Design engineer to product development engineering drafter
A design engineer already meets 58% of what the product development engineering drafter role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
43.1/ 100
1 How much of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do is already part of a design engineer’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 product development engineering drafter role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A product development engineering drafter role treats 9 of its required skills as things a design engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- circular economy
- create technical plans
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- mathematics
What stands in the way is 7 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 20 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A product development engineering drafter role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a design engineer background worth leading with.
- already held design management business, administration and law
- already held build a product's physical model handling and moving
- already held circular economy engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held draw design sketches communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held industrial research and development engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held product data management business, administration and law
All 20 carried skills, including the 9 the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 14 missing skills fall into 7 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 define part requirements required
- still to learn read engineering drawings required
- still to learn design drawings required
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
- still to learn use manual draughting techniques required
- optional, not held develop assembly instructions optional
- optional, not held draw blueprints optional
- still to learn manual draughting techniques required
- still to learn provide technical documentation required
- still to learn use CADD software required
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a product development engineering drafter role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 define part requirements practise this
- 02 design drawings study this
- 03 manual draughting techniques study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 20 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held circular economy knowledge
- already held create technical plans skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held use CAD software skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held build a product's physical model skill
- already held create a product's virtual model skill
- already held design management knowledge
- already held design principles knowledge
- already held draft design specifications skill
- already held draw design sketches skill
- already held industrial research and development knowledge
- already held liaise with engineers skill
- already held manufacturing processes knowledge
- already held product data management knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held develop assembly instructions optional
- optional, not held draw blueprints optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
29 held skills the product development engineering drafter role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role CAE software knowledge
- not needed by the target role adapt to new design materials skill
- not needed by the target role analyse stress resistance of materials skill
- not needed by the target role analyse stress resistance of products skill
- not needed by the target role analyse test data skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role conduct performance tests skill
- not needed by the target role conduct research on trends in design skill
- not needed by the target role define technical requirements skill
- not needed by the target role design power plant systems skill
- not needed by the target role design prototypes skill
- not needed by the target role determine suitability of materials skill
- not needed by the target role develop test procedures skill
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role execute feasibility study skill
- not needed by the target role interpret technical requirements skill
- not needed by the target role keep up with digital transformation of industrial processes skill
- not needed by the target role manage engineering project skill
- not needed by the target role model based system engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role nuclear physics knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform scientific research skill
- 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 present artistic design proposals skill
- not needed by the target role project management knowledge
- not needed by the target role record test data skill
- not needed by the target role supervise work on design planning skill
- not needed by the target role thermohydraulics knowledge
- not needed by the target role use testing equipment skill
7 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 design drawings required
- still to learn manual draughting techniques required
- optional, not held mechanical engineering optional
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held electrical engineering optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held industrial engineering optional
Common questions about this move
Can a design engineer become a product development engineering drafter?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A design engineer already covers 58% of what a product development engineering drafter is expected to do: 20 skills carry over, 9 of which the product development engineering drafter role treats as required.
What skills does a design engineer need to become a product development engineering drafter?
7 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is define part requirements.
How hard is the move from design engineer to product development engineering drafter?
Its learning distance is 43.1 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.