fields, such as aerospace engineering, should continue steadily during this time, while demand should grow in expanding fields, such as nanotechnology and biomedical engineering. As technology continues to change rapidly, companies will look to develop new products and systems to address changing consumer needs in these areas.

Plastics engineers will reshape industrial processes as scientists learn more about the environmental consequences of plastics and their production methods. Medical research will create the need for new medical and scientific products. On a fundamental level, materials engineers of all types will be needed to head up research and development departments at many of the world’s top companies.

Related Occupations

• Architectural and Engineering Managers: Architectural and engineering managers develop, implement, and manage projects in architecture and engineering. These jobs include research and problem-solving.

• Biomedical Engineers:Biomedical engineers investigate problems and create meaningful solutions in biology and medicine, with the ultimate goal of increasing the quality of patient care.

• Chemical Engineers:Chemical engineers use chemistry principles to produce research, perform tests, and develop methods for safely manufacturing chemicals and other products.

• Mechanical Engineers:Mechanical engineers design, construct, and analyze mechanical devices such as tools, engines, and machines, including generators, refrigerators, robots, elevators, and conveyor systems.

• Plastic Machine Workers: Plastic machine workers set up and run machines that sever, sculpt, and arrange plastic materials. The job can involve adjusting machine settings and speeds, testing finished products, and recording production numbers.

Future Applications

As environmental research pushes engineers to envision and manufacture solutions to current problems, increased demand for sustainable technology is changing the landscape of the plastics field. For example, as solar power becomes more cost-effective, it has the potential to draw significantly from the labor of plastics engineers. Plastics could serve as a low-cost replacement for indium tin oxide (ITO), a scarce and expensive compound that is used not only in solar panels but also in other more common products, including flat-screen televisions, mobile phones, and other devices with display screens. Additionally, plastics engineers have increasingly experimented with creating more sustainable, eco-friendly plastic products for various uses.

As electronic products become more diverse, the demand for engineers to design and manufacture them will grow. Investment in new and innovative computer-based products is on the rise, and demand for the innovators to deliver on their promise is likely to follow.

Bibliography

"Materials Engineers." Occupational Outlook Handbook. Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor, 17 Apr. 2024, www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/materials-engineers.htm. Accessed 28 Aug. 2024.