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Can anyone out there offer any insight as to what the hourly rate for a mechanical designer would be as a contract employee? I'm sure it depends on what area of the country the assignment would be in.
I am really looking for ballpark figures. Thanks
Solidworks Mech Designer is around $21 to $26, Proe Mech Designer is around $23 to $32. Sometimes with Proe they want you to have experience with Intralink or Windchill; I have both yet I'm unemployed 4 years 3 months now.
It varies widely based on location, type of work/sector, education level of candidate, pace of workflow, challenge of job, and much more. Drafting/design doesn't pay that much these days at many of job shops. Most of the work is not very challenging, and it's relatively easy to find a trainable candidate for the job. I've seen these jobs go for as little as $13/hr. The computer tools are much simpler, powerful, and easy to use, greatly reducing the skill level required for many of the jobs.
At any rate... It could range from 30-40K to +100K at one of the larger companies. Many companies are bottom feeders and pay garbage, and others are making money hand over fist and require top of the line folks with wide varieties of skills. Consider adding more skills to your repertoire if you would like to make a decent income. Most of the mechanical designers/drafters I have worked with are just machinists. They might draft for a little while, and then program/set up machines later in the day. They make good money by eliminating the need for another worker. Manufacturing is all about efficiency these days. Unfortunately, one skill just isn't good enough anymore. I've seen plenty of engineering jobs being consolidated or eliminated in this competitive environment as well.
Hey OP, what CAD programs do you know and how much experience do you have in them?
I almost never see entry level jobs for Proe or Solidworks, and more Inventor jobs are popping up.
I think andywire's $13/hr CAD jobs are mostly Autocad for 2d or 3d, by cheap companies that can't afford better CAD or to pay better. Autocad pays cheap usually, so I moved away from it since learning Proe.
Hey OP, what CAD programs do you know and how much experience do you have in them?
I almost never see entry level jobs for Proe or Solidworks, and more Inventor jobs are popping up.
I think andywire's $13/hr CAD jobs are mostly Autocad for 2d or 3d, by cheap companies that can't afford better CAD or to pay better. Autocad pays cheap usually, so I moved away from it since learning Proe.
Jesse I have 30 years experience in the design field for large aerospace company. The last 10 years on Pro/Engineer with intralink. The last 2 years on Windhill PDMLink. I have heard that contractors here in the northeast could be making $75.00-100.00/hr at large companies, any truth to this? I am thinking about contracting when I retire for a few years.
Well, your career is set... I wish I had such experience. You could contract job around the nation and live in an RV. 10 years in Proe and if you're really good + you got Mech Eng experience then you can easily get those $35/hr jobs. The only extremely high paying Proe job I got was 2 days training to be a Volve Proe Designer during their engineer's strike, got paid $63/hr for 2 days... Then the strike never happened. So for 16 hrs I got a $1000+ paycheck!
I've never seen regular $75 to $100/hr Proe jobs. That rate commands high level Mechanical Engineering skills and experience, that's not a Mechanical Designer's rate. And some companies are CHEAP wanting to pay only $23/hr for an experienced Proe guy.
I think andywire's $13/hr CAD jobs are mostly Autocad for 2d or 3d, by cheap companies that can't afford better CAD or to pay better. Autocad pays cheap usually, so I moved away from it since learning Proe.
A lot of those companies have a mix of AutoCAD and other more modern CAD tools. AutoCAD has it's place. We use AutoCAD for our wire EDM machines because everything is 2D, considering that your burning vertically. It makes no sense to use a more complex or powerful tool for such a job. AutoCAD is simple to use, and a lot of the older guys are proficient with it. You wouldn't bring a jack hammer to drive a nail into your wall would you??? Practicality... And we don't hire drafters. Our machinists do all the work of the drafter, and keep machines running at the same time. Versatility works to our favor when competing against other companies, who try to hire drafters exclusively. Since our skilled workers can do more work at the same time, our company wins the bid, and has enough left over to afford quality workers.
And yes, there are a lot of cheap companies, but they still use the modern CAD tools because they are required to stay competitive. Trying to do more complex work on AutoCAD... You'll go outta business in no time. Labor is expensive. CAD tools are a one time expense, and tax deductible. Once again... Practicality... Companies spend money when they have to. For certain drafting positions, they really don't have to spend much money. I could train a kid outta HS to do much of the simpler work floating around these days, and they totally eat up anything technology. What do you think you gotta pay a kid whose enthused about his job and living with his parents??? Not too much... Certainly not +$20/hr. Again... Practicality...
Like I said, it depends on a lot of factors. Much of that is the type of work the company is doing. Very basic drafting work just doesn't command a high wage/salary at many job shops. Remember, they are all competing with each other and biding on a lot of the same work. The company that can find the cheapest method of getting the work done usually wins the bid. Tons of folks are totally thrilled with 40K these days, and they will settle for 35K in the mean time. If you're working for Boeing, that's a little different... In that case, Boeing is busy trying to find a job shop to outsource your job to.
Quote:
Originally Posted by brrrinmass
Jesse I have 30 years experience in the design field for large aerospace company. The last 10 years on Pro/Engineer with intralink. The last 2 years on Windhill PDMLink. I have heard that contractors here in the northeast could be making $75.00-100.00/hr at large companies, any truth to this? I am thinking about contracting when I retire for a few years.
For a large company like Boeing or Honeywell, it wouldn't surprise me. They are trying to eliminate full time positions by going contract. The advantage is they can eliminate full time positions and just pay for the number of hours needed for a job. They'll pay more per hour, but save money in the long run.
Are you two guys in the beginning of your career or something? The wages you state seem awfully low. Most full time designers where I work would make twice what you're talking about for contract work?
I'm in Chicago, and I graduated Dec 1992 with a BSME, but I only have 5.79 years experience. I'd say my career sucks but I'm still getting a few interviews. I have never seen many Proe jobs go over $35/hr, working for a temp firm. There aren't too many big companies in Chicago that do Proe, so I have to know Solidworks and I guess I have to learn Inventor.
You probably got 30 years experience as a design engineer, so you can get Design Eng contract jobs that pay $35+ / hr.
I still consider myself kinda entry level as a design engineer.
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