Engineering plays a vital role in the UK’s economy, providing employment on a large scale and producing the majority of our physical exports. Engineering is also responsible for developing and implementing some of the solutions to major global challenges.
UK engineering has a world-leading position across the range of knowledge-intensive industrial industries involved in scientific and technological research and innovation that results in addressing these global challenges. Engineering is responsible for 44% of UK exports according to the EEF. Britain is the world’s 8th largest manufacturer.
According to Engineering UK It is estimated that engineering contributed £486 billion to UK GDP in 2015 – around 26% of the total and representing 2.3% growth since 2014. In 2015, the number of engineering enterprises in the UK grew by 7% over the previous year, to 650,000. Nearly 5.7 million employees work in engineering enterprises in the UK, representing just over 19% of total UK employment. 265,000 skilled entrants required annually to meet demand for engineering enterprises through to 2024. That is more than 2.5 million job opportunities over a ten year period.
The average salary, in 2015, for all those in full-time engineering occupation employment was £33,689 compared to a UK average of £27,645. Average earnings for some mainstream engineering roles look strong and are enjoying bigger rises – such as civil engineers at over £42,500 (up 5%) and mechanical engineers (over £45,000, up 3.6%). In 2016 the Office of National Statistics said that the average manufacturing salary was £32,047 compared to a national average of £28,299.
If you already possess engineering skills you will find that there are many opportunities already waiting for you so whether you have already left higher education or are thinking about you working life, contact us to find out more. We have experts in all aspects of engineering and they are waiting to hear from you.
