Nature of Work
Modern automotive engineering is a branch of vehicle engineering, incorporating elements of mechanical, electrical, electronic, software and safety engineering as applied to the design, manufacture and operation of motorcycles, automobiles, buses and trucks and their respective engineering subsystems. Automotive engineers are involved in almost every aspect of designing cars and trucks, from the initial concepts right through to manufacturing them.
Broadly speaking automotive engineers are separated into three main streams: product engineering, development engineering and manufacturing engineering. Product engineer are also called design engineer. This engineer designs and test a part, seeing that it meets all its requirements (i.e. the shock), performs as required, material meets desired durability and so on.
Development engineer that engineers the attributes of the automobile. This engineer may provide to the design engineer what spring rate he requires to provide the "ride" characteristics required for the automobile to perform as desired, etc. Manufacturing engineer determines how to make it.
The automotive industry has its own culture that Automotive Manufacturing Engineers need to know to effectively operate. The Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG), a consortium composed of hundreds of participating companies, have established rules and procedures that ensure parts meet strict quality levels. An Automotive Manufacturing Engineer typically works with statistics and process controls, validating that the process that produces parts will always produce those parts with quality. They also search for ways to continuously improve the process between product upgrades.
Growth Opportunities
After completion of the graduation in automobile engineering one can get employed in automobile industry as a junior engineer, junior design engineer. One can also be class one officer in government sector by giving competitive exams.
There are also other automotive engineers: The aerodynamics engineers will often give guidance to the styling studio so that the shapes they design are aerodynamic, as well as attractive. Body engineers will also let the studio know if it is feasible to make the panels for their designs. Quality engineer, logistics/transportation engineer, environmental engineer, performance engineer, durability engineer, reliability engineer.
Market Scenario
Auto design and engineering services is a huge emerging opportunity that India is well positioned to exploit – given the growing maturity of its automobile industry and proven off shoring capabilities
The automobile industry, especially in the US and Europe is facing intense competitive pressures - rising labour costs, shorter product cycles, dropping profitability and rapid growth in emerging markets. This has created a set of enabling factors, or drivers, that are forcing Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and auto ancillaries to explore outsourcing and off shoring options.
Independent engineering and design firms will be hot targets for mergers and acquisitions as companies with greater financial strength, primarily IT firms, subsidiaries of Indian OEMs and ancillaries look to acquire capabilities and clients.
With the world’s second largest and fastest-growing population, there is no denying India’s potential in both economic and population terms and the effect it will have on the auto industry in the years to come. The country is already off to a good start, with a well-developed components industry and a production level of one million four-wheeled vehicles a year, plus a further five million two- and three-wheelers. India also has substantial strength in mass production techniques and is particularly well served in the fields of research and development and software design. Therefore, as always, the question is when will expansion occur and to what level the implications, market drivers and scope of a future massive Indian vehicle market are covered in the India Strategic Market Profile, a brand-new forecast of Indian automotive and related activity to 2020. Based on Max Pemberton's unique relational long-term forecasting model, it forecasts car and CV sales, demographics, materials usage, auto industry employment, and explains their inter-relation with detailed analysis.
Within India
With the rapid growth of automobile industry in India, the demand for qualified and skilled automobile engineers has also been increased in recent times. The overall reason is due to the increasing demand for vehicle.
The possibility of an automobile engineer to find job is maximum in automobile manufacturing industries. Apart from it one can find jobs in service station, private transport companies and Defense Services. Self-employment is also possible in setting up automobile garages or maintenance of workshops. Job opportunities are well in India as well as in foreign countries including the Middle East. In Middle East the pay scales are good and opportunities are many.
One who is still having the desire to continue his/her educational career can also continue by joining MTech and PhD programs. In this case he/she could become a researcher or scientist and further help in the development of the field. One can also join as part time or full time lecturer or professor in engineering colleges/universities in India and abroad.
Overseas
World Automotive Manufacturing is a dedicated round-up of all the latest global happenings and analysis specific to the manufacturing activities of the world's light vehicle manufacturers.
Automotive Vehicle Manufacturers focuses on the top vehicle manufacturers in the world. The report covers all the facets of the automotive industry, from car and commercial vehicle manufacturers to their manufacturing strategies, technologies, model launches, future models and production planning. The report also sheds light on market news and analysis vis-à-vis the vehicle manufacturers. Also included in the report is the retooling of production units, plant shutdown and relocations.
World Automotive Manufacturing provides both broad macro-economic information as well as detailed focus analysis down to component or material level: there is no better way to stay informed on the latest developments in automotive manufacturing globally.
