Electronics &#8211; KO2 Recruitment

Looking
to Hire?

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for Work?

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job Alerts

The post Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

Hiring IT Skills in the Electronics Industry – What You Need to Know

Chris Oddy — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 18:07:21 +0000

Hiring IT Skills in the Electronics Industry

What You Need to Know

The electronic embedded systems sector of the engineering industry is a space that is seeing plenty of innovative development at the moment. A key element of this is the increase in cloud technology, which has meant more and more devices are storing and transmitting information to cloud-based systems, and therefore need to be compatible with the software required.

The lines between hardware and software are becoming more blurred as technology advances and electronic devices and components become more integrated with cloud systems. IT skills are required alongside electronic engineering knowledge in order to continue developing new and impactful products in our sector, which means that embedded electronics companies are in need of candidates with a new set of skills.

In this article, we discuss why electronics employers should hire candidates with an IT background, what to know before you hire, and the best ways to recruit IT candidates in the electronics industry.

The Need for IT Skills in Electronics Businesses

Over the last decade or so, cloud technology for data and system storage has been widely used across many industries. Electronic devices and components need to be compatible with the cloud, which means the majority of companies designing and manufacturing these products are looking for candidates with IT skills and experience for the first time.

Software and DevOps engineers are incredibly valuable employees for electronic embedded systems businesses to have in their teams at the moment, as more and more cloud technology emerges and integrates with all kinds of devices. Knowledge and experience with various cloud services, networking, cloud DevOps and cloud security are essential, meaning that many companies in the electronics sector are looking to hire new IT skills to expand their team’s abilities and keep their product relevant and compatible.

What to Know Before You Hire

One issue that we have seen our clients come up against when it comes to hiring new IT skills is that recruiting software and DevOps engineers is different to finding electronics engineers. If you’re adding these roles to your team for the first time, understanding what specific skills or experience to look out for and knowing what questions to ask in a job interview can be challenging.

Working with a specialist recruiter in your industry sector, like KO2, is a great idea if you’re looking to hire candidates with IT skills for the first time. Our industry experience means that we understand what is required of IT candidates stepping into a role with an electronics employer and can help you through the recruitment process to find a candidate who will be the right fit.

Something else to consider before you hire a candidate with IT skills is that salary expectations can be different to what typical engineering candidates would expect when applying for a role at an electronics company. Make sure to be aware of what your target candidates are being offered for other roles, and if you cannot match this then work on your employment offering and benefits to ensure you’re still a competitive employer.

While there are candidates with an electronics background and relevant IT skills on the market, they’re few and far between. So when it comes to sourcing the right kind of candidate for your business, the recruitment process may take longer and may require a lengthy onboarding process to get a new employee up to speed on what they need to know.

What typically happens in these recruitment scenarios is that candidates and employers meet in the middle when it comes to requirements from both sides. Employers will find a candidate with an interest and/or experience in both IT and electronics engineering and settle on an offer that works for the candidate. This flexible approach is the key to success when it comes to hiring IT skills in the electronics industry, as with limited potential candidates, companies need to be clear on what they need and what they can adapt to.

How to Recruit IT Candidates

If hiring candidates with IT skills is a new step for your electronics company then you should be aware that it will require a different recruitment approach. In this section, we’ll take you through the essential things you need to know when hiring for a software or DevOps role.

Where to Find IT Candidates

When you’re looking for engineering candidates with a niche skill set, traditional sourcing methods might not always yield the candidate pool you were hoping for. A well-crafted job ad shared on relevant engineering websites is a good start, but there are other places to look when it comes to sourcing IT candidates.

Social recruiting is becoming more and more common across a lot of industries, and when you’re looking for a candidate who specialises in something like IT for electronic devices, turning to social media platforms like LinkedIn can be a good way to find what you’re looking for. Sites like Twitter can also be useful when you’re searching for potential candidates talking about electronic IT work.

Alternatively, joining online communities where members talk about or share work relating to what your company does can also be a good place to find skilled IT candidates. Sourcing software developers on sites like GitHub has been common in the engineering industry for a while now, and you can copy this approach to finding candidates with the right IT skills on places like StackOverflow

Potential candidates that you find online should be approached with the intention of making a connection, instead of immediately pushing an offer for an interview. These people might not be actively looking or even considering a job change, so the best thing you can do is present a positive impression of your company and work towards getting them on board.

Along with active sourcing strategies, consider inbound recruitment methods as well which target IT candidates who might have an interest in working for your electronics company. Inbound recruitment involves creating a positive impression of your company as a place of work so that candidates are attracted to you and the work you do, helping you build a following of potential candidates who will be more likely to apply for roles when they open up.

If you’re looking for future employees who are interested in your area of work, make sure that you’re advertising the projects you do (where possible) and the opportunities that these offer employees. Your employer brand should be geared towards highlighting the experience that IT candidates could have as part of your business, which should lead to a reputation developing that attracts these target potential candidates who want to work for you.

How to Interview IT Candidates

Once you’ve established your strategy for sourcing IT candidates, you’ll need to develop an interview process which ensures the right kind of candidates get offered the role. As discussed above, this can be difficult if you lack experience hiring candidates from an IT background, as you may struggle to know what kinds of questions to ask or technical assessments to conduct.

As with any engineering interview, the first thing to clarify is what is required of the role. Decide on the skills and experience that are necessary for the ideal candidate, and be clear on which desirable traits or skills you can be flexible on. As we previously said, adaptability is key to hiring talented candidates who will be the right choice for your business in the long term.

The technical skills you’re hiring for may not currently exist within your team, which can make gauging a candidate’s suitability difficult as you won’t have someone who can determine their proficiency based on personal experience. This is another case where working with a specialist recruiter can be useful in designing the right kind of technical assessment for an IT candidate, although doing industry research yourself about a competitor’s interview processes can also be helpful.

Working for an electronics company as an IT professional presents plenty of new challenges, but some candidates may not be as familiar with the potential for innovation and experimentation that these kinds of roles offer. When you’re interviewing applicants, it’s important to acknowledge how this role will differ from typical IT jobs by highlighting the benefits and exciting projects on offer, which will attract and engage the kinds of candidates who will bring valuable skills and perspective to your business.

Summary

The key takeaway from this article should be that adaptability is the key to successfully recruiting software and DevOps engineers with the right IT skills for your business. Finding a candidate with an interest in both IT and electronics engineering should be the priority, and if you’re new to hiring these kinds of skills, working with a recruitment agency is a great choice to help find skilled IT candidates.

KO2 is a specialist recruitment partner in the electronic embedded systems sector that specialises in helping electronics businesses recruit IT professionals. Take a look at our client services or get in touch to speak directly to the team about what you’re looking for.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to Hire?

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for Work?

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post Hiring IT Skills in the Electronics Industry – What You Need to Know appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

Firmware Engineer Interview Questions and Answers

Chris Oddy — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 10:28:25 +0000

Firmware Engineer Interview Questions and Answers

What you Need to Know

Firmware engineering is an industry sector that combines knowledge of hardware and software development, focusing on the development of systems that help things like embedded devices operate. It’s an exciting area of the industry to be working in at the moment, especially in embedded systems where we’re seeing a lot of innovation with the internet of things and the applications of embedded devices in new areas.

If you’re looking to get into firmware engineering, or are applying for a new role in this sector, you’ll need to complete interviews as part of the process. Job interviews can be daunting, especially when they involve a technical component like most engineering interviews, but being prepared for the kinds of questions you may be asked is one of the best ways to mitigate these nerves and improve your experience.

In this article, we quickly review the role of a firmware development engineer and then explain how to answer some of the most common firmware engineer interview questions.

What is a Firmware Engineer?

Firmware engineers are a type of engineer that works predominantly with the firmware used to operate electronic devices. From developing the software needed to make the device functional, to installing and updating the firmware to ensure continued functionality, it’s a role that requires specific expertise with the entire firmware development process.

A firmware engineer will often be hired to deliver a specific project outcome or find a solution that a company needs, and can work across a range of different industries. The role is primarily based around software engineering, but also requires a good understanding of device development and requirements so that the resulting firmware is compatible.

What Does a Firmware Engineer Do?

The responsibilities of a firmware engineer will depend on the kind of projects they’re working on and the industry sector that they’re employed in. Some engineers might work in teams primarily designing and developing software for devices, whilst others may be in charge of updating or debugging devices.

Despite differences between specific roles, there are general tasks that the majority of firmware engineers complete as part of their job. This includes:

Designing firmware in response to client briefs and requests
Finding firmware solutions for specific pieces of hardware
Developing device software in line with necessary quality and safety standards
Testing and troubleshooting firmware systems to improve performance
Completing code reviews, sharing feedback and identifying necessary changes
Improving and updating existing firmware design
Monitoring firmware performance and identifying areas for improvement
Collaborating with hardware engineers to ensure integration of firmware and device goes smoothly
Working to project deadlines and delivering progress updates to managers
Writing up firmware operation instructions and technical documentation

Firmware Engineer Interview Questions

Interview questions for firmware engineers will likely range from technical questions and problems to more scenario-based situations where you’re asked to describe experiences from previous jobs or share how you’d handle a hypothetical situation. Below, we’ve included a range of types of firmware engineer interview questions to give an overview of what you might be asked when applying for a role.

Can you describe the steps required to create a firmware architecture?

This is a classic example of an interview question for a firmware engineer, gauging your understanding of what is required when designing firmware architecture. You should take the interviewer through your process of architecture design, explaining the reasons behind each of your choices and highlighting the benefits of this approach as well.

If a system is blank, how might you debug it?

This firmware engineer interview question is an example of the kinds of technical questions you might be presented with to assess your experience and knowledge of firmware engineering. You should take the interviewer through your blank system debugging process and explain the reasoning behind each stage, and may also benefit from giving an example to illustrate your point.

Can you share code-testing programs you have worked with?

Firmware engineers need to be confident testing and debugging the code that they’re developing, which is why experience with code-testing programs is preferred. You should talk through the programs you’re familiar with and the kinds of projects you’ve used them for, explaining how these have helped to streamline your testing process.

How do you test your firmware before installing it?

Testing code is a key part of a firmware engineer’s role, so you’re likely to be asked several questions about this stage of the development process. For this interview question, you should talk the interviewer through your testing process, referencing any tools or programs that you use, and explain the intention of each stage and what it ensures. This is another answer where being able to use an example of when you have put this approach into practice can be really useful.

What programming languages have you used to write firmware?

A firmware engineer needs to be familiar with at least one compatible programming language in their role, so this question is used to determine whether you have the right skills and background to take on this key responsibility. The most common programming languages used in firmware development are C, Java and Python, so being able to demonstrate experience in one of these is ideal. If you can talk about a previous project where you used a specific programming language, and explain your choice, this can make your answer even better.

Can you tell us about your recent firmware programming projects?

The majority of interviews for a firmware development engineer job will ask you to talk about previous projects that you have worked on. This is an opportunity for you to highlight some of the best work that you’ve done, explain the responsibilities you have taken on in previous roles, and highlight the kinds of projects you’re enthusiastic about or especially proud of

Interviewers for firmware engineer jobs are also often looking for candidates who demonstrate enthusiasm for their industry outside of work. As well as talking about projects from your previous or current roles, you can also talk about any relevant tasks you’ve been working on as a hobby, which helps the interviewer to get to know you better as a candidate.

How do you plan and prioritise your work?

Firmware engineers tend to work as part of a larger team, which means they may be given multiple tasks to work on at once or be responsible for meeting internal deadlines that allow other employees to continue with project development. Being organised and able to prioritise tasks is a really useful skill for firmware engineer jobs, so this is a question that it’s useful to be prepared for.

In your answer, explain your planning process to the interviewer and how you approach assigning priorities. If you can give examples with some hypothetical tasks, this can help the interviewer get a better idea of your methods.

Can you share an example where you had to work with a difficult piece of code?

Being asked to talk about challenging experiences at work is a classic interview question for embedded firmware engineers. Interviewers do this to learn more about how you approach problems at work, both from a practical point of view and to understand more about your personal approach to failure and overcoming this.

Talk about an example from a previous role where you were challenged by a piece of code and explain what made the task difficult. Then focus on what you did to overcome it and why this solved the problem, focusing on what you learned and ideally how you then applied this learning to future projects. This not only demonstrates resilience but also that you’re a candidate who uses challenges as an opportunity to progress.

If you were to create a piece of firmware that caused damage to a device, how would you handle the situation?

This scenario-based question for a firmware engineer looks at how you would react to a problem at work, which in this case is creating a piece of firmware which has damaged a device. It’s important to be honest when answering this question, but also to think carefully about how to make the best impression with your answer.

Ideally, you’ll talk about how you’d alert necessary team members about the issue and what steps you would take to minimise damage. For this kind of question, you should also highlight what you’d do to avoid making the same mistake again in the future.

How well do you perform under pressure and what is your strategy for managing deadlines?

This is a classic interview question across a range of industries and is used by engineering interviewers to determine whether you’d be a good fit for a work environment that can be fast-paced and stressful at times. You should be honest about whether this is a working environment that you perform well in, but even if it isn’t, try and reframe the question to talk about the mechanisms you use to deal with stress and still get work done.

Being able to manage deadlines is applicable to all firmware engineers even if they’re not in a stressful situation, so you should prepare an answer to this that explains your process and why it works well for you.

How do you keep up with the latest trends in firmware engineering?

This question may be asked in an interview for firmware engineer jobs as a way of gauging your general industry knowledge and your enthusiasm for the sector. It’s a good idea to be able to talk about the ways that you stay up-to-date and any particular trends that you are most interested in, which demonstrates a genuine interest in firmware engineering and a commitment to creating innovative systems or using new approaches in your role.

Advice for Clients

Job interviews are a necessary part of the firmware engineer hiring process, and if you’re the one doing the hiring it’s still important to prepare to meet and assess potential employees. Having a defined structure and set of questions for the interview not only makes the process fairer for all applicants, but also ensures that you don’t miss anything important when deciding whether someone is the right fit for your business.

Firmware engineers require a combination of software and hardware knowledge, so it’s important to make sure you’re targeting both of these areas with your questions. A lot of engineer interviews also include a practical task for candidates to complete, which can be very useful when assessing suitability for firmware engineer jobs.

Whilst technical questions are an important part of interviews, you should also include some scenario-based questions to help get an idea of whether a candidate is going to be a good culture fit. These might involve asking them how they’d react in certain workplace situations or delving deeper into what motivates or challenges them as an employee.

Advice for Candidates

The role of firmware engineer requires a lot of technical knowledge of both software and hardware, so it’s a good idea to start your interview preparation early so that you have enough time to cover everything you might be asked about. Try and set yourself several questions every day and regularly review your answers to previous questions as well.

If you’re feeling nervous about an interview, or you don’t have much experience, practising mock interviews is an excellent strategy for improving your confidence and performance. Ask a friend or even a colleague to help you, or consider using an online service where you’ll get professional advice and feedback.

Remember that a job interview is as much an opportunity for you to ask questions as it is for the interviewer to assess your suitability for a firmware engineering role. Prepare a couple of questions beforehand that give you more information about the role, the company and the employment experience so that you get a good idea of whether you’ll be a good fit for the organisation.

Summary

Preparing for a firmware engineer interview is a necessary step in ensuring that you do well. For roles like this, you’re always going to be asked technical questions and likely asked to complete coding tasks as well, and failing to prepare for these will severely impact your chance of success.

If you’re a candidate applying for firmware engineering jobs or thinking about making a career change in this area, KO2 is a specialist recruitment agency that can help you find your ideal role in the embedded systems sector. Take a look at our current firmware engineer jobs, or get in touch to speak to the team about how we can help.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post Firmware Engineer Interview Questions and Answers appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

IoT Engineer Interview Questions – What You Need to Know

Chris Oddy — Thu, 31 Aug 2023 09:11:12 +0000

IoT Engineer Interview Questions

What you Need to Know

The applications of the Internet of Things are growing across a range of sectors as more and more devices are connected and data is shared across a huge variety of systems. The growth of this phenomenon means that there is an increasing need for engineers, designers and developers who understand IoT technology and its applications.

There are plenty of different elements of IoT technology, from the devices and their components that collect data to the software that processes this and the systems that store it. This means that IoT engineers tend to be multi-talented with a range of skills in different areas of engineering as well as a good understanding of and experience with IoT technology.

If you’re an engineering candidate or software developer looking for an IoT engineering job, preparing for job interviews is an important part of ensuring your success in this element of your career. Researching common IoT interview questions and answers is one of the best ways to make sure you feel confident in your interview and give the best impression.

In this article, we share some of the key IoT interview questions that candidates might be asked and advise aspiring engineers and their potential employers on how to get the best out of the experience.

What is an IoT Engineer?

An IoT engineer is someone who works across the IoT stack, potentially completing a wide range of roles working with IoT technology. It’s a role that is needed across a range of sectors in the engineering industry as more companies start to integrate IoT tech into their product or service offering.

Some candidates specialise as IoT software engineers, meaning that they work with the programs and systems that make IoT devices work and connect them. An IoT hardware engineer has a more hands-on role and will design, build and install devices that use IoT technology.

The title ‘IoT engineer’ really refers to a wide range of different responsibilities connected to the Internet of Things. Engineers might work with data, software, infrastructure, security or networking in their role, or a combination of any of those.

What Does an IoT Engineer Do?

IoT engineer jobs involve a variety of responsibilities depending on the industry sector, the role itself and the skills and experience of the individual. Below is a list of possible tasks and responsibilities that an IoT engineer might do as part of their job.

Finding solutions to connectivity and networking issues
Designing and manufacturing IoT devices
Developing the software to connect IoT devices
Creating and developing servers to transfer data
Testing, maintaining and fixing sensors
Maintaining IoT infrastructure
Designing data collection and storage systems
Monitoring and improving platforms that handle IoT data
Optimising the way that data is used and stored across devices
Creating, updating and maintaining IoT systems to keep devices connected
Ensuring the security of IoT systems and devices
Integrating AI and automation to optimise systems and data management

IoT Engineer Interview Questions

An IoT engineer interview will usually involve some questions that aren’t directly related to IoT technology, as the interviewer will also want to get an idea of your general skills as an engineering candidate and suitability for a position in their company. Here are some of the most common IoT engineer interview questions that you may be asked when applying for a role in this industry sector.

What typical components make up an IoT device?

This is one of the more basic IoT interview questions, asking about the typical components that make up an IoT device. Interviewers will usually ask questions like this towards the start of the interview to ease candidates into the discussion, but also use it to assess the base level of IoT knowledge that a candidate has.

Can you explain the different types of testing used in IoT development?

Again, this is a basic IoT interview question gauging a candidate’s understanding of the typical processes involved in IoT development. It can be useful to illustrate the different types of testing with examples from previous experience if you have any relevant examples.

What are some of the best databases for IoT?

This interview question delivers a little deeper into a candidate’s knowledge of IoT technology and assesses what they know about databases. This kind of question is more common when interviewing for roles that are going to involve working with databases, but it’s still good for all candidates to have prepared an answer.

This is another question that will benefit from an answer that uses real-life experience. Where possible, back up your database choices with examples of when you have used them in the past and explain why they were best suited for that particular project.

What industries can be benefited from IoT?

This type of IoT interview question is used to gauge the candidate’s understanding of wider trends in the industry sector and assess whether they think about the potential applications in other areas. It’s a really good question to have prepared some talking points to, as interviewers will often ask about your thoughts on the future of IoT because it’s a growing industry.

A good answer to this question will touch upon real-life applications of IoT that are being developed at the moment, but then go on to talk about new ways in which the technology could be used. If you can think of examples that relate to the work that the company does, that’s excellent, but it’s not a necessary part of answering the question well.

What do you think the biggest challenges and risks associated with IoT are?

This question draws on an IoT engineer’s experience working in the industry as well as their understanding of the typical risks of using this technology. It’s a good idea to start by talking about the key risks and challenges that all IoT engineers face, such as security issues, and then go on to give examples of where you have faced these challenges in your work.

To put a positive spin on your answer to this IoT interview question, it’s useful to talk about how you have then mitigated these challenges when working on previous IoT projects. If you don’t have examples, you can still talk about the hypothetical ways that you would overcome these challenges.

Why is IoT device management important?

IoT device management is an important part of ensuring the security of embedded systems, which is a key concern for IoT engineers. When an interviewer asks this question, they’re asking the candidate to demonstrate their understanding of this element of IoT security.

This IoT engineer interview question touches on quite a technically complex aspect of the technology involved in IoT systems, so is a question that tends to be asked in interviews for more senior positions.

What potential application of IoT technology are you most optimistic about?

This question is often asked in interviews for IoT engineer jobs as a way of understanding where a candidate’s interests lie and also gauging their overall knowledge of current applications of IoT technologies. It allows them to demonstrate what they know about future developments in the industry sector, which is a good assessment of whether they’re going to be a very engaged employee.

As a candidate, this question gives you the chance to let the potential employer know about what you’re most interested in in the field of IoT technology and share your insight into the latest developments in the industry. If you’ve worked on any personal projects employing this kind of tech, this is a great chance to talk about them.

What are the economic impacts of the increased application of IoT?

This question is a broader look into a candidate’s understanding of how IoT technology is used in society and how it may affect the economy. It’s more applicable to engineering candidates that are going to be working in roles with more seniority, as they’ll be expected to know more about and be aware of the wider impact of their work. As well as talking about the general economic impacts, it can also be a good idea to talk about the potential impact in the company’s area particularly.

Advice for Candidates

Reading up on IoT interview questions and answers is a great way to help you prepare to meet a potential employer and enter a job interview feeling confident. You’re unlikely to have responses prepared to every question that you get, but understanding the different topics you might be asked about can help you to have ideas and examples at the front of your mind.

One of the best pieces of advice for an engineering interview is to try and include relevant examples from your previous work experience in your answers to questions. You shouldn’t shoehorn these in to the point where it feels incredibly obvious, but if you’ve got an example of where you’ve applied a technique or approach that you’re talking about, you should bring it up to illustrate that you can put your knowledge into practice.

We’ve listed examples of technical and IoT-related interview questions in this article, but most job interviews will also include more general questions that gauge your personality and investigate the kind of employee you are. When it comes to answering these kinds of questions, remember to be honest but focus on what makes you a valuable candidate. You might be asked to talk about weaknesses, previous problems or things that challenge you, so be sure to include examples of how you’ve overcome these setbacks in your answer, as well as being upfront about them.

Advice for Employers

As an employer hiring for IoT engineer jobs, you should have a list of technical and general interview questions to ask all of your candidates. Many companies use a similar approach in every interview to assess whether a candidate would be the right fit for the role, whereas technical questions and challenges may be chosen at random or to suit a particular position.

Technical questions should be used not only to ensure that a candidate has the necessary understanding of a topic or area of engineering, but also to assess their genuine interest in IoT technology and how they have worked in this area in previous roles. IoT is a developing industry sector where there’s a lot of potential for innovation and new developments, so as an employer you’ll get the most value out of engineers that are going to be motivated to pursue new ideas in this area.

Summary

Job interviews are a necessary part of advancing your career, and doing interview question preparation is one of the best ways to ensure that you’re successful in your efforts. When it comes to IoT engineer interviews specifically, you’ve got the advantage that this role is in high demand right now, but should also consider that genuine enthusiasm for the topic and examples of previous work are the best way to stand out from other applicants.

If you’re an IoT software engineer or an IoT hardware engineer looking for your next career opportunity, or for help with job applications, KO2 can help. We’re a specialist recruitment agency working in the electronic embedded systems sector, with a range of IoT job opportunities available. If you’d like to find out more about how we can help, get in touch to speak to our team.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post IoT Engineer Interview Questions – What You Need to Know appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

Emerging Trends in Automotive Embedded Systems: From Connected Cars to Autonomous Vehicles

Chris Oddy — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 11:20:32 +0000

Emerging Trends in Automotive Embedded Systems

From Connected Cars to Autonomous Vehicles

The automotive industry is a sector that is seeing significant development at this moment in time.

With the prospect of diesel and petrol car production being banned from 2030, vehicle electrification is rapidly on the rise. Artificial intelligence technology is coming on in leaps and bounds, with new integrations and applications being announced all the time.

Smart technology is becoming integrated into our daily lives, and now consumers expect their purchases to offer personalised insight and adaptive features that offer more insight and control. And as Industry 4.0 makes its mark on all kinds of technology, the Internet of Things is connecting more and more of our devices and machines, including our vehicles.

With all of the above influencing all kinds of projects and ideas, working in the automotive industry is an exciting place to be for an engineer at the moment. Automotive embedded systems is an area where demand is growing, but alongside all these new opportunities there are also significant challenges for engineers to overcome.

As a specialist recruitment agency in the electronics and embedded systems sector, we see plenty of opportunities for embedded systems engineers to work in the automotive industry. It’s an exciting time to be developing new software and systems for vehicles, and in this article we discuss the current role of embedded systems in the automotive sector, new technology trends in the automotive industry and the current challenges that engineers are facing.

The Role of Embedded Software in Automotive Systems

Automotive embedded systems manage functions in a vehicle such as engine performance, navigation, airbag deployment, adaptive cruise control, sensors, parking systems, anti-lock braking system and in-vehicle entertainment. As vehicle technology becomes more advanced, more and more functionalities are controlled by connected systems that ensure that vehicles work more efficiently, issues are spotted quickly and the driver has more control over their experience.

At present, there is a range of different ways that embedded systems are being used in automotive design. A significant contributor to this is the modern consumer’s desire to have more personalised experiences, which embedded systems offer in a car by giving the driver more control over different features and providing data on performance and efficiency.

Many of the systems that most drivers take for granted in their vehicles are actually controlled by embedded systems. Navigation using GPS relies on embedded systems and software, and parking assistance systems use a range of embedded devices all around the car to make it easier for drivers to park safely.

A significant development in automotive technology has been the rise of electric vehicles, driven by the increasing problems of the global climate crisis and the UK government’s pressure to adopt electric technology for automobiles. Embedded systems are a key part of this technology, used in battery management systems, helping to manage the distribution of energy in the vehicle and collecting data about the car and the driver’s performance.

Embedded systems are also used in electric vehicle charging technology, allowing charging points and vehicles to communicate. They allow charging stations to learn how much power a vehicle needs and adapt the charging process depending on the model of the car, allowing for more efficient and optimised charging.

Another use of embedded systems in electric vehicles is that they allow manufacturers of vehicles and charging technology to gather data from charging stations to improve the experience. Technicians are able to identify problems in real-time and deliver faster solutions, and energy providers can track data about peak times and average lengths of charges to be more efficient with their energy delivery.

Automotive embedded systems are a key part of intelligent transport systems, which are appearing in cities around the world to provide better public transport, reduce traffic congestion and help to cut down on emissions. Embedded systems share data with wider traffic systems and help to deliver traffic reports and inform smart traffic instructions that can prevent accidents and reduce traffic jams.

One area where embedded systems play a crucial role in automobile technology is in smart sensors within a vehicle. These allow the driver to have a better understanding of potential hazards all around the car, not just in their line of vision, and be alerted to potential hazards before they might have noticed them independently. Embedded systems also facilitate safer driving with the use of airbag systems and adaptive cruise control.

New Developments Shaping the Future of the Automotive Industry

Embedded systems in automobiles are already responsible for many features that have become commonplace across all kinds of vehicles. But the application of these systems and software is an area that continues to develop, presenting a range of exciting opportunities for those working as embedded systems engineers in the automotive industry.

Electric Vehicles

Electric vehicles aren’t a new development, but they are quickly becoming more mainstream purchases for consumers. With the increase in demand for this technology comes the need for better infrastructure for electric vehicles and the amount of charging that they need.

Increasing the time a vehicle takes to charge is a key focus, which embedded systems can help with by providing real-time data to help adapt the charging process to increase efficiency. As the number of charging stations grows, there’s also the potential for this technology to allow drivers to see nearby chargers and check availability, helping reduce waiting times and make it easier to plan journeys.

Artificial Intelligence

AI technology has an ever-growing list of applications, and in the automotive industry it can work in tandem with embedded software to help enable safer driving. A current example of this involves headlights that automatically dim when another vehicle approaches, but there’s a huge range of potential when it comes to the kind of data that embedded systems can connect and then the suggestions and improvements to the driving experience that AI can make based on this data.

Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems

Speaking of safer driving, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) are an area of automobile technology where embedded systems have a lot of potential. Sensors and software allow vehicles to do everything from ‘reading’ traffic signs to performing emergency stops, and as this technology is refined there will be more ways that our vehicles can facilitate safer driving by reacting to hazards and providing intuitive assistance.

Autonomous Vehicles

ADAS technology is the foundation of fully autonomous vehicles, so embedded systems engineers have the potential to get involved in this groundbreaking new development in the automotive industry. Self-driving cars are only in the early stages of real-life application and have plenty of challenges to overcome to reach perfect use, but embedded systems will be an integral part of this.

Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communication

Vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication is the term used to describe how cars communicate wirelessly with one another using embedded systems technology. V2V systems are already used in intelligent transport systems, but they have the potential to help these systems be used across a wider range of locations and vehicles and become an essential part of how people travel by car. When you combine V2V technology with vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, new solutions could emerge regarding traffic control, driver safety and fuel efficiency.

Smart Vehicles

The final area we’re going to highlight because of its potential for embedded system development is ‘smart’ vehicles. We’ve already discussed some of the features of this idea; autonomous driving options, intelligent transport system connectivity and more efficient energy management. But this could be taken further with vehicles that can read a driver’s vitals and make adjustments based on their mood or energy levels, or vehicles that provide suggestions to improve a driver’s safety on the roads, which could affect their car insurance.

Climate change and the increased need for financial efficiency means that many consumers may want their vehicles to be more efficient with how they use fuel and the environmental impact of this. There’s also a lot of potential for ‘smart’ vehicle technology that optimises route suggestions and energy usage based on the driver’s preferences, as well as providing suggestions on how they can be a ‘greener’ driver.

Challenges for Automotive Embedded Systems

Whilst there are plenty of opportunities to be excited about in terms of the future applications of embedded systems in automobiles, there are also some significant challenges that engineers should be aware of and prepared for.

The first of these is the security of the embedded systems and networks being used in automotive technology. Increased connectivity leads to increased chances of networks being hacked and either manipulated or having important data stolen. Alongside the development of new automotive embedded systems comes the necessity of new safety standards and more vigorous testing procedures to ensure that drivers aren’t being put at risk.

Speaking of risk, there is a higher level of consumer safety to consider when developing embedded software for vehicles. You may already be aware of how initial tests of autonomous vehicles are showing that malfunctioning technology can have a severe impact on passenger safety, and there are similar risks when you’re creating new functions that give vehicles more control.

Not only do you risk the safety of the driver and their passengers if something goes wrong in a vehicle, but you also risk other road users and passers-by as well. The consumer safety stakes are very high in the automotive industry, and this may present roadblocks and setbacks when you’re trying to introduce new technologies or ensure that a new system is safe.

A final challenge faced by automotive embedded systems engineers is that it can be harder to roll out updates or successfully debug systems. The more devices that are connected in a network, the more devices and systems that are impacted when something goes wrong, and the harder it can be to find a solution. It’s also well known that trying to update devices that are connected by the Internet of Things, making updating software and firmware across a large number of vehicles a significant challenge.

Summary

Technology trends in the automotive industry present a lot of very exciting possibilities, especially if you’re an embedded systems engineer. Not only is there the potential to make vehicles that are much safer to use and better for the environment, but intuitive technology and smart systems can also gather more data to deliver better instructions to drivers on everything from how they’re driving to the route they should take. And as 2030 and total vehicle electrification draws closer, there are plenty of ways that embedded technology will be needed to assist with necessary infrastructure and improved user experience.

If you’re an embedded systems software engineer looking for a role in the automotive industry, KO2 is a specialist recruitment agency that knows this sector inside out. Take a look at our current job opportunities or get in touch for more advice on working with automotive embedded technology.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post Emerging Trends in Automotive Embedded Systems: From Connected Cars to Autonomous Vehicles appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

How Embedded Systems and AI Medical Devices are Transforming Healthcare

Chris Oddy — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 10:51:18 +0000

How Embedded Systems and AI Medical Devices are Transforming Healthcare

Advancements in healthcare and our understanding of how the body works are happening all the time, especially as our use of technology alongside human knowledge and treatment grows. Not only is this technology making a difference in how people are cared for in medical institutions, but it’s also giving individuals access to more data about their personal health and wellbeing and allowing them to notice symptoms and manage conditions independently.

At KO2, our work in the embedded systems and electronics sector means that we see plenty of candidates placed in roles in the healthcare industry, particularly on projects or with companies developing medical devices. It’s an area that has been growing for some time and has the potential for a lot of really impactful innovation, with many of our current clients and candidates seeking guidance on navigating these new developments.

In this article, we share some of the most interesting examples of how embedded systems and AI technology are transforming healthcare, helping candidates and employers in this industry keep on top of the latest development and predictions.

Embedded Systems in Healthcare

Embedded systems technology is used in healthcare for all kinds of purposes, both as part of standardised medical machinery and for personal use. Being able to connect devices and quickly monitor data in real-time is useful in a wide range of medical scenarios, and whilst this kind of technology can’t perform particularly complex tasks, it can manage processes that can save healthcare staff a lot of time.

Here are some of the key ways that embedded systems have been having an impact on technology in healthcare.

Defibrillators

A classic example of how embedded systems have been used in medical devices is a defibrillator. These devices are used by medical professionals and sometimes members of the public in emergencies to treat people who are experiencing life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, or heart attacks.

Defibrillators use embedded systems technology to monitor a person’s heartbeat and detect whether it is irregular. If so, it will analyse if and when to deliver an electrical shock to the heart and do this so that the heartbeat hopefully returns to normal. These devices have been incredibly impactful in improving the effectiveness of first aid given to people that have suffered from cardiac arrest and are a great example of how embedded systems can create life-saving devices that are very simple to use.

Remote Monitoring

One issue faced by the healthcare industry at the moment is a lack of space inside institutions for all the patients that need care. When a patient is physically well enough to care for themselves, but needs to be regularly monitored to keep an eye on their condition, embedded systems devices allow for remote monitoring which can free up hospital beds and ensure that patient safety isn’t compromised when they are sent home.

With this kind of technology, a patient may be fitted with a device that records data about a range of functions like heartbeat, oxygen or glucose levels and quality of sleep. This data is shared on a system that a doctor can access, allowing them to keep an eye on a patient’s condition and be notified if something goes wrong.

Patients with long-term health conditions can also be monitored remotely, which minimises the number of in-person appointments they need to attend for tests. Instead, medical staff can keep an eye on their condition and arrange an appointment if anything starts to look worrying.

Remote monitoring can also be done in hospitals to reduce round-the-clock monitoring that requires nurses to sit with patients overnight, freeing up medical staff whilst ensuring that they can act quickly if needed.

Personal Condition Monitoring

Along with giving medical staff the ability to monitor their patient’s conditions remotely, embedded systems technology allows patients with long-term health problems to manage their own symptoms and conditions. This minimises the amount of professional intervention and care needed and can also allow them to have a better quality of life.

An example of embedded systems used in this way is a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) which is given to patients with diabetes. A tiny sensor is embedded in a diabetic person’s skin and continuously tracks the glucose in their blood, sharing this data with a mobile app. This allows for glucose monitoring without having to prick the skin, and means that glucose pumps or injectors can be used more effectively and a diabetic person can be made aware of any dangerous changes in their blood sugar.

Wearable Devices

Wearable devices have become incredibly popular in recent years, beginning with the popularity of smartwatches and developing into all kinds of other wearables that allow the user to keep track of different vitals. These are regularly used by athletes and people wanting a more comprehensive look at their physical fitness, but can also be used to track things like sleep quality, fertility and heart health.

Whilst the accuracy of these devices isn’t often of the same quality as medical monitoring systems, they can help with the early identification of health conditions and allow people to feel more in control of their health and wellbeing.

Infection Control

Finally, one potential application of embedded systems medical tech is to help with infection control, which has been a particularly relevant issue since the events of the COVID-19 pandemic. When social distancing was an essential part of trying to reduce the spread of the virus, embedded systems technology was proposed that measured your proximity to others or the number of people in a space and provided a warning.

The spread of coronavirus now no longer poses the same serious threat, but infectious diseases are still a reality that societies are faced with, which means that this kind of technology may be developed again in the near future.

The Rise of AI Medical Devices and Machines

Artificial Intelligence seems to be having a heyday at the moment as more and more software becomes available to the general public, but this kind of technology has been around for over a decade now and was already being used in industries like healthcare. Here are some examples.

Analysis and Diagnosis

AI is beginning to be used to optimise the analysis of patient tests and scans to make diagnosis more effective and help to speed up the time taken between being diagnosed and treated for a health condition. Some AI models are being trained to analyse scans like mammograms and detect the presence of breast cancer without the need for a biopsy, which makes early intervention easier. Others are being trained to learn the early symptoms of heart disease that can be present in things like blood tests and help doctors prevent more severe cases from developing.

Medicine Development

AI is also being used to help make the development of new medicines faster, reducing the need for a lot of testing and refining by running simulations or training programs to identify more effective approaches faster than a human could. There’s also the potential to use AI systems to analyse existing medicine and develop this to treat other conditions or work more efficiently, which could lead to significant improvements in mortality rates and recovery times.

Medical Robots

An application of AI technology that has been talked about a lot in the healthcare industry is the use of artificial intelligence to make medical robots more effective. A range of institutions have started to use robotics in things like surgery to make the work of humans more effective, but with AI these robots will be able to perform more complex procedures and potentially remove the need for human surgeons in certain cases, creating more accessible treatment and reducing the problems caused by only have a small number of specialists in an area of medicine.

How Will This Technology Transform Healthcare in the Future?

Whether you’re an employer running a business in the health tech sector or an engineer seeking a career in this area, it’s important to have an idea of what the future of technology in healthcare is going to look like. Here are some of the key predictions.

It’s clear that embedded systems and embedded software have a wide range of applications in the healthcare industry, and they will likely be used more and more in the future as this technology is refined. Remote monitoring is already an important area of development, and it’s predicted that more and more devices and systems will be created that allow doctors to monitor their patient’s conditions remotely, identify early signs of deterioration and mean that more patients can spend time at home when they previously would have had to stay in hospital.

Wearables are another area where we’re seeing a lot of interest at the moment, and as consumer demand for these devices grows, it’s likely to be a big focus for development in the future. Already, wearable technology is expanding from watches to other, more compact devices and the monitoring options of these are becoming more accurate and intuitive.

Consumers want more control and insight into their health, and as new devices roll out that grant this insight, companies will also have to consider what other initiatives will be launched to help consumers change habits and improve their vitals. As a result of this, population health has the potential to improve if this kind of technology is accessible to everyone, especially older consumers who are made more aware of their health and how to sustain it.

Embedded systems are an important part of virtual reality technology, which is being used in healthcare as a way to provide more training to medical staff without having to use real patients. There’s the potential for much more teaching to be done using 3D training simulators as the applications of this technology expand, making it possible for more medical professionals to train in complex procedures and gain more practical experience whilst they study.

In terms of AI medical devices and machinery, this technology has the potential to transform healthcare because of how it can improve current diagnostic procedures. Whether this involves training AI to spot signs of disease or conditions, or using it to speed up the diagnosis process, this will increase how quickly patients can be treated and potentially help to catch early symptoms of disease before they become more serious, leading to more effective treatment and great recovery rates.

Finally, using AI to assist with clinical research in the healthcare industry could transform how we treat a wide range of diseases and how quickly we can find treatments or vaccines for new illnesses. AI is unlikely to replace the people that work in this industry sector, but programs and systems could be developed that automate tasks or make it easier to highlight patterns and draw conclusions, helping to optimise the research process.

Summary

New medical technology is being developed all the time, and engineers working in electronics and embedded systems have a range of opportunities when it comes to applying their skills and experience to this sector. Healthcare is an industry that isn’t going anywhere and therefore is a great place to develop your career and work on projects that will make a tangible difference to population health, and we’re seeing plenty of opportunities for engineers in this area at the moment.

If you’re an engineer looking for an opportunity to work with embedded systems and AI in the medical device industry, KO2 is a specialist recruitment partner that can help you find the ideal role. Check out our available positions or get in touch to speak to our team about what you’re looking for.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Electronic and Computer Engineering

Job alerts

The post How Embedded Systems and AI Medical Devices are Transforming Healthcare appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

The Best Universities for Postgraduate Courses in Electronics and Embedded Software

Chris Oddy — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 10:26:55 +0000

The Best Universities for Postgraduate Courses in Electronics and Embedded Software

A Complete Guide

A significant percentage of engineering students go on to study a postgraduate course. These are often an integrated part of an undergraduate degree and a brilliant way to pursue a specialist interest and gain practical research and project experience before applying for a job.

Completing a postgraduate degree in an engineering discipline is also a great way to boost your employability, demonstrating your commitment and level of understanding to potential employers. In the electronics and embedded systems industry, plenty of candidates have a postgraduate qualification in an engineering area, with many finding that it can make it easier to find a job after graduation.

If you’re studying engineering as a graduate, you might choose to continue pursuing a Masters at the same university. Alternatively, you might study a postgraduate course somewhere else so you can specialise in an area like Embedded Software engineering, or decide to study a Masters a couple of years after finishing your undergraduate degree.

Some engineering candidates choose their undergraduate courses based on the postgraduate opportunities at the same university, particularly if they have a certain discipline in mind. Whatever your motivations, here’s our guide to some of the best universities for postgraduate courses in electronics and embedded systems engineering.

We’ve ordered these courses based on their position in the Complete University Guide’s Subject League Table 2023 for Electrical and Electronic Engineering, with the highest-ranking institution at the top of the list. This is not a full list of all the available postgraduate courses in the UK, but is a useful resource if you’re looking for courses specifically in electronics or embedded systems engineering.

The University of Birmingham

This postgraduate course from the University of Birmingham combines the study of electronics engineering with computing and communication technology, offering a more diverse range of modules than a standard Electronics MSc. Students gain a comprehensive background in complementary disciplines that prepare them for future roles in research and development, or the application of electronics technology.

The University of Leeds

Electronic and Electrical Engineering

The Electronic and Electrical Engineering postgraduate course from the University of Leeds is an interdisciplinary course that covers all of the topics related to modern electronics. As with many courses in this area, you gain a broad background in the sector whilst also having the option to specialise in topics or technologies that you are interested in.

Embedded Systems Engineering

This specific Embedded Systems postgraduate course is based on practical work with embedded systems technology and electronics design. This content will give you a great foundation in this industry sector that will prepare you for work, with potential applications of the course content in everything from medicine to software development.

The University of Strathclyde Glasgow

Electronic & Electrical Engineering

The University of Strathclyde’s postgraduate course in Electronic and Electrical Engineering lets you personalise your course by selecting modules offered by the department in a wide range of topics. After two terms of studying, the course ends with a three-month research project on a topic of your choice, or you have the option to extend the course with an industry internship.

The University of Sheffield

Electronic and Electrical Engineering

The University of Sheffield is one of the best institutions in the UK for engineering, and its Electronic and Electrical Engineering postgraduate course offers a great foundation for candidates that want to study these disciplines. The course structure follows the usual split of modules and a final project, allowing students to specialise in an area of particular interest.

Wireless Communication Systems

A postgraduate course in Wireless Communication Systems at Sheffield has a lot of research and development involved, focusing on a range of modern wireless communication systems. Modules will cover topics like embedded systems engineering and you’ll have access to a huge range of equipment in the Faculty of Engineering’s buildings.

Queen’s University Belfast

Electronics

The postgraduate Electronics course at Queen’s University Belfast is a specialist continuation of an undergraduate degree in Electronics Engineering. It’s an ideal course if there is a particular area of advanced electronics subjects that you would like to develop your interest and experience in.

The University of Nottingham

Advanced Electrical and Electronic Engineering with Extended Research

This broad-focus postgraduate course covers a range of topics within this industry sector and focuses on giving students the background they need to find a job once they graduate. Nottingham came 9th in the UK for Electronics Engineering in The Guardian University Guide 2023, so it’s one of the best places to study this discipline.

An Advanced Electrical and Electronic Engineering postgraduate course takes place over two years. The first year of study covers the usual material in an Electrical and Electronic Engineering MSc, whilst the second year is an extended research project that provides graduates with the necessary skills to solve real-world engineering issues. This is a new course at Nottingham and a great option for candidates that are looking for research positions.

Electronic Communications and Computer Engineering

This postgraduate course focuses on electronics engineering and the applications of this discipline in modern technology and communication systems. It’s a great choice for candidates that want to study software engineering as well as practical electronics engineering, offering a broad range of modules that will give you a really useful background in this discipline.

Newcastle University

Electrical Power

Newcastle University’s Electrical Power postgraduate course is taught by leaders in the field, so you’ll benefit from studying at the home of the largest academic research group in Electrical Power. Topics covered in the course include advanced power electronics and power systems operation, the design and analysis of electrical machines, the control of electric drives and renewable energy and smart grids. It’s one of the best options in the country if you want to work in electrical power or renewable energy as an engineer.

The University of York

Embedded Wireless Systems

If you’re looking to study a particular specialist postgraduate course, the University of York offers an Embedded Wireless Systems MSc through their School of Physics, Engineering and Technology. Focusing on the embedded systems sector of the industry, this course is a fantastic opportunity for candidates that know they want to develop their skills in this emerging area.

Bangor University

Electronic Engineering

Bangor University is ranked 4th in the UK for Electronic Engineering by Research Outputs and is a particularly well-respected institution for the studies and projects that its staff complete. The modules focus on emerging technologies in this industry area and the course is a particularly good choice for candidates that want to pursue work in renewable energy, which the university is famous for.

The University of Huddersfield

Electronic Engineering

The University of Huddersfield has a fantastic electronics engineering department, and this focused postgraduate course covers the research, design and development of electronics systems. Topics featured in the course’s content include FPGA, digital systems and digital system development, control computing and SoC.

Electronic and Communication Engineering

This specialist postgraduate course focuses on the development of communication systems and information transfer, built on a foundation of electronic engineering principles. Practical work will develop skills for the design and development of a range of communication and monitoring devices, alongside teaching that provides insight into project planning and management.

Electronic and Automotive Engineering

The Electronic and Automotive Engineering postgraduate course at Huddersfield is a specialist course that gives students a comprehensive background in automotive electronic systems design. As well as covering the principles of electronics engineering, you’ll learn about the new electronic technologies being used in automotive development and gain valuable skills for an industry that is predicted to grow rapidly over the next decade.

The University of Essex

Electronic Engineering

The Electronic Engineering course from the University of Essex includes aspects of research, teaching and industrial contact and experience so that students gain a wide range of skills that prepare them for finding a job. Essex is one of the best-resourced electronic engineering and computer science schools in the UK, and this course devoted to electronics engineering is a great choice for advancing your study in this discipline.

The University of Kent

Electronic Engineering (by Research)

This postgraduate electronic engineering course is research-led, which means that the degree is mainly taught through hands-on projects and research, with very few taught modules. It can be geared towards students that want to complete a PhD after the course, or based on developing industry skills that will prepare candidates for finding a job in the electronics engineering industry.

The University of Portsmouth

This Electrical and Electronic Engineering postgraduate course from the University of Portsmouth focuses on contemporary electrical and electronic design and offers plenty of practical learning opportunities for students to interact with the latest technologies. Along with studying relevant modules, you’ll also work on a final project on a topic of your choice, allowing you to specialise and develop your skills in a subject that interests you.

Glasgow Caledonian University

Advanced Electrical and Electronic Engineering MSc

Offered through Glasgow Caledonian University’s School of Computing, Engineering and Built Environment, this Electrical and Electronic Engineering postgraduate course focuses on giving students the necessary skills and background to work on modern electrical and electronics projects once they graduate. This course offers the opportunity to learn about power systems, instrumentation systems, telecommunications systems and business operations alongside core material and allows students to develop their career prospects through events and activities with the IET.

The University of Leicester

The University of Leicester offers a postgraduate course in Advanced Electrical and Electronic Engineering, which offers a broad range of opportunities to deepen your understanding of this discipline. As well as the traditional course consisting of modules and a project, you also have the opportunity to extend your MSc and do an industry placement, which can be really beneficial from an employability point of view.

The University of Warwick

This postgraduate course from the University of Warwick is a great opportunity for undergraduates to continue their study of electrical engineering or specialise in the electronics sector after gaining a general engineering background. It’s a course with a heavy focus on a project, offering lots of practical experience opportunities both individually and in groups.

Summary

Studying a postgraduate course is a common choice for engineering candidates that want to specialise in a certain area of the industry or gain more practical experience to prepare them for work. Electronics engineering and embedded software are both seen as sectors where plenty of new technologies are being developed and gaining more relevance in today’s society, so gaining a postgraduate qualification will really benefit you as you enter the recruitment market.

If you’re an engineering graduate looking for a role in electronics engineering or embedded software, KO2 is a specialist recruitment agency that will find you your perfect role. Take a look at our available graduate opportunities or get in touch to speak to our team about what you’re looking for.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post The Best Universities for Postgraduate Courses in Electronics and Embedded Software appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

Could AI Replace Engineers?

Chris Oddy — Wed, 30 Nov 2022 11:36:48 +0000

Could AI Replace Engineers?

The myth of robots and artificial intelligence taking charge of our world has been circulating ever since the idea was thought up in the first place. But our understanding of artificial intelligence has now reached a point where we are relying more and more on automation and robotic devices to take charge of a wide range of tasks, leading many people to believe that this ‘futuristic’ reality has a real chance of coming true.

A theme that often comes up when discussing how AI might impact our future is the idea that technology will become so advanced that robots will be able to do all of the jobs previously completed by humans. In some cases this is seen as a benefit, but in many others it leads to people fearing being left without a source of income or ending up with a skill set that is no longer valuable in modern society.

People have been asking ‘will artificial intelligence take over?’ for a while now, leading to research into the likelihood of all kinds of scenarios in which robotic technology and automation take charge of our world. Jobs have been a key focus for many of these studies, including one by academics Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne, whose paper ‘The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?’ estimated that 47% of US employment is at risk of being taken over by AI and computerisation.

Findings such as these lead to questions like ‘Can AI replace engineers?’, focusing on which roles are most at risk and which are likely to be safe from total AI dominance for the time being. Tools like this one from the BBC show that many of the jobs most at risk are those involving repetitive tasks, low levels of social intelligence and minimal interaction with others, whilst roles that require innovation, creativity, diversity in tasks and negotiation are beyond the reaches of AI at the moment.

Engineering is generally thought to be one of the jobs that AI can’t replace thanks to the need for creative approaches to projects, collaborative work and lateral thinking. But because of the connection that many kinds of engineering have with robotics and artificial intelligence, many people in this role are still curious as to whether their jobs will really remain ‘safe’ from any influence from this kind of technology.

Artificial Intelligence in Engineering: Where are We Now?

The main way that artificial intelligence is impacting engineering at the moment is that it’s being integrated into more and more kinds of technology developed by people in the industry. Engineers are responsible for coming up with ways that AI might be used in the products they are designing or refining, and then implementing this to create new ‘smart’ products or intuitive devices.

A great example of this that is particularly relevant to our candidates and clients is the use of AI in transport, such as self-driving cars. This isn’t a kind of technology that is widely avoidable for public use just yet, but it’s growing more and more reliable and is likely to become the norm in the transport industry over the next decade.

Another example from the electronics and embedded systems sector is devices that use features like Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Google’s Google Assistant. Whether on a smartphone or as part of a household device like a speaker or a tablet, these types of AI have become incredibly commonplace in plenty of homes and are likely to become more developed and capable of complex tasks in the near future.

A lot of CAD software also uses AI, often in ways that are so subtle that you might not realise it. But the way that engineering designs and diagrams are drawn up digitally is helped massively by AI technology that makes it easy to draw common shapes, add established components and edit designs faster thanks to intuitive software.

Automation has also become a key part of many engineering manufacturing processes, many of which have come from the automation and control systems sector of the industry. Warehouses and production lines are increasingly replacing human workers with machines and robots that can carry out repetitive and sometimes dangerous tasks much faster and safer, massively improving the quality of manufacturing and the number of products that can be built.

An engineering innovation that is linked to this is collaborative robots, or ‘cobots’ which work in tandem with a human to help them complete tasks or partly automate a process. This kind of AI is particularly relevant when we’re talking about how engineering may be affected by this developing technology, examining how processes can be optimised whilst still requiring some human input.

Engineering is an interesting industry to examine the idea of artificial intelligence replacing jobs, as it’s the engineers who are creating the technology that may one day end up replacing them. But it’s important to remember that, whilst the advancements being made by robotics engineers and software developers are particularly impressive, AI that is capable of properly taking over an engineering role is still a very long way off.

Our Insight – Will AI Replace Engineers?

When it comes to questions such as ‘will software engineers be automated?’ or ‘will AI replace programmers?’, our answer is that we don’t believe that these kinds of jobs can ever be totally replaced by artificial intelligence. In the future, machine learning will be used not to replace the role of an engineer, but to enhance their ability to do their job and create more opportunities for innovation.

There are already plenty of instances of how this is currently being done in the engineering industry, with the cobots we discussed earlier a prime example of how robotics technology can enhance established engineering processes. In the future, there will likely be more and more tools and programs developed that will allow engineers to work smarter and faster, potentially with the assistance of fully artificially intelligent machines.

What’s important to remember in discussions around artificial intelligence replacing jobs is that there are elements of engineering that machines will likely never be able to learn and replicate in the exact same way. A robot might produce an innovative idea by chance after churning out hundreds of useless ones, whereas the human brain is capable of much more nuanced and creative thinking that will always be valuable and able to come up with unique solutions and concepts.

Many engineering roles also involve interaction with other team members, stakeholders and clients, which require a level of social intelligence that AI just isn’t capable of at the moment. Even if more of the practical tasks that engineers are responsible for are eventually taken over by machines, things like pitching ideas, negotiating briefs, presenting products and collaborative problem-solving will always be better left to real people.

It’s understandable that some engineers are wary of the changes that robots and AI might bring to the industry, but resisting the coming changes will most likely mean you miss out on the benefits of what this kind of technology can do. Therefore, our advice for those impacted by artificial intelligence in engineering is to make the most of how machine learning can help you in your role and be ready to adapt to new ideas.

Top Tips for Working with Artificial Intelligence

Appreciate the Potential for New Technology

Our first piece of advice for working with artificial intelligence in the engineering industry is to appreciate the potential that this new technology has. As part of this, you should be willing to learn more about AI and its applications instead of just dismissing it and avoiding having to engage.

Once you start to understand the huge range of AI applications, you’re likely to realise the multitude of benefits that this technology brings and the ways that it could help improve your experiences of your job. Don’t be resistant; prepare yourself through research and discussion so that you see opportunities for AI input across your job.

Be Ready to Learn New Skills

With new technology comes a necessary need for new skills. If AI machinery is being introduced into your workplace, you’ll need to learn how to use this in order to get the most out of the experience.

Learning new skills and becoming comfortable with new technology is actually a massive benefit to you as an engineering candidate, so you should seize these opportunities and appreciate how they make you more desirable as an employee. AI technology is only going to advance in the engineering industry, and if you’re already skilled in working with it then you’re going to see a lot more job prospects opening up in the future.

Optimise Existing Procedures

When it comes to actually introducing AI into your workplace, starting small is the best approach if you want to avoid overwhelming the workforce or disrupting an established process. The best way to approach this, therefore, is to identify existing procedures that might benefit from being optimised and then look into the AI potential of these.

It might not seem like optimising established procedures will make much of a difference, but if you utilise AI technology and automate or simplify lots of processes, you’ll start to notice the impact it has on efficiency and productivity. This then leads to our next point about what this can facilitate.

Free Up Time for Creative Work

When menial, repetitive or straightforward tasks can be taken over by automated systems and AI, engineers are likely to find that they have more time on their hands that has been freed up by certain processes becoming more efficient. This is a really exciting outcome, as it frees up more time that can be spent on creative work.

As AI technology is used more widely, there will be an increased demand for technology that uses it. Therefore, engineers can use the time they gain from allocating tasks to machines to think about new ways in which machine learning might be applied to their area of expertise, or just enjoy having more time to focus on innovative ideas and more dynamic tasks.

This is a benefit for the businesses that use this technology as well, as their workforce will come up with more ideas that can be developed into new products and solutions and then sold.

Enhance Recruitment

Finally, an area of the engineering industry where AI can be really successfully used is recruitment. There are already a lot of tools on the market that use some form of AI technology to streamline the recruitment process and help employers find talented candidates faster, as well as improve how candidates are screened and matched with the right roles. Whilst some aspects of recruitment will always be better left to real people, AI can be a brilliant addition to certain areas of recruitment, helping engineering businesses to improve their workforce and increase success.

Summary

So, is engineering safe from AI? Will AI take over engineering jobs, and does the development of new technology mean we should worry about things like ‘Can ChatGPT replace programmers’?

The bottom line of this article is that engineering is not one of the jobs that will be replaced by AI, but it is a role that can be greatly enhanced through collaboration with automated machinery and AI technology. No matter your industry sector, it is likely that AI and future jobs will start to change the way you work in the coming decade, and it’s much better to be prepared and excited about the potential that this has than daunted by the prospect.

If you’re an engineer that wants to work with AI in the electronics and embedded systems industry, KO2 is a specialist recruitment agency that can find the ideal job for you. Take a look at our available opportunities, or get in touch and speak to our team about how we can help.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post Could AI Replace Engineers? appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

Mechanical Design Engineer Interview Questions & Answers

Chris Oddy — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 09:51:44 +0000

Mechanical Design Engineer Interview Questions & Answers

What you Need to Know

The role of a mechanical design engineer is one that we often see companies hiring for in the electronics and embedded systems industry. Combining creative thinking and theoretical engineering expertise, it’s a position that focuses on the initial stages of product development and can involve a lot of collaboration when coming up with new design ideas.

If you’re a mechanical design engineer applying for a new role, you’re likely wondering what the best way is to prepare for your interview. In this article, we share a quick overview of the role and responsibilities it entails, and then give advice on common interview questions for mechanical design engineers and how best to answer them.

What is a Mechanical Design Engineer?

Mechanical design engineers design and develop new mechanical components and products across a range of different engineering sectors. They focus on creating the initial design specifications for different things, conducting research and refining their designs before these instructions are passed onto the next stage of development.

A mechanical design engineer usually has a background in general mechanical engineering, but will have specialised in working in the design stage of product development. They will often work as part of a team of other engineers and designers, either collaborating on designs or creating design documents and doing preliminary research to come up with new component ideas and testing and refining these.

Design engineers in the mechanical engineering industry need both technical and creative abilities to thrive in their roles. They need to be able to come up with ideas for new mechanical components, but also understand the properties, benefits and limits of the materials and elements that they’re going to use in the final product. It’s this combination of technical expertise and creative thinking that makes the role of mechanical design engineer so popular.

What Does a Mechanical Design Engineer Do?

Mechanical design engineers can work in a variety of industry sectors, from automotive design to industrial development. Below is a breakdown of some of the general responsibilities that might belong to someone in this role.

Respond to briefs for new products and come up with initial design ideas
Conduct research to inform designs and ensure technical accuracy
Refine and adapt initial designs based on feedback and additional research
Study existing mechanical designs and come up with improvements
Use CAD to develop product designs and run simulations
Share product designs with other engineers to gather feedback
Record test and simulation data to inform design updates
Consult relevant safety and function specifications to ensure design compliance
Document the design process
Present design ideas to colleagues and clients/shareholders
Oversee physical product development and testing
Work to project timelines and within the project budget
Deliver technical design reports and documentation

Mechanical Design Engineer Job Interview Questions

One of the best ways to do well in a job interview is by preparing for the kinds of questions you’re likely to be asked. Not only can this help you to feel more confident and relaxed before the conversation, but it also helps to ensure that you mention all of the key things you’d like your interviewer to know about your skills and experience.

Below, we’ve compiled a list of frequently asked interview questions for mechanical design engineers, explained the purpose of each and given examples of how best to respond.

Why did you choose to study mechanical engineering?

The majority of mechanical design engineers study mechanical engineering at university, and if you’ve listed this on your CV then your interviewer is likely to ask you about it. This is a great opportunity to talk about where your interest in this industry sector started and demonstrate your enthusiasm for certain kinds of mechanical design.

It’s also a good way to start talking about the first design projects you started working on as part of your mechanical engineering degree. You could share some of the work you were most proud of or just talk about a project that made you realise that this was the career path you wanted to go down.

What is your CAD system of choice? Why is that?

Mechanical design engineer interview questions will often include queries about the kind of CAD experience you have and your favourite systems to use. The interviewer will be looking to find out whether you have experience with the system currently used by their company, but don’t worry if you have experience with something else. What matters is that you know how to use the different features of CAD software, and can explain why you like these features on a particular system.

This is another example of an interview question that you can use as a vehicle to talk about a previous project. When you’re talking about your CAD experience, explain why a certain system was particularly useful for a task and why.

Do you have experience working in any other industries? What have you learnt from them?

Mechanical design engineering is a job that can be done in quite a few different industries, as plenty of businesses need mechanical products and components designed for them. If you’re applying for a job in a new industry, this question gives you a great opportunity to talk about other work you have done and the skills you have gained.

You want to shape your answer so that you’re showing how work in other industries has prepared you to succeed in the job you’re applying for. The interviewer is asking so that they can gauge whether you’ve got the right background for the role, and you need to show them that what you’ve learnt is transferable.

Talk about the first engineering design you produced. What did you learn from it?

Speaking about your engineering experience is a great way to help the interviewer get to know you better in a mechanical engineering job interview, as well as helping you to demonstrate how you approach different tasks.

In this question, the interviewer wants to hear you describe your approach to a design, but also wants you to demonstrate how you’ve learned from the experience. Explain what the design project involved, what you did to complete it, and how you used the experience to grow as a designer and improve the next project you worked on.

What has been your most successful engineering project?

One of the most common mechanical design engineer interview questions is asking about previous successes in other jobs. The interviewer wants to know what you’re capable of by asking about your top work, but they also want to get to know more about you and what makes you tick as a designer.

In your response, explain what the project involved and any key decisions you made that influenced the success. If possible, you should also demonstrate your analysis skills by explaining what it was that made this project so successful and any learnings that you took away from the experience.

Have you ever worked on an engineering project that failed? What happened?

Another of the very common engineering interview questions is asking a candidate to talk about a time when they failed and how they overcame this. This helps the interviewer to see that you’re aware of mistakes or flaws and that you can use these setbacks to learn and improve.

Be honest about what happened when a project failed and explain what led to this to show the interviewer that you have good critical awareness. Focus your answer around how you moved on from the failure and what it taught you and ideally how you then applied these learnings to something else.

Talk about a time you’ve made a mistake at work. What did you do to recover?

Following on from that last question, an interviewer might ask a mechanical design engineer this to get a better idea of the candidate’s critical awareness and ability for self-reflection. Being able to own up to a mistake demonstrates honesty, but you should focus on what you gained from making the mistake instead of just what went wrong.

Explain the choices that led up to the mistake and then how you realised what was wrong and what needed to be changed. Show how you took accountability and the key takeaways you got from the experience, and then how this has helped you improve as an engineer as a result.

Do you have a process to check for flaws? Can you explain it?

Mechanical engineering interview questions will often want to focus on understanding how a candidate works, which includes learning about their processes and approaches to design tasks. This question involves explaining how you ensure the quality of your designs and requires you to talk through your checking process. Try and use an example here to better illustrate your point, ideally explaining how this has previously helped you to highlight things that needed improvement.

What’s your process for prioritising projects?

A mechanical design engineer might often have several different tasks on the go, and the ability to stay organised and manage your priorities is very important. The interviewer wants to hear about your personal process for meeting deadlines, assessing priorities and successfully managing your time, and this is another instance where the best kinds of answers will also come with an example to back up your reply.

How often do you update your knowledge of engineering principles?

Finally, interviewers tend to be looking for talented candidates that demonstrate a genuine interest in their industry and profession, which is what this mechanical design engineer job interview question is focusing on. Be honest about how much personal development work and research you do outside of the role, but be sure to mention anything from the articles or newsletter you read to the kind of hobbies that feed back into your work.

Mechanical Engineering Technical Interview Questions

As well as the behavioural, situation and experience-based questions we have given examples of above, a mechanical engineering interview will also often include a technical component. In some cases, you may be given a separate technical interview as part of the recruitment process, testing you on your specific knowledge of mechanical design concepts.

There are plenty of different types of mechanical engineering technical interview questions you could be asked in these situations. Below is a selection of examples that will give you an idea of what you may be required to answer, and should revise before your interview.

What is machine design?
What is the difference between fundamental and derived units?
What are bearing metals and what should be their mechanical properties?
What is the difference between stress and strain?
What are the different types of mechanical joints?
What is the stress-strain curve?
How do you calculate the factor of safety?
What is a process flow diagram?

Summary

Some engineering candidates find the technical element of a job interview the most challenging stage of recruitment, whilst others are more apprehensive about having to talk about themselves and their experience. No matter where you need more support, preparing answers to common questions and reading up on the kinds of things you might be asked will help you to feel more prepared and hopefully help your answers to come out sounding more relaxed and knowledgeable.

If you’re a mechanical design engineer looking for new career opportunities, KO2 is a specialist recruitment agency that can help you find the perfect role. Take a look at our current mechanical design engineering roles, or get in touch and speak to a member of the team about how we can help.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Moving From Contract to Permanent Engineering Roles – A Guide

Matter Standard: A Guide for Engineers

What is the Difference Between C and Embedded C Programming?

What are the Key Characteristics of an Embedded System?

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.

Job alerts

The post Mechanical Design Engineer Interview Questions & Answers appeared first on KO2 Recruitment.

AutoCAD vs SOLIDWORKS – What’s the Difference?

Chris Oddy — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 09:16:39 +0000

AutoCAD vs SOLIDWORKS – What’s the Difference?

Computer-aided design revolutionised the speed and efficiency of technical drawing and drafting. Gone were the days of drawing boards and rulers, replaced by software that could create detailed and accurate designs and specifications used by architects, product designers and engineers.

As the potential for this kind of software was realised, its applications grew from 2D drawing to 3D modelling. Two top-rated programs for both of these tasks are AutoCAD and SOLIDWORKS, used by individuals across a range of industries including electronic and embedded systems engineering.

If you work in a job that involves computer-aided design software, you’ll likely have heard of both AutoCAD and SOLIDWORKS. In this article, we explain the advantages and disadvantages of each, some of the key differences, and the situations and tasks that each program is better suited for.

What is AutoCAD?

AutoCAD is a widely-recognised piece of computer-aided design software that is a favourite program for drawing 2D designs. You can create all kinds of geometric models using the tools and features of the program, and it’s widely used not only by designers but also by engineers, architects, and graphical artists.

The first version of AutoCAD was designed by a team led by programmer John Walker, based on software previously created by Michael Riddle. They were both a part of the American multinational software company Autodesk, which continued to develop the program after Walker left, led by Carol Bartz, and created the version that gained international acclaim.

AutoCAD was one of the first pieces of design software that helped to automate the 2D drafting and drawing process created just for PC use, which revolutionised the design industry. 3D features were later developed on AutoCAD so that it can be used for this kind of design as well, but the software is mainly used for its 2D modelling properties.

The 2D functions of AutoCAD allow you to do classic design tasks such as creating design drawings and visualising different sections and views of a design, as well as other features such as creating parametric constraints for a design, linking Excel data with a live AutoCAD file, and revise individual sections of a design without having to create a new version.

You can also use 3D functions on AutoCAD for modelling, cloud rendering and product documentation. 3D modelling options for the software continue to be developed, but it is still mainly seen as a 2D modelling program.

Advantages of AutoCAD

Using AutoCAD to create designs and plans is immensely faster than trying to draw them by hand or using other design software
Since AutoCAD is used as the standard for computer-aided design, other files from CAD software tend to be compatible
The user interface is considered to be very easy to navigate and understand, so it’s quite straightforward to learn AutoCAD
A huge advantage of AutoCAD for designers is that it allows you to draw to scale and see the actual size of the product you’re creating
Data on AutoCAD is stored very securely and can also be accessed by multiple people at once, allowing for easy collaboration on designs
The software has a scanning tool that allows you to accurately calculate the quantity of the material you’ll need to produce the design, which can help to improve the production process
The software allows users to use a Point Cloud as a starting point for designs
PDF imports are processed with several features that make for easier editing, such as converting geometries to text objects

Disadvantages of AutoCAD

Some specialised tools on AutoCAD are only compatible with Windows operating systems
Editing the lines drawn on AutoCAD is much more of a hassle than other drawing and illustration software, which some designers might find frustrating
The large number of functions on the program means that it can take a while to get to grips with all the different features
AutoCAD isn’t a parametric design program, meaning that designs aren’t automatically adjusted when one component is edited
The number of file formats that can be imported and exported on AutoCAD is quite limited
Colour and texture options on AutoCAD are quite limited in comparison to other programs
Registering for AutoCAD software is quite expensive, and the annual subscription fee is also fairly pricey
Strong computer processing power is required for the software to run properly
The 3D modelling software is quite limited in comparison to programs like SOLIDWORKS

What is SOLIDWORKS?

SOLIDWORKS is a piece of industry-leading CAD software that is best known for its 3D modelling tools. It’s incredibly popular among designers and engineers for its range of features and applications and has great functionality which means it’s used across all kinds of industries.

The software was first developed in 1995 by an MIT graduate called Jon Hirschtick. He was part of the well-known MIT Blackjack Team and wanted to create a 3D CAD program that was affordable for other graduates like himself.

In 1997, SOLIDWORKS was bought by an aviation manufacturing company called Dassault, where Hirschtick worked for 14 years. This is one of the main reasons why SOLIDWORKS is such a popular piece of software for mechanical engineers, even though it was designed with many different applications in mind.

SOLIDWORKS uses parametric design, which allows the user to see how changes they make to one component will affect the others around it, making it easier to spot and rectify mistakes. A library of templates and automation tools makes the design process faster and more efficient, and there are also tools for creating animations and rendering designs using SOLIDWORKS Visualise to get a clearer idea of what they will look like in real life.

You can also use SOLIDWORKS Simulation to virtually test designs and collect performance data, which helps the user to rectify problems in the early stages of a design project and save time later on. There’s also a feature that converts a SOLIDWORKS design into files that can be sent straight to a manufacturer, allowing for ease through the entire product lifecycle.

The versatility of SOLIDWORKS’ features means that it’s used in all kinds of professions, but transport, aerospace, defence, energy and consumer goods are the most common sectors where the software is used. Mechanical, design, product and electronic engineers are some of the top roles that regularly make use of SOLIDWORKS.

Advantages of SOLIDWORKS

Many users agree that SOLIDWORKS is quite easy to get to grips with, even as a complete beginner
There are also lots of tutorials for SOLIDWORKS that have already been created by the community, making it easy to find help if you need it
The parametric nature of the software makes it easier to adapt an overall design if you’ve made changes to one part of it
It’s much easier to create product documentation for design on SOLIDWORKS as the software makes the majority of the calculations and measurements for you
SOLIDWORKS models can instantly be read by computer numerical control (CNC) machines and 3D printers without the files having to be converted
There are templates for standard components in SOLIDWORKS, saving you lots of time if these are part of your design
SOLIDWORKS projects are accessible by multiple people, making collaboration easy

Disadvantages of SOLIDWORKS

SOLIDWORKS is only compatible with Windows operating systems, making it much more difficult for designers that use Mac OS
There’s pretty limited 2D functionality if you’re creating flat designs with SOLIDWORKS
The quality of image rendering doesn’t compare to other CAD programs
If you want to make a drawing using raw data, the design doesn’t tend to be very detailed
The cost of the SOLIDWORKS annual subscription and initial licence investment is high, making this option inaccessible for many individuals

What are the Differences Between AutoCAD and SOLIDWORKS?

There are plenty of differences when it comes down to AutoCAD vs SOLIDWORKS, which is mainly due to the fact that the programs were designed for different things.

AutoCAD was originally created for 2D design modelling, whilst SOLIDWORKS was designed with 3D modelling in mind. Both programs offer the option to design in both 2D and 3D, but these features aren’t really comparable because AutoCAD is the standard 2D choice and SOLIDWORKS is the standard 3D choice.

Another key difference in the SOLIDWORKS vs AutoCAD debate is that SOLIDWORKS is parametric whilst AutoCAD is non-parametric. This means that when you alter a design’s parameters in SOLIDWORKS in one section, the rest of the design is automatically updated, whereas you’ll need to do this manually if using AutoCAD.

AutoCAD was originally designed to be used for architectural design and construction documentation, but later became widely used in mechanical, structural and electrical engineering sectors. In contrast, SOLIDWORKS was designed with mechanical, automotive and aerospace engineering in mind from the beginning, and only later began to be used in an architectural and electronic engineering context.

To drill down into a particular industry sector, we can look at the specific electronic engineering programs designed by SOLIDWORKS and AutoCAD. When comparing SOLIDWORKS Electrical vs AutoCAD Electrical, the main difference is that SOLIDWORKS Electrical has been more recently updated and therefore is more streamlined and has better features, whilst AutoCAD Electrical is useful but hasn’t quite caught up in terms of functionality.

SOLIDWORKS software has a much more complex user interface. AutoCAD is pretty accessible for total beginners, whilst SOLIDWORKS is designed for those with more experience and takes a lot longer to get to grips with.

When it comes to accessibility, SOLIDWORKS CAD software is currently only available in the English language, whereas AutoCAD is available in many other languages. This makes it much harder to learn to use the software if you don’t speak English, or means that you’ll need to find an alternative in your language.

Should I Use AutoCAD or SOLIDWORKS?

Since the two programs are quite different, choosing whether to use AutoCAD or SOLIDWORKS is quite a straightforward decision.

If you need to create a 2D design drawing, AutoCAD is the best piece of software out there. SOLIDWORKS is much better for creating 3D parts and products thanks to the functions that let you see different angles, render the design and run simulations.

Speaking of simulations, SOLIDWORKS is the best choice if you want to put your design through motion simulation, animation and rendering. AutoCAD, on the other hand, is the better piece of software if you’re looking for a general drafting platform.

AutoCAD is the best program for mechanical architecture and civil engineering, whilst SOLIDWORKS is best for mechanical engineering and electronics engineering. We’ve already mentioned how SOLIDWORKS Electrical is the better industry-specific program out of the two, so if you’re looking for which to choose for electronic design, opt for SOLIDWORKS.

Summary

Both SOLIDWORKS software and AutoCAD programs are very valuable tools for electronic engineers to use, so at the end of the day feeling comfortable using both of them is probably your best course of action. However, if it comes to choosing one piece of software, consider the task that you’re doing and the features that each program offers, and make your decision based on which one is better suited to meet your needs.

If you’re an electronic engineer with AutoCAD or SOLIDWORKS experience, we’re a specialist recruitment agency that can help you find roles that make the most of these skills. View our available job opportunities or get in touch to speak to our team about how we can help.

Chris Oddy

About the Author

Chris is an award-winning recruitment consultant who has specialised in the electronics and embedded systems sector since 2008. Chris is passionate about technology and customer service.

Linux Developer Interview Questions and Answers

Rust vs C++ – A Guide for Engineers

Advantages and Disadvantages of C++

What is the Best C++ IDE?

C++ vs Python

Looking
to hire

We provide contract and permanent solutions to electronics and embedded systems businesses throughout the UK and Ireland.

Looking
for work

If you’re looking for a contract or permanent role within an electronics and embedded systems business, we can help you. Get in touch below.