Automation engineering technician to industrial robot controller
An automation engineering technician already meets 51% of what the industrial robot controller role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
47.3/ 100
1 How much of what an industrial robot controller is expected to do is already part of an automation engineering technician’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the industrial robot controller role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An industrial robot controller role treats 6 of its required skills as things an automation engineering technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- automation technology
- maintain control systems for automated equipment
- maintain robotic equipment
- monitor automated machines
- robotic components
- set up machine controls
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 17 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An industrial robot controller role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an automation engineering technician background worth leading with.
- already held maintain control systems for automated equipment working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held assemble sensors handling and moving
- already held install software working with computers
- already held replace machines information skills
- already held robotic components engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held set up automotive robot working with computers
All 17 carried skills, including the 6 the industrial robot controller role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 16 missing skills fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn adjust manufacturing equipment required
- still to learn perform machine maintenance required
- still to learn production processes required
- optional, not held mechanics optional
- still to learn set up the controller of a machine required
- optional, not held solve technical problems optional
- still to learn wear appropriate protective gear required
- still to learn perform risk analysis required
- optional, not held assemble robots optional
- optional, not held supply machine with appropriate tools optional
4 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an industrial robot controller role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 adjust manufacturing equipment practise this
- 02 perform machine maintenance practise this
- 03 perform risk analysis practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 17 skills that carry over
- already held automation technology knowledge
- already held maintain control systems for automated equipment skill
- already held maintain robotic equipment skill
- already held monitor automated machines skill
- already held robotic components knowledge
- already held set up machine controls skill
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held CAE software knowledge
- already held assemble sensors skill
- already held inspect quality of products skill
- already held install software skill
- already held keep records of work progress skill
- already held record test data skill
- already held replace machines skill
- already held robotics knowledge
- already held sensors knowledge
- already held set up automotive robot skill
The 4 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held CAM software optional
- optional, not held CADD software optional
- optional, not held optimise production optional
- optional, not held optimise financial performance optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held use different communication channels optional
10 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held CAM software optional
- optional, not held assemble robots optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held optimise production optional
- optional, not held CADD software optional
- optional, not held mechanics optional
- optional, not held optimise financial performance optional
- optional, not held solve technical problems optional
- optional, not held supply machine with appropriate tools optional
- optional, not held use different communication channels optional
40 held skills the industrial robot controller role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adjust engineering designs skill
- not needed by the target role align components skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role assemble hardware components skill
- not needed by the target role assemble machines skill
- not needed by the target role assemble mechatronic units skill
- not needed by the target role assist scientific research skill
- not needed by the target role automatic control system knowledge
- not needed by the target role computer engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role control engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role customise software for drive system skill
- not needed by the target role design drawings knowledge
- not needed by the target role electrical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role fasten components skill
- not needed by the target role firmware knowledge
- not needed by the target role follow standards for machinery safety skill
- not needed by the target role follow work schedule skill
- not needed by the target role guidance, navigation and control knowledge
- not needed by the target role install automation components skill
- not needed by the target role install mechatronic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role integrate new products in manufacturing skill
- not needed by the target role interpret circuit diagrams skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with engineers skill
- not needed by the target role marine technology knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechatronics knowledge
- not needed by the target role microprocessors knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform test run skill
- not needed by the target role prepare production prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role program a CNC controller skill
- not needed by the target role program firmware skill
- not needed by the target role programmable logic controller knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide power connection from bus bars skill
- not needed by the target role quality standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role read engineering drawings skill
- not needed by the target role resolve equipment malfunctions skill
- not needed by the target role test mechatronic units skill
- not needed by the target role test sensors skill
- not needed by the target role use CAM software skill
- not needed by the target role write technical reports skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn production processes required
- optional, not held CAM software optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held CADD software optional
- optional, not held mechanics optional
Other moves recorded from automation engineering technician
Common questions about this move
Can an automation engineering technician become an industrial robot controller?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An automation engineering technician already covers 51% of what an industrial robot controller is expected to do: 17 skills carry over, 6 of which the industrial robot controller role treats as required.
What skills does an automation engineering technician need to become an industrial robot controller?
6 required skills are missing, plus 10 optional ones. They fall into 10 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with machinery and specialised equipment. The single most important is adjust manufacturing equipment.
How hard is the move from automation engineering technician to industrial robot controller?
Its learning distance is 47.3 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.