Engineering jobs 'still out there'

There are still significant opportunities in the pharmaceutical, medical device and environmental engineering sectors despite recent job losses in Offaly and Cork, it has been claimed today.

The director general of Engineers Ireland John Power expressed disappointment at the news of the 490 job losses, but but highlighted the solid demand for process and project engineers.

"The news from Boston Scientific and Howley Civil Engineering is disappointing but while the manufacturing sector is facing notable challenges, other parts of engineering remain strong," he said.

"There is growth within the pharmaceutical and medical devices areas, with process and project engineers still in demand and the market for them remaining very buoyant.

"There is also good growth in environmental engineering, commercial contracting and major infrastructural projects. Many of these areas, such as chemicals, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, are also less affected by the economic cycle.

"So there are clear opportunities for engineers working in manufacturing and construction to use the skills that they’ve acquired through initiatives such as Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to now transfer into these emerging sectors."

A recent Engineers Ireland survey, which compared figures in 2005 to 2008, found that salaries for chartered engineers in healthcare have grown by an average of 27%, civil and structural engineering salaries increasing by 28% and mechanical and manufacturing by 22%.

Starting salaries for engineering graduates were also found to be as high as €31,000.

Recent CSO figures have also shown that production of medical and precision instruments recorded first-half growth of 7.3%.