Thermal engineer to fluid power engineer
A thermal engineer already meets 46% of what the fluid power engineer role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.
55.5/ 100
1 How much of what a fluid power engineer is expected to do is already part of a thermal 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 fluid power engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A fluid power engineer role treats 12 of its required skills as things a thermal engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAD software
- adjust engineering designs
- approve engineering design
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
- fluid mechanics
What stands in the way is 8 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 13 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A fluid power engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a thermal engineer background worth leading with.
- already held fluid mechanics engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held design prototypes communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held approve engineering design communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held mechanical engineering engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held CAD software information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held use technical drawing software working with computers
All 13 carried skills, including the 12 the fluid power engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 27 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 hydraulic fluid required
- still to learn hydraulics required
- still to learn principles of mechanical engineering required
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held quality and cycle time optimisation optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
- still to learn execute feasibility study required
- still to learn read engineering drawings required
- optional, not held determine production capacity optional
- optional, not held determine production feasibility optional
- optional, not held execute analytical mathematical calculations optional
- optional, not held monitor production developments optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held read standard blueprints optional
- still to learn use CAD software required
- still to learn use computer-aided engineering systems required
- optional, not held set up the controller of a machine optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
- still to learn mathematics required
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held pneumatics optional
- optional, not held advise on machinery malfunctions optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a fluid power engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 13 skills that carry over
- already held CAD software knowledge
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held approve engineering design skill
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held fluid mechanics knowledge
- already held mechanical engineering knowledge
- already held mechanics knowledge
- already held perform scientific research skill
- already held technical drawings knowledge
- already held troubleshoot skill
- already held use technical drawing software skill
- already held design prototypes skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held CAE software optional
19 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held advise on machinery malfunctions optional
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held create a product's virtual model optional
- optional, not held determine production capacity optional
- optional, not held determine production feasibility optional
- optional, not held execute analytical mathematical calculations optional
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held monitor production developments optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held pneumatics optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held quality and cycle time optimisation optional
- optional, not held read standard blueprints optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
- optional, not held set up the controller of a machine optional
- optional, not held use CAM software optional
41 held skills the fluid power engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assess energy consumption of ventilation systems skill
- not needed by the target role combined heat and power generation knowledge
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role computational fluid dynamics knowledge
- not needed by the target role design a solar absorption cooling system skill
- not needed by the target role design a solar heating system skill
- not needed by the target role design an electric heating system skill
- not needed by the target role design engineering components skill
- not needed by the target role design firmware skill
- not needed by the target role design heat pump installations skill
- not needed by the target role design hot water systems skill
- not needed by the target role design passive energy measures skill
- not needed by the target role design thermal equipment skill
- not needed by the target role design thermal requirements skill
- not needed by the target role develop product design skill
- not needed by the target role develop software prototype skill
- not needed by the target role distribution of heating cooling and hot water knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure equipment cooling skill
- not needed by the target role follow company standards skill
- not needed by the target role heat transfer processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify fitted source for heat pumps skill
- not needed by the target role interpret 2D plans skill
- not needed by the target role interpret 3D plans skill
- not needed by the target role manage engineering project skill
- not needed by the target role operate climate control skill
- not needed by the target role operate solar thermal energy systems for hot water and heating skill
- not needed by the target role oversee quality control skill
- not needed by the target role perform a feasibility study on combined heat and power skill
- not needed by the target role perform a feasibility study on electric heating skill
- not needed by the target role perform a feasibility study on heat pumps skill
- not needed by the target role perform feasibility study on solar heating skill
- not needed by the target role power engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide information on geothermal heat pumps skill
- not needed by the target role report test findings skill
- not needed by the target role sustainable technologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role thermal materials knowledge
- not needed by the target role thermodynamics knowledge
- not needed by the target role use testing equipment skill
- not needed by the target role use thermal analysis skill
- not needed by the target role use thermal management skill
1 further entry not listed here
11 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 hydraulic fluid required
- still to learn hydraulics required
- still to learn mathematics required
- still to learn principles of mechanical engineering required
- optional, not held 3D modelling optional
- optional, not held CAE software optional
- optional, not held blueprints optional
- optional, not held material mechanics optional
- optional, not held pneumatics optional
- optional, not held quality and cycle time optimisation optional
- optional, not held reverse engineering optional
Common questions about this move
Can a thermal engineer become a fluid power engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A thermal engineer already covers 46% of what a fluid power engineer is expected to do: 13 skills carry over, 12 of which the fluid power engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a thermal engineer need to become a fluid power engineer?
8 required skills are missing, plus 19 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by engineering, manufacturing and construction. The single most important is execute feasibility study.
How hard is the move from thermal engineer to fluid power engineer?
Its learning distance is 55.5 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.