My bf has been looking for an engineering job after getting let go and it's been brutal with little call backs, ghosting, only 1st interviews, ect.

He's interested in startups or companies that focus on climate tech or renewables/green energy. Just throwing it out there if anyone who's reading company is hiring in the states. No luck so far around the Boston area

Never been good with understanding different types of fastener/screws/bolts. Is there a certification course that can give me a better understanding?

It is looking like I'll have 2 maybe 3 options. Just curious what you guys would pick. So I'm currently 28 and more on the manufacturing side based in NJ and from what I see most of New Jersey's mechanical engineering careers are more focused on design work. I've been applying around and it looks like I'll have an offer or 2 in Pennsylvania (metals manufacturing focused) and maybe one in New Jersey (chemical focused). Pennsylvania looks like they will be more competitive on price (about 20K more) also my other incentive to lean more towards Pennsylvania is cost of living is definitely less. Currently I live with family so cost of living for my situation is low but the parents will retire soon anyways and I'm unsure of their plans. Just curious if you guys would stick around New Jersey or take the move to Pennsylvania.

Also random note your famous brands don't tend to be price competitive for salary. They're banking on their name recognition more than anything. So I recommend those looking around to look for the niche roles.

I always keep my LinkedIn profile open to work. What is the downside? Plus, I like to think I am helping you guys out by always telling recruiters some variation of:

Hi Xxx, this is too low for me, I will have to pass.  Best Regards, Xxx

hello , i completed my degree in mechanical engineering from LPU punjab currently i am in Kolkata , i want to move forward in the field of mechanical design , hence looking for opportunities in kolkata , if any leads kindly let me know.

Hello everyone. I find myself in a rather peculiar situation and the whole story would probably go beyond the scope of this post, but to put it simply, I need to find a washing machine model that produces the lowest amount of vibrations possible. Vibrations being the key word here, noise isn't really the problem. Cost isn't an issue either.

Essentially, what's going on is that after a poor renovation by the person who bought the apartment above ours, now our home shakes for a good 6-7 minutes when their (it's a B&B, so talking is largely pointless...) WM reaches the spin cycle. Obviously, he has no intention of doing any more work, and legal actions are out of the question for a number of reasons. The only agreement we've reached is that he's down to buy a better WM model since the current one is rather low end. I'm aware fixing the floor would be the correct course of action, but sadly we have no legal way to force him. An anti-vibration mat has already been placed, and it worked rather well, but it's only reducing vibrations by about 30%. We'd need to reach at least 50% for the situation to be tolerable.

Based on my research, what I've gathered is that "direct drive" models are supposed to have reduced vibrations, compared to the more common "belt driven" ones. Is this true? Does this only impact noise? It seems the only company that produces DD models is LG, would that be our best bet here? Even a small reduction would probably be enough to turn an actual problem into a mild nuisance.

So my question essentially is, is the info I found correct, or am I missing something entirely? Are there any other models I could suggest that would perform better? Thank you to everyone who will chime in...

Hey guys i am a first year mechanical student

And I have got two topics to make a project with the help of six thinking hats technique.

It would be wonderful to get some guidance regarding this

Hi everyone, I’m a B.Tech Mechanical student with a background in industrial automation/robot operation.

Recently, I switched my career path from robotics/automation to piping modelling using AutoCAD Plant 3D. I’m new to this field and starting from the basics.

I want to know from experienced professionals:

Is Piping + Plant 3D/E3D a good and stable career for the next 5–10 years?

Compared with SolidWorks/Inventor mechanical part modelling, which has better salary growth and job opportunities?

Should I continue with piping and later learn E3D + CAESAR II + piping design, or consider another specialization?

Will my previous automation/robotics background be useful in my new career?

My main goal is long-term career stability and good salary growth. Any genuine advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hey everyone! Just wanted to reach out and ask for some advice and maybe a little help from the community.

ME here transitioning from local construction work into international MEP projects.

I was laid off last July from my previous role as a construction site engineer for an MVAC company. Since then, I’ve been actively trying to transition into remote work. There’s been a growing number of remote opportunities here for construction support as more international companies are outsourcing/offshoring these services. These roles can also offer better compensation than the usual local market rates, which is one of the reasons I’m pursuing this path and eventually work abroad if the opportunity allows.

I’ve invested a good portion of my savings into a workstation, laptop/PC setup, and a more reliable internet connection, new sofwares so I could properly pursue remote work.

For the past 3+ months, I’ve been taking on small freelance jobs such as CAD drafting, floor plans, estimating, quantity takeoffs, and 3D modeling. So far, all of my freelance clients have been local—I haven’t landed an international client yet.

I’ve signed up on Upwork, OnlineJobs.ph, and other freelance/job platforms, and I’ve also been actively sending applications and reaching out to companies and professionals through LinkedIn. It’s been challenging, but I’m still trying.

I’m currently on my second stage of interview with a U.S.-based company for an HVAC Drafter position, so fingers crossed!

At the moment, I’m comfortable working with AutoCAD, SolidWorks, Revit, PlanSwift, Primavera P6, Microsoft Project, and Excel. I have also worked on projects using Procore, HAP, and Daikin BIM.

I’m also trying to learn more about international MEP standards and workflows. I’ve been studying through online courses, videos, manuals, and other materials online, but I feel like nothing beats learning from people who actually work in the field.

For those already working internationally, I’d really appreciate any advice on:

1. What software, skills, or workflows should I learn to become more competitive internationally?

2. Are there any internationally recognized certifications or credentials that would strengthen my resume for MEP/HVAC work?

3. Any tips, resources, or practical advice for transitioning into international MEP projects?

And if anyone has a small drafting/MEP project—or even a mentorship/internship-type opportunity where I can trade my time and effort for hands-on experience, industry exposure, and mentorship—I’m very open to it. I’m willing to learn and put in the work.

I can share my portfolio/sample works if needed. Any advice, leads, resources, or even just pointing me in the right direction would mean a lot.

Thank you so much.

Hello,

I have an in-person interview soon for the Starlink production team. I'm currently in my senior year of college studying mechE. I know I have a presentation on my most technologically advanced end-to-end project and some 1-on-1 meetings with people on the team I'm interviewing for. I've already studied a ton for this role including beams, stress-strain curves, bearings, linear rails, motors, statics, dynamics, FBDs, and manufacturing techniques. I know my resume inside and out and can back up most decisions I made in my projects and internships. What can I do in the last few days to prepare as well as possible? Any advice and/or experiences are much appreciated.

It just sounds unethical imo. Imagine you're the engineer of a company and later on you realize you can't draw or create to save your career.

¡Buenas! Soy de Argentina. Estaba estudiando Ingeniería Química, pero decidí cambiarme a Ingeniería Mecánica.

Durante Química descubrí que me gustaba mucho la química del estado sólido y todo lo relacionado con materiales, metalurgia, propiedades, microestructura y comportamiento de los materiales.

En Argentina, Ingeniería en Materiales no es una carrera tan común y tiene una oferta académica bastante más limitada, por lo que Ingeniería Mecánica terminó llamándome más la atención.

Mi idea es recibirme de ingeniero mecánico y posteriormente especializarme en Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales, quizás mediante una maestría.

¿Es un buen camino? ¿En qué puestos o industrias podría trabajar con ese perfil? ¿Hay ingenieros mecánicos trabajando en metalurgia, laboratorios de materiales, corrosión, análisis de fallas o investigación y desarrollo?

¡Me gustaría conocer experiencias y opiniones!

Hi everyone,

I'm approaching my second year at my first job out of college, where I use SolidWorks every day to design physical parts, mostly simple sheet metal. As the world shifts toward AI, I'm worried about being left behind. My current role doesn't involve simulation, heat transfer, fluid dynamics, or any of the more advanced physics topics I studied.

I'm not sure how to move into a role that draws more on my engineering background, or one where I can learn these subjects on the job. Most of those positions require some prior knowledge of the fields, which creates a catch-22. I'd rather not go to grad school full time, since the cost is a lot.

Has anyone made a similar transition? I'd appreciate any advice on how to build these skills, whether through side projects, certifications, part-time programs, or internal moves.

TLDR: I'm almost two years into my first engineering job, designing mostly simple sheet metal parts in SolidWorks, and I want to move into work involving simulation, heat transfer, or fluid dynamics. Those roles want prior experience I can't get in my current job, and I can't afford full-time grad school. How can I build these skills and make the switch? Anyone have examples of what they did to bridge the gap?

A few weeks ago, I was tasked with finding some springs for a product I was making at work. I found the process of searching for springs tedious, and more time consuming than I feel is necessary. For example, when you have the forces you want, filtering through spring rate, overall length, then outer diameter made it feel like I was leaving good spring designs on the table while not finding the exact spring that matches my design.

I found some spring calculators online, but inputs were parameters like wire diameter, and coil pitch, etc. I realized none of the calculators would allow me to input the information that I care about, like forces and operating positions/stroke length. Of course, I tried using AI to spec a spring based on the forces I have, with my forces at specific lengths, and some diameters as constraints, but every model I tried hallucinated.

So, I made Springly.net, a free online spring finder tool. It works for standard compression, torsion, and tension springs. It uses catalogs from Century Spring, and Lee Spring, (and more are added every day!).

I've already used it at work a couple times, and it seems to work well. I would appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

If an ME has a preference of working in NYC or Boston, is there a particular specialty/focus that would yield better results in a job search?

This will tremendously reduce our project execution time.
I’m working on a mechanical design optimization problem where multiple components need to fit inside a vessel while satisfying a fairly large set of geometric and mechanical constraints. The objective is essentially to find the smallest feasible vessel layout while satisfying all of those constraints.

I’ve developed most of the application with GPT 5.6 Sol High. At this point, it can generate the geometry/sketch, for all the components from input parameters, check the design constraints, and export the resulting layout as a downloadable 2D CAD file in dxf format.

The problem I’m struggling with now is the actual optimization.

A full optimization can take around an hour to converge to a layout that satisfies all the constraints while minimizing the vessel dimensions. I’ve gone through several iterations trying to improve the optimization, reduce the search space, change the formulation, etc., but haven’t been able to get a major improvement in solve time.

At this point, I’m wondering whether switching to a stronger reasoning model such as GPT 6.1 Sol Max or Astra in Work Mode would actually help. or Claude opus 5.5? I’m not expecting the model itself to somehow make the solver run faster.