Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians
Apply engineering theory and principles to problems of industrial layout or manufacturing production, usually under the direction of engineering staff. May perform time and motion studies on worker operations in a variety of industries for purposes such as establishing standard production rates or improving efficiency.
Most important skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Complex Problem Solving
- Quality Control Analysis
- Systems Analysis
- Systems Evaluation
- Judgment and Decision Making
Key knowledge
- Engineering and Technology
- Production and Processing
- Design
- Mechanical
- English Language
- Computers and Electronics
- Mathematics
- Education and Training
What the work involves
- Study time, motion, methods, or speed involved in maintenance, production, or other operations to establish standard production rate or improve efficiency.
- Read worker logs, product processing sheets, or specification sheets to verify that records adhere to quality assurance specifications.
- Compile and evaluate statistical data to determine and maintain quality and reliability of products.
- Test selected products at specified stages in the production process for performance characteristics or adherence to specifications.
- Verify that equipment is being operated and maintained according to quality assurance standards by observing worker performance.
- Adhere to all applicable regulations, policies, and procedures for health, safety, and environmental compliance.
- Analyze, estimate, or report production costs.
- Assist engineers in developing, building, or testing prototypes or new products, processes, or procedures.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Bachelor's Degree (52.5% of expert ratings)
- Related experience
- Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years (32.7%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months (29.9%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 3: Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Lower on contact with others than 51% of occupations compared | 55% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Low | Lower on dealing with the public than 69% of occupations compared | 28% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly important” |
| Teamwork | High | Higher on teamwork than 67% of occupations compared | 65% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 76% of occupations compared | 66% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom” |
| Time pressure | Low | Lower on time pressure than 72% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very low | Lower on conflict situations than 82% of occupations compared | 51% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Moderate | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 52% of occupations compared | 50% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | High | Higher on consequence of error than 71% of occupations compared | 50% of surveyed respondents chose “Serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: low
- Conflict situations: very low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: moderate
- Consequence of error: high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 4.29%
- Contact with others about half the time: 9.01%
- Contact with others most of the time: 31.5%
- Constant contact with others: 55.2%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 19.98%
- Fairly important: 28.4%
- Important: 14.93%
- Very important: 12.82%
- Extremely important: 23.87%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 18.61%
- Very important: 16.87%
- Extremely important: 64.53%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 18.3%
- Limited freedom: 0%
- Some freedom: 65.65%
- A lot of freedom: 16.05%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Time pressure
- Never: 10.38%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 11.24%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 16.6%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 34.41%
- Every day: 27.36%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Conflict situations
- Never: 18.3%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 50.68%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 20.63%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0%
- Every day: 10.38%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 8.27%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 50.33%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 22%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 0%
- Every day: 19.39%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 0%
- Fairly serious: 12.65%
- Serious: 50.38%
- Very serious: 13.29%
- Extremely serious: 23.68%
n = 17, Incumbent 08/2026
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O*NET-SOC 17-3026.00 · SOC 17-3026 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8