Overview of the UK's engineering industry

The engineering industry accounts for nearly a fifth of the total UK workforce, but is in desperate need of new talent. If you have the right qualifications and technical skills, discover the engineering and manufacturing companies who'd be keen to take you on

What is engineering?

Concerned with the design, building, maintenance and use of engines, machines and structures, at its heart engineering is about problem solving and using your science, maths and technological ability to apply innovations to the real world.

Manufacturing on the other hand is the large scale production of products or goods that are then sold on to a customer.

The engineering and manufacturing sector is one of the UK's broadest and encompasses a range of disciplines. According to the industry's regulatory body, the Engineering Council, 18% of the UK's working population are involved with engineering, working out at around six million people.

Types of engineering and manufacturing

• aerospace
• applications
• architecture
• automotive
• building services
• chemical
• civil
• commercial
• commissioning
• computing and IT
• construction
• contracting
• defence
• design
• electrical
• electronics
• environmental
• estimator
• facilities management
• forensic
• geotechnical
• health and safety
• hydrology
• infrastructure
• instrumentation and control systems
• manufacturing
• marine
• materials
• mechanical
• petroleum, oil and gas
• planning
• plant
• power
• process
• production
• project management
• quality
• rail
• research and development
• site
• software
• surveying
• systems
• telecoms, digital communications and networks
• test
• transportation.

Industries that require qualified engineering and manufacturing graduates include:

• automation and robotics
• biotechnology
• music
• nuclear
• pharmaceuticals
• space.

For more examples of job roles in this sector, see graduate engineering jobs.

Top engineering companies

Graduates are typically employed by large engineering firms, including:

• Airbus
• Arup
• Aston Martin
• Atkins
• Babcock
• BAE Systems
• Bentley Motors
• BMW Group
• British Airways (BA)
• Colas Rail
• Dyson
• Jaguar Land Rover
• Kier Group
• Mercedes
• Network Rail
• Nissan
• Nucleargraduates
• Rolls-Royce
• Siemens
• Sellafield
• Thales Group
• Transport for London (TfL).

Leading engineering consulting firms include:

• AECOM
• Arup
• Capgemini
• EFESCO Management Consultants
• Mott MacDonald
• Sweco UK.

Despite these lists of major names, the engineering and manufacturing sector is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Therefore, most engineering graduates will work in smaller organisations. Read about working for a small business.

The major trade and membership organisations representing individuals and businesses across the sector, include:

• Engineering Industries Association (EIA) - promotes UK manufacturing and engineering companies across the globe.
• Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) - membership organisation for over 30,000 chemical and process engineers.
• Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) - a professional membership body with over 98,000 members.
• Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) - provides lifelong learning opportunities to its 115,000 mechanical engineer members.
• The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) - represents the global engineering community.
• The Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE) - supports the development of 30,000 structural engineers across the world.

Biggest manufacturing organisations

With a combined turnover of £309billion, the five leading manufacturing sectors are known as the Manufacturing Five (M5). These industries are represented by the:

• ADS Group - the UK trade association for aerospace, defence, security and space.
• Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) - research and development into medicines and vaccines.
• Chemical Industries Association (CIA) - represents UK chemical and pharmaceutical businesses.
• Food and Drink Federation (FDF) - the membership body for food and drink manufacturers.
• Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) - supports and promotes the UK automotive industry.

Of these, the food and drink industry is the UK's biggest, contributing more to the economy than all other manufacturing sectors combined, including aerospace and automotive. Indeed, in 2022 it had a turnover of £128billion (14.4% of the total). It employed over 456,000 people across every region of the country.

Within this field, top food and drink manufacturing employers include:

• Arla Foods
• Associated British Foods
• Britvic Soft Drinks
• Coca-Cola
• Diageo
• Dunbia
• Greencore Convenience Foods
• Mars UK
• Mondelez UK
• Müller UK and Ireland
• Nestlé
• Ocado
• Pladis Global
• Tate & Lyle.

Other large manufacturing companies include:

• AstraZeneca
• British American Tobacco
• CNH
• GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
• INEOS
• MBDA
• Rio-Tinto
• Sellafield Ltd
• TTI
• Unilever.

Working in the engineering sector

Graduates can expect to:

• work in a variety of locations depending on your specialism - from the office and factory floors to building sites, workshops, laboratories and plants
• have opportunities for continuing professional development (CPD)
• earn an average graduate salary in the region of £27,000 to £33,000
• use creativity and problem-solving skills to design innovative products or tackle some of the world's most pressing challenges
• travel locally and regionally between locations. Depending on your job, international travel could also be an option.

To discover more about salaries and working conditions for specific roles, see engineering and manufacturing job profiles.

Employment prospects

Graduates are highly sought-after by employers in this sector, with a huge range of engineering graduate schemes available, across a variety of disciplines.

You could try breaking into an area experiencing growth, such as:

• Nuclear energy - The government wants nuclear power to eventually provide reliable, low carbon and cost competitive electricity. Explore getting a job in nuclear energy.
• Renewable energy - Play a key role in helping to offset the impact of climate change. Read more about renewable energy careers.
• Artificial intelligence (AI)/Big data - AI is revolutionising the industry. Get a job as a machine learning engineer, or consider studying a big data course.
• Food and drink manufacturing - As the biggest manufacturing sector, you could find yourself working in areas such as automation or developing new technologies.
• Mechanical, electrical, electronic, chemical and software engineering - Get the qualifications required to become a Chartered Engineer (CEng) or Incorporated Engineer (IEng). Discover how to become an engineer.

Engineering skills shortages

The engineering sector in the UK is currently experiencing a skills shortage. This can be attributed to a number of factors, such as an ageing workforce, economic issues post-Brexit and a lack of education and awareness surrounding engineering among young people.

A number of engineering occupations feature on the government's shortage occupations list including:

• civil
• design and development
• electrical
• electronic
• mechanical
• production.

In the engineering sector, the following skills are highly valued by employers:

• IT knowledge
• a high level of numeracy and analytical ability
• specific subject knowledge and technical aptitude
• creative problem solving
• attention to detail
• communication
• teamwork
• leadership skills
• the ability to project manage
• commercial awareness.

Read more about the general skills employers want.

Engineering industry trends and challenges

While the engineering sector is crucial to our economy and everyday lives, it isn't without its share of challenges - and not just skills shortages.

For instance, engineering and technology are at the heart of the race to net zero and in the future, there will be hundreds of thousands of 'green jobs' for people with engineering skills.

Decarbonisation across the UK economy will rely on new, innovative engineering solutions conceived and realised by a diverse workforce. While much of the workforce tasked with delivering this transformation is already in employment, many are now coming through the education system.

Jobs are increasingly becoming available in solar, wind power, the electricity grid and electric vehicles, but engineers are also working on innovations in how we travel and power our lives, sustainable food production and planet-friendly fashion.

Defence, aerospace and information security are other areas where engineers are required for apprentice and graduate roles. In 2025, BAE Systems will have invested £1billion in its education and skills programmes since the start of the decade.

It's looking to take on 2,400 new starters in 2025, with those in training (6,500) making up 15% of its workforce in the UK.

'As the UK’s largest defence company, we rely on the skill and ingenuity of those who deliver our programmes, which is why it’s so crucial we continue to invest in our people,' says Charles Woodburn, chief executive of BAE Systems.

'With thousands of roles open for application across the length and breadth of the country and our exciting high technology programmes, there has never been a better time to embark on a new career with us.'

Diversity in engineering

There's plenty of room for improvement regarding diversity and inclusion in the sector. To inspire young people into the profession, the industry must improve the quality, targeting, inclusivity, and reach of activities designed to attract talent.

Over 300 organisations, including EngineeringUK, are working together to drive a new era of engagement that encourages more young people into engineering - through the Tomorrow's Engineers Code.

This is a commitment to a number of common goals covering how organisations fund, design, deliver and learn from engineering-inspiration activities. It's a growing community focused on increasing the diversity and number of young people entering engineering careers.

Sharing insights on what works well in designing and targeting engineering outreach, committing to developing high-quality activities and giving young people a reliable platform to access them will help raise awareness of engineering careers.

One of the initiatives designed to encourage young people to enter engineering is through campaigns such as Tomorrow's Engineers Week, which is held in November.

Major employers are also committed to ensuring a more inclusive workplace.

For instance, BAE Systems has revealed that just under a third (30%) of its new apprentice starters in 2024 were female, compared to 15% across the UK engineering industry - read about opportunities for women in engineering. In addition, a third of its new graduate starters were from an ethnic minority background.

As a member of Movement to Work, BAE Systems also helps to tackle the issue of youth unemployment in the UK. By providing work placements to those Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), half (50%) of those completing work experience with their employer have secured paid jobs or apprenticeships or have engaged in further study.

Find out more

• Explore engineering courses.
• Consider engineering apprenticeships.
• Get some valuable engineering work experience.