What is Industrial and Systems Engineering?
Industrial engineers determine the most effective ways to use the basic factors of production—people, machines, materials, information, and energy—to make a product or provide a service.
"...They are concerned primarily with increasing productivity through the management of people, methods of business organization, and technology. To maximize efficiency, industrial engineers study product requirements carefully and then design manufacturing and information systems to meet those requirements with the help of mathematical methods and models. They develop management control systems to aid in financial planning and cost analysis, and they design production planning and control systems to coordinate activities and ensure product quality. They also design or improve systems for the physical distribution of goods and services and determine the most efficient plant locations. Industrial engineers develop wage and salary administration systems and job evaluation programs. Many industrial engineers move into management positions because the work is closely related to the work of managers..."
Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010, www.bls.gov
In addition to the preparation for immediate employment as a practicing industrial engineer, the BSIE provides an excellent foundation for further study. This includes graduate level work in manufacturing fields for which a technical base is desirable. Other opportunities exist for further study in medicine or law, where the combination of industrial engineering skills is uniquely valuable.
The field of industrial engineering has long been recognized as a prime source of management talent. Today’s competitive world needs managers and decision-makers who can apply mathematical concepts and scientific management techniques to the technical problems that arise. An industrial engineer not only understands these problems, but is able to devise and implement methods to solve them.
What do our students do?
A BS degree in industrial engineering from UB leads to fascinating careers in industries as diverse as airline operations, automotive manufacturing, and financial services. As an IE graduate, you’ll have maximum flexibility to pursue your goals for advancement in management as well as systems design.
Industrial engineering is an expanding profession. The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (www.bls.gov) states that IE employment is expected to grow 5% over the upcoming decade, and that "This occupation is versatile both in the nature of the work it does and in the industries in which its expertise can be put to use. In addition, because industrial engineers’ work can help with cost control by increasing efficiency, these engineers are attractive to employers in most industries, including nonprofits. Because they are not as specialized as other engineers, industrial engineers are employed in a wide range of industries, including major manufacturing industries, hospitals, consulting and engineering services, and research and development firms. This versatility arises from the fact that these engineers’ expertise focuses on reducing internal costs, making their work valuable for many industries. For example, their work is important for manufacturing industries considering relocation to domestic sites. In addition, growth in health care and changes in how care is delivered will create demand for industrial engineers. Firms in a variety of industries are seeking new ways to contain costs and improve efficiency, leading to more demand for these workers."
Industrial engineers solve a variety of problems:
- Determining the best location of machines in a factory, or ambulance stations in a metropolitan area, or a new factory in the U.S., based on economic and operation considerations; designing computer-aided process planning systems that flexibly vary the sequence of operations to produce a product
- Determining which types of jobs are most suitable for special populations of workers, such as the elderly and the handicapped
- Developing a system for controlling the inventory levels of a product in a warehouse, books in a bookstore, or gasoline at a service station
- Designing automated material handling systems for the movement of parts in a factory
- Designing a mission management plan for payload specialists on the NASA space shuttle
- Designing computer-integrated manufacturing systems and decision support systems for integrating information and control between manufacturing systems, automated guided vehicles, automated warehouse facilities, and management personnel
- Designing a new plan for scheduling cases to operating rooms in a hospital, or production orders in a factory
- Determining the optimal routing of ambulances through a city, or material handling vehicles in a factory, to minimize travel time
- Developing reliability and quality management systems to ensure that a manufactured product is free from defects
- Developing programs for analyzing human reliability to assess work place safety
- Designing computer graphics systems to assist operators in the monitoring and control of industrial processes
Guest post: Zubin Ajmera
I accept it. I acknowledge it. It’s tough for anyone to decide what to major in. What are the career prospects out there? Will the degree be worth it, and will it eventually help you get a good job?
For me, I might have made the most common and costly mistake: following the herd.
I started my bachelor’s in electrical engineering and by the time I was in my second year, I knew this wasn’t the right fit for me. Too late. I felt I’d wasted my degree and the golden years which I could have spent somewhere else.
I knew I couldn’t afford to make such a mistake for my master’s degree, so I carefully researched every single option available, and I came across industrial engineering (IE).
Today, I want to show you some of the advantages of studying industrial engineering. Many people have little or no idea of what IE is, and the types of work industrial engineers do on a daily basis.
Ultimately, I hope this will help you to determine if industrial engineering is the right major for you.
1. Industrial engineers work in every sector
You will be hearing this a lot. IEs are in virtually every industry vertical today. Manufacturing, technology, hardware, retail, healthcare – you name it and there is a high possibility of industrial engineering jobs.
After working with eight companies, doing internships, projects and full-time jobs, I feel I can confirm that industrial engineering-related work can be found in every company. If you don’t believe it, try this technique I came up with to test the theory. And check out this recent study naming industrial engineering jobs among the most in-demand for 2016.
2. Combine technical skills with business acumen
Many universities offer business classes parallel to IE coursework, in areas such as logistics, supply chain management and analytics. By taking these classes, you get a good grasp of the business side of a company too. Sure, you can take these with any other major, but IE and business complement each other perfectly. This also makes an industrial engineering degree an ideal starting point for an MBA specializing in supply chain management, marketing or finance, which complement the technical aspects of IE.
3. Understand ‘big data’
We all know how important the field of big data is getting. Every company today wants to make better business decisions with their increasing and complex chunks of data.
While working for Mu Sigma, I realized how much data analysis and science can impact a business. Industrial engineering gives you the foundation for work in this domain. Take extra courses and certifications, and you could eventually become a data scientist.
4. Focus on processes
Being in this industry for so long, I know that IE is a relatively less technical field than other engineering majors. What I mean is that industrial engineering is more focused on processes and finding ways to improve processes.
Don’t get me wrong. This by no way means you won’t or cannot work on software, or won’t be involved in coding. However, there is less of the heavy-lifting coding and the focus is more towards process improvement and ways to bring change through strategies such as cost reduction, savings and reducing timings.
5. Customize IE to match your interests
As an industrial engineer, you will always have options to explore and work in different job roles. Want to sit at a computer doing deep data analysis? There are industrial engineering jobs in data analysis and business analysis.
Want to work on a production floor doing manufacturing work? There are jobs in logistics engineering, manufacturing engineering, production, forecasting, among many others.
Want to travel while you work? Consider industrial engineering jobs in consulting and client-facing roles. There are plenty of other options – these are just a few examples.
Still not sure? Ask these three questions to see if industrial engineering is for you.
Zubin has a master’s in industrial engineering and is currently working full time with CEVA Logistics. He has worked with multiple companies in the past, including Revlon, Caterpillar, Mu Sigma and a couple of start-ups. He provides advice for aspiring IE students and professionals at Industrial Inside.