Surface engineer to rolling stock engineer
A surface engineer already meets 44% of what the rolling stock engineer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
57.2/ 100
1 How much of what a rolling stock engineer is expected to do is already part of a surface 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 rolling stock engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A rolling stock engineer role treats 10 of its required skills as things a surface engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust engineering designs
- approve engineering design
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- industrial engineering
- manufacturing processes
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 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A rolling stock engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a surface engineer background worth leading with.
- already held safety engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held industrial engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held production processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held approve engineering design communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held mechanical engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held manufacturing processes engineering, manufacturing and construction
All 14 carried skills, including the 10 the rolling stock engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 missing skills fall into 12 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 analyse production processes for improvement required
- still to learn assess financial viability required
- still to learn execute feasibility study required
- still to learn design wayside signalling interlockings required
- still to learn control production required
- optional, not held apply advanced manufacturing optional
- optional, not held develop test procedures optional
- optional, not held manage product testing optional
- still to learn control compliance of railway vehicles regulations required
- still to learn quality standards required
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held design electromechanical systems optional
- optional, not held design prototypes optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held mechanics of trains optional
- optional, not held precision mechanics optional
6 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a rolling stock engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 control compliance of railway vehicles regulations practise this
- 02 design wayside signalling interlockings practise this
- 03 analyse production processes for improvement 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 14 skills that carry over
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held approve engineering design skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held industrial engineering knowledge
- already held manufacturing processes knowledge
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held production processes knowledge
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held electrical engineering knowledge
- already held mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held record test data skill
- already held safety engineering knowledge
The 6 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of railway machinery optional
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of trains optional
- optional, not held maintain electromechanical equipment optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of railway machinery optional
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of trains optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held apply advanced manufacturing optional
- optional, not held build a product's physical model optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held design electromechanical systems optional
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held design prototypes optional
- optional, not held develop test procedures optional
- optional, not held draft design specifications optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held maintain electromechanical equipment optional
- optional, not held manage product testing optional
- optional, not held mechanics of trains optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held precision mechanics optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
24 held skills the rolling stock engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse stress resistance of materials skill
- not needed by the target role analyse test data skill
- not needed by the target role apply phosphate coating to metal workpiece skill
- not needed by the target role chemistry knowledge
- not needed by the target role computer simulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role corrosion types knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop material testing procedures skill
- not needed by the target role environmental legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- not needed by the target role ferrous metal processing knowledge
- not needed by the target role galvanise metal workpiece skill
- not needed by the target role hazardous waste types knowledge
- not needed by the target role material mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role mathematics knowledge
- not needed by the target role non-destructive testing knowledge
- not needed by the target role parkerise metal workpiece skill
- not needed by the target role physics knowledge
- not needed by the target role recognise signs of corrosion skill
- not needed by the target role semiconductors knowledge
- not needed by the target role soldering techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role surface engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role types of metal knowledge
- not needed by the target role use non-destructive testing equipment skill
- not needed by the target role welding techniques knowledge
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 quality standards required
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held design principles optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held electronics optional
- optional, not held mechanics of trains optional
- optional, not held precision mechanics optional
Common questions about this move
Can a surface engineer become a rolling stock engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A surface engineer already covers 44% of what a rolling stock engineer is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 10 of which the rolling stock engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a surface engineer need to become a rolling stock engineer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 21 optional ones. They fall into 12 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is control compliance of railway vehicles regulations.
How hard is the move from surface engineer to rolling stock engineer?
Its learning distance is 57.2 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.