As our
top ten of best cities to work in attests to, there is an abundance of opportunities for engineers if you are prepared to relocate either temporarily or permanently.
There are a number of ways to slant an engineering career towards international travel.
UK-based recruitment agency Jonathon Lee says that around 20% of its engineering vacancies are outside of the UK. Robin Born, a Jonathan Lee recruitment consultant who works primarily in the automotive sector, says: “There is a strong desire for UK engineers abroad at the moment. Moreso on six to 12 month contracts, because they are easier on the family. Most permanent positions overseas are related to manufacturing and are in Europe. In design it's most common to have temporary contracts.”
Most companies want engineers with three to four years of experience, not fresh graduates, he adds, although a “good degree” from a well-respected university will get you further. An extra language, such as German, Japanese or French will also make you a more attractive prospect for overseas work. Furthermore, it's advisable that your second language is of the country that is most dominant in your sector. For example, German is best in the automotive market, whereas French is advantageous in aerospace.
Another big plus is if you can be flexible about location and duration, if on a temporary contract. International placements can often suit single, younger, applicants better. It isn't until an engineer has more experience and is higher up in a company that perks such as family relocation costs can be negotiated.
Engineering degrees which are more “specific” make applicants more attractive, Born says, as do additional specific skills and experience. Electronics skills, for example, are very much in demand at the moment.
However, aerospace recruitment consultant Matthew Heath says there is increasing parity between the skills required in the automotive and aerospace sectors, with design and stress engineers able to transfer from one sector to the other the easiest.
“The manufacturing processes are now very similar,” he says. “Automotive used to lead the field with the use of lean and six sigma and manufacturing standards, but now within aerospace the focus is also very much on cost and fuel efficiency. Both sectors share a focus on quality, standards, traceability, delivering product on time.
“Knowledge in these sectors is truly global,”
The use of computer aided design and engineering has sped up the product design and development processes in both sectors and many of the software tools are similar if not identical. Experience with new composite materials in manufacturing is also sought after in both sectors and wanted around the world. For example, sections of the Boeing 787 are made in Japan. Defence firm Raytheon has composites manufacturing in Brazil.
In the defence sector engineers are most often in shortest supply in Russia and the Middle East. Aerospace opportunities are focussed in Europe especially as well as China and the Pacific Rim, says Heath.
According to Born, there is an increasing number of opportunities in the US automotive market, as a result of it recently “opening up” to foreign investment and engineering. Also, more companies are moving out of China and relocating in Eastern Europe. “There can be a lot of challenges when setting up in a low cost economy,” he says. “I’ve seen staff seconded initially for three months and they are still there two years later.”
Offshoring to China can prove expensive and time consuming. Eastern Europe offers a cheaper workforce while remaining culturally and geographically closer, Born adds.
Delphi's wind tunnel at its technical centre in Luxembourg
Automotive component supplier Delphi has a major manufacturing facility in Poland, one of 126 manufacturing sites in 32 countries. It has a major presence in all the main countries in Europe, China, India, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Some 118,000 staff work in these locations - around 19,000 are professional engineers. Bernhard Just, vice president of human resources for Delphi, says that where you find an automotive OEM, you will find his company.
“Our engineer’s careers are truly international. We have plenty of locations and can provide an international career,” Just says. “Our core engineering skill sets are really mechanical and engineering. These guys can do a lot of travelling - it depends on the products and technology they are working on. Things like a new product launch need a lot of travelling.
However the company's requirement for engineers is not focussed in any one area. “We truly have a global footprint and we need engineers everywhere,” says Just. “The competition for engineers in Western Europe is very intense. Sometimes we see shortfalls, but we don’t have any real problems filling vacancies.”
Engineers in Western Europe can therefore expect to earn the most, Just adds, with North American engineers around the same levels. “Asia seems to be cheaper, but the more experienced engineers there are catching up with the levels of pay in Europe.”
Just agrees that an additional language is a great way to boost your employability, especially for customer-facing roles. Delphi particularly favours Chinese language skills currently, he says, but other european languages in addition to English are also appreciated.