WHAT DOES A ENGINEER DO?
Published: Jun 2, 2025 - The Engineer applies scientific and mathematical principles to develop solutions for technical challenges. This role involves designing, testing, and enhancing systems, products, or processes to ensure efficiency, safety, and quality. The individual collaborates across teams, manages projects, and drives innovation to meet industry standards.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Engineer
1. Mass Porperities Engineer Duties
- Mass Properties engineering: Serve as the mechanical systems mass and mass properties engineer (MMPE) for the MSR Sample Return Lander (SRL) mechanical system
- Team Leadership: Lead a small team of engineers supporting SRL system-level, cross-cutting functions of mass properties (MP), mass equipment list (MEL) management and close clearances reporting to the mechanical systems PDM on the SRL project
- Tool Development: Engage in the development of tool(s) and process refinements specific to the execution of flight project MP analyses and MEL management
- Test Program Execution: Responsible for the execution of the system-level MP test program on SRL, including ATLO
- Analytical Reporting: Responsible for performing MP analyses and delivering MP reports, V&V for requirements closure
- Trade Study Participation: Participate in trade studies to ensure robust flight system mass margins and mass properties requirements are met
- Cross-functional Collaboration: Interface with engineers, analysts, designers, manufacturing specialists, machine shop, flight techs, and project staff
- Independent Work: Work independently, and under the direction of the group supervisor, project management, and technical leads
- Technical Supervision: Direct work for a team of engineers or flight techs
2. Remediation Engineer Details
- Engineering Design: Lead engineering design for remediation activities including preparation of system flow diagrams, process mass balances, and Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs)
- Feasibility Studies: Prepare feasibility studies, design and implementation of pilot studies
- Cost Estimation: Develop construction and operation and maintenance cost estimates
- Field Investigation: Plan and implement field investigations
- Remedial Analysis: Conduct a remedial alternatives analysis
- Treatability Studies: Conduct treatability studies
- Budget Management: Oversee project budget and cost-benefit analyses
- Site Operations: Carry out site work including verification sampling, set up and commissioning of treatment systems
- Technical Audits: Conduct technical and sampling audits
- Construction Support: Provide construction support including design changes and completion reports for each project
- Configuration Control: Maintain engineering configuration control of design documents
- Compliance Support: Support safety and quality audits and findings to confirm construction compliance and permit compliance
3. Engineer Responsibilities
- Software Programming: Software programming related to IT Communication Services, Unify team
- User Management: Adding, moving, changing and/or deleting users on systems
- Audio Codec Knowledge: Working knowledge of Audio Codec (G.729 and G.711)
- IP Telephony Administration: Administers, implements, and maintains IP Telephony Platforms
- Issue Resolution: Troubleshooting, analyzing, isolating, and resolving end-user issues (management of helpdesk tickets)
- Business Continuity: Responsible for Business Continuity routines – testing Unify Open Branch/OSV and Unify OpenScape (soft phone) application
- System Performance Analysis: Analysis of system performance and applying system updates and integrating new business into call centers
- System Integrity Review: System integrity checks review of call routing and logs for troubleshooting and discrepancies
- Third-Party Support: Responsible for supporting third-party applications (ie, ASC call recording, Cisco Video TelePresence system, and/or MS TEAMS support)
- IP Protocol Knowledge: Operational knowledge over IP protocols for delivering RTP payloads to hard and/or softphone stations throughout the Contact Call Center environment
- PRI Integration: Operational knowledge of Primary Rate Interface (PRI) integration with Unify OpenScape Gateways and Session Border Controllers (VoIP) to accommodate large volumes of inbound calls
4. Entry Level Engrineers Job Summary
- Hydrologic Analysis: Perform hydrologic and hydraulic analyses to identify existing flooding problems and evaluate alternative solutions
- Site Investigation: Plan and implement site investigations and field surveys to gather data, study the feasibility of options, and develop subsequent design activities
- Stormwater Calculations: Perform detailed calculations related to stormwater drainage, open channel hydraulics, pumping systems, and site grading
- Engineering Reporting: Prepare engineering reports presenting study results and conclusions and bases for detailed design
- Contract Documentation: Develop construction contract bid documents, including engineering drawings, specifications, cost estimates, permit plans, and reports
- Design Software: Use design programs such as AutoCAD Civil 3D, Revit, and ArcGIS to prepare project deliverables
- Construction Support: Assist in providing design services during construction, including submittal reviews, design clarifications, and periodic field work observation
- Permit Preparation: Assist in preparing flood hazard area permit application documents
- Meeting Coordination: Attend project meetings and assist in preparing meeting materials and presentations
5. Engineer Accountabilities
- Software Operation: Perform the day-to-day operation of the metal accounting software
- Inventory Management: Perform inventory adjustments
- Month-End Accounting: Perform month-end accounting for the smelter and refinery
- Data Monitoring: Provide feedback to stakeholders if any type of data drift is noted during the operation of the metals accounting software
- Cross-Team Collaboration: Interface and collaborate with other teams such as Metals Operations, Metals Asset Management, Metals Technical, Engineering, Projects, and Integrated Planning
- Regulatory Reporting: Report relevant information to the USGS every month
- Technical Support: Perform as a credible technical resource for the smelter and refinery
- Planning Alignment: Work closely with the metals planner to align plans as accurately as possible with plant conditions
- Project Participation: Participate in project teams to solve process or planning problems to optimize value for RTKC
6. Engineer Functions
- Process Definition: Defining and specifying activities, processes, and standards
- Quality Fulfillment: Fulfill the quality requirements for a manufactured material, component, or product
- Quality Infrastructure: Building and maintaining the infrastructure and systems necessary to consistently ensure the timely delivery of quality products
- Process Auditing: Auditing, monitoring, and determining the quality of manufacturing processes and/or outputs against defined internal and regulatory standards
- Defect Troubleshooting: Reporting and troubleshooting manufacturing process deviations and defects in finished goods
7. Steel Reinforcement Engineer Job Description
- Department Support: Provide support to internal departments including purchasing, tire engineering, and research
- Study Design: Design laboratory studies to evaluate reinforcement technologies and interpret the results based on the underlying properties of the materials being studied
- Characterization Methods: Develop and apply advanced characterization methods for steel reinforcements
- Plant Trial Support: Provide on-site assistance during plant trials
- Cross-Functional Communication: Effective communication and collaboration with design teams, suppliers, procurement and manufacturing to ensure successful development and technology transfer
8. Engineer Overview
- Architecture Integration: Ensure sound integration, data, security, and business architecture design throughout all stages within the capability lifecycle
- Security Implementation: Lead the implementation of information security requirements to meet users’ defined outcomes within one or more customer/employee journeys
- Proof of Concept: Lead design and development of proof-of-concepts or minimum viable products as well as architecture design and technology evaluation artifacts
- Service Reuse: Drive the reuse of common services defined by AARP’s enterprise architecture standards
- Technology Governance: Provide oversight and governance of AARP technology standards and frameworks for assigned systems and platforms
- Standards Development: Participate in the development of Enterprise Engineering and Architecture Standards and Practices
- Technical Framework: Establish the technical framework for the capability strategy and lifecycle
- Sprint Planning: Work with the capability manager to define business-value-based objectives and user stories for upcoming sprints
- Solution Development: Develop innovative solutions, taking into consideration performance, scalability, and availability with realistic implementation schedules
- Investment Guidance: Guide business and/or capability managers with investment and budget decisions based on the portfolio of tools to accomplish a desired outcome
- Technology Evaluation: Investigate new technologies and make recommendations to the capability managers regarding potential usage
- Stakeholder Collaboration: Collaborate with the capability manager during complex discussions with business stakeholders, vendors, or technology, particularly when determining the technical requirements/capabilities to meet business goals
- Strategic Alignment: Provide critical input to other capability and platform teams to ensure alignment with broader ITS strategic objectives
- Implementation Improvement: Drive the continuous improvements of implementation methodology and service offerings based on customer/employee experiences
- Process Optimization: Work to streamline processes, to speed delivery to the customer, while balancing risk management objectives
- Incident Analysis: Work with developers, administrators and support staff to analyze incident trends and underlying system problems
- Value Identification: Identify incremental improvement opportunities that support/drive key business value drivers
- Disaster Recovery: Follow the ITS Disaster Recovery (DR) policy and standards
- Community Participation: Participate in a Community of Interest for engineers across all capabilities teams to share information and strengthen understanding of business needs and technology-based business solutions
- Technical Liaison: Serve as the technical liaison and subject matter expert in business interactions
- Technical Support: Provide ‘level 2 or 3’ support and problem management guidance for the capability team
- Cloud Support: Support AARP AWS cloud environments leveraging EC2, S3, EBS, ALB/ELB, VPCs, SGs, VPC peering, Route53, Cloudwatch, AWS Shield, etc.
- Cloud Administration: Assume a technical role in the administration and management of infrastructure solutions that are deployed in AWS regions hosted by AARP
- AWS Troubleshooting: Use AWS CLI to deploy, troubleshoot, and customize cloud resources
9. Engineer Details and Accountabilities
- Test Program Support: Support Advanced Planning preparation and assist with the coordination of a test program for complex ship systems (primarily electrical and mechanical)
- Procedure Preparation: Assist in preparing procedures, determining special equipment
- Test Monitoring: Monitor test performance, evaluate and analyze test data and results
- Test Reporting: Prepare reports outlining test results, interpret test results and make recommendations on the validity of the test
- Work Control Support: Support Advanced Planning preparation and assist with coordination of a work control and tag out program for complex ship's systems (primarily electrical and mechanical and combat systems)
- Data Analysis: Perform data gathering, data collection and analysis
- Shipboard Inspection: Conduct shipboard track walks to verify accuracy and collect data to correct the vessel's diagrams and documents
- Material Evaluation: Perform technical evaluations for acceptable substitutes for materials
- Document Preparation: Prepare technical working documents such as Job Summaries and Task Group Instructions
- Troubleshooting Support: Act as a troubleshooter in the identification and resolution of problems encountered onboard the ship or shop during the removal, installation, grooming or testing phases of waterfront production efforts
- Planning Preparation: Perform advanced planning and preparation of Job Summaries, E-Specifications and other technical work documents including material identification, and ordering, planning and estimating
10. Engineer Tasks
- Application Management: Create, track and manage interconnection applications for various projects
- Utility Negotiation: Negotiate with utilities on interconnection-related topics, including scope, timeline and costs
- Portal Oversight: Manage the utilities customer portal system daily
- Diagram Drafting: Review and draft one B-line diagram for solar and storage systems for interconnection purposes
- Infrastructure Research: Research the utility infrastructure to inform projects
- Strategy Support: Assist management in the interconnection strategy
- Incentive Management: Manage incentive application and materials for BlueWave projects
- Milestone Coordination: Manage and communicate interconnection milestone payments and schedule
- Financial Justification: Assist in the justification of the financial case for interconnection payments
- Internal Coordination: Coordinate with internal teams and processes for making payments
- Utility Relationship Building: Form strong relationships and maintain frequent communication (formal and informal) with various utility personnel across the chain that impact BlueWave projects
- Meeting Facilitation: Manage and conduct bi-weekly meetings with utility personnel
- Update Reporting: Prepare and lead weekly internal interconnection update meetings
- Consultant Management: Manage third-party technical consultants, engineers and other entities
- Material Provision: Provide interconnection and incentive-related materials