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There is no doubt that industrial engineering grew out of the second industrial revolution and originally focused on the study and design of work processes and the people who operated machines (Bernstein, 2006).
Yet, today the field and discourse of industrial engineering has to a large extent distanced itself from this early concern, with analysts and mainstream commentators acknowledging that it has come of age through successfully extending its tentacles beyond factory settings (Bailey & Barley, 2005). The present paper purposes to illuminate some careers in the field of industrial engineering.
Extant literature demonstrates that advances in technology and shifts in types of industries in the United States and internationally have created opportunities for industrial engineers to work in industrial sectors that span far beyond the traditional area of manufacturing where the discipline of industrial engineering was originally founded (Eskandari et al., 2007 p. 45).
In factory settings, though, industrial engineers fit well in any role which is charged with the responsibility of making critical decisions concerning the best use of people, material, equipment and energy in the accomplishment of the organizations strategic aims and objectives
Drawing from the above exposition of facts, it is clear that industrial engineers have job openings as plant managers, process engineers as well as scheduling/planning engineers.
Plant managers not only assist the organizations senior management to ensure that manufacturing processes are functional and adequate to keep up with customers demand, but also supervise the work of personnel and make sure that production targets are met to satisfy business requirements.
Likewise, process engineers within manufacturing or production settings are charged with the responsibility of manufacturing products from raw materials or shaping raw materials into usable product forms using their expertise in industrial and equipment processes.
Scheduling/planning engineers, on their part, are charged with the responsibility of establishing an overall level of output and designing or scheduling other activities that are intrinsically required to satisfy and possibly surpass planned levels of production while guaranteeing the organizations strategic objectives regarding profit, productivity, lead times and customer satisfaction, as constituted in the overall business plan (Bernstein, 2006).
It should be recalled that Francis Taylor and Frank Gilbreth were the initial forces behind the industrial age, which provided an enabling environment for the eventual birth of the field of industrial engineering.
Taylor left a mark in the management scene for proposing that work methods should be designed to increase worker productivity, whereas Gilbreth not only established time and motion studies as a tool of industrial engineering but also acknowledged that there existed one best way to accomplish a task (Bailey & Barley, 2005).
The philosophies of these great men reinforce the task and role descriptions of plant managers, process engineers, and scheduling/planning engineers as has been discussed above. In summary, these jobs deal with people management to enhance productivity, process management, meeting targets as set out by management, and utilizing available resources, material and equipment to meet manufacturing/production demands.
As already mentioned elsewhere in this paper, careers in industrial engineering are not limited to the factory environment. Indeed, extant literature demonstrates that given the fact that current tendencies in industrial expansion are towards nontraditional industries, especially information technology and service-related sectors, it is anticipated that the percentage of industrial engineers working outside of the traditional manufacturing industries will exceed the percentage of those working inside this field in the next several years (Eskandari et al., 2007 p. 45-46).
In recent years, skills of industrial engineers have found optimal utilization in fields of energy, information and communication technology, hospitals, transportation, food processing, media, banking, utilities as well as local, regional and national governments (WorldWideLearn, 2013). The subsequent paragraphs review some jobs for industrial engineers found in the mentioned fields.
In the services sector, persons having qualifications in industrial engineering could be involved in designing work systems that enhance morale, motivation and participation within the realms of systems engineering (Bernstein, 2006). For example, industrial engineering graduates could secure employment in large hotels to design work systems, from the kitchen setup to floor layout and customer service.
In healthcare institutions, industrial engineers could readily secure employment as designers of the admissions criteria at a hospital or, more explicitly, as engineers working on a medical device to treat various medical conditions (Bernstein, 2006).
Ultimately, industrial engineers are bound to perform well in such job roles due to their excellent organizational ability, creativity, problem solving and people management skills, as well as their well developed capacity to design and improve systems.
Industrial engineers have a bright future in the information and communication technology sector, in large part due to their internalized skills to use innovation and creativity to improve productivity through the efficient management of people, the methods and techniques of organization, as well as the available resources and technology (Bernstein, 2006).
Graduates in the field of industrial engineering are trained on using mathematical models to figure out information systems requirements and to design and implement effective information systems that can streamline work processes and provide decision support to employees, hence enhancing cost efficiencies and productivity.
Owing to their adaptable problem solving skills, excellent computer skills, creativity and critical thinking capabilities as well as process evaluation and analyses skills, industrial engineers could perform well in information and technology sector as software developers for important management systems, systems engineers and systems administrators (Bernstein, 2006).
The field of industrial engineering has also penetrated the banking and financial sector. Industrial engineers not only design banking and financial structures, procedures and systems which not only make institutions in this sector more efficient and effective in the provision of services to customers, but also ensure money is not lost through fraudulent activities (Bernstein, 2006).
It is the task of the industrial engineers to improve, upgrade, and reconfigure these systems and software, not mentioning that they are also charged with the responsibility of developing wage, payroll, and salary administration systems to spur efficiency and productivity within these organizations.
Owing to the fact that most industrial engineers are so intensely involved with every nuance of the corporate system, they are often consulted by organizations to design and implement job performance and evaluation systems as well as lean management concepts (Eskandari et al., 2007). This exploration of facts demonstrates that industrial engineers could find employment within the services sector as systems developers and management consultants.
Lastly, Industrial engineers could get employment in local, regional and national governments as health and safety engineers, because part of their mandate is to enhance worksite safety and public health by comprehensively applying models and systems of the industrial system to recognize and diffuse dangerous situations before they affect the population (Eskandari et al., 2007).
The health and safety of the public is of cardinal importance. Consequently, agencies in local and central government may want to recruit industrial engineers to design and implement models and systems that will ensure the safety of all people is guaranteed.
References
Bailey, D. E., & Barley, S. R. (2005). Return to work: Toward post-industrial engineering. IIE Transactions, 37(8), 737-752.
Bernstein, A. B. (2006). Guide to your career: Comprehensive profiles of 240 of todays hottest careers (6th ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press
Eskandari, H., Sala-Diakanda, S., Furterer, S., Rabero, L., Crumpton-Young, L., & Williams, K. (2007). Enhancing the undergraduate industrial engineering curriculum: Defining desired characteristics and emerging topics. Education + Training, 49(1), 45-55.
World Wide Learn. (2013). Guide to college majors in industrial engineering. Web.
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