ChemAcademia

Step Ahead for Instrumentation Engineers

Shivendra Kapoor

This article is written based on the personal experience of the author while conducting guest lectures on ‘Safety
Instrumented Systems’ (SIS) at various engineering colleges in Mumbai, India. The lecture series was conducted
for final year instrumentation engineering students to impart technical awareness about SIS and to briefly explain
the role of a ‘Functional Safety Engineer’ in the industry.
The intent of this article is not to talk about SIS, but to answer a common question that was asked by many engi-
neers during the lecture i.e. what to do after passing instrumentation engineering and where do we go from here?
This article provides some tips for students who would like to have basic industry preparedness before entering
the industrial world.

O
ver the past few months, slump in the global oil
prices have triggered endless discussions wheth-
er oil prices would drop down to $ 20/ barrel or
will again reach its peak of $ 110/ barrel. This situation
has had a significant impact on the oil and gas indus-
try - the dream work sector for every engineer. The engi-
neering job market and business is becoming unpredict-
able. Many mega oil and gas projects have been put on
hold and there is no clear indication when these projects
will start. This was the key concern among guest lectur-
ers and students who have begun to doubt their career
choice.
Despite the unpredictable nature of the oil and gas
industry it can be said confidently that the field of in-
strumentation is advancing at a rapid pace and budding
engineers need to be aware about the diverse options in-
strumentation can offer them today.
Step Ahead
Let us see some of the options that an instrumentation
engineer can consider after completion of ‘Bachelor’s de-
gree in Instrumentation’ (Table 1).
There are many other diversifications available from
core instrumentation like: Biomedical instrumenta-
tion, Nuclear Instrumentation, Image processing, etc...
Ultimately, it depends upon an individual’s perspective
to select the path most suitable according to his/her lik-
AUTHOR
Shivendra Kapoor, is an Instrumentation engineer and a Certified
Functional Safety Professional from TÜV SÜD.
ing for the subject.
Preparedness tips before entering the industrial
world
The industry is not harsh as it may appear to college
goers. For many, things turn difficult in the initial period
of employment when one fails to understand what the in-
dustry expects when an engineer is employed. Engineers
have to learn to shed the comfort zone that the college
had offered them and start being assertive and proactive.
Industry expects that an employed engineer be techni-
cally sound atleast with the basics, so that learning to ap-
ply these basics becomes easy. There are many ways to be
industry ready; below are some tips that have been tried
and tested by many and have proven successful.
l It is worth being a member of ISA, IEEE, etc. societies
which are very good technical resources for instru-
mentation professionals. This helps to be technically
strong and stay abreast of the advances in engineer-
ing.
l It is advised that students start reading technical lit-
eratures, industrial magazines, attend industry ori-
ented webinars (mostly they are free), participate in
college organized industry visits, visit manufacturing
facilities for items like control valves, sensors, panels,
etc.. , request industry experts for guest lectures. For
sure the wealth of information assimilated through all
these prove very useful.
l Participation in exhibitions like automation expo
which is held every year also helps expand horizons
and is a great way to establish business contacts that

Chemical Industry Digest. December 2015 47

 ChemAcademia

Table 1
Sr. Options Available Best Suited For Students
No.
1. Continuing the path of education and who love to enter the field of teaching as an engineering
pursuing Masters and further a PhD faculty
(doctorate)
2. Business Development, Sales and who have powerful communication skills and the ability
Marketing to convince others to buy their products/services
3. Site installation and commissioning having robust health and adaptability to varying enviro-
engineer nmental and living conditions and who are willing to
work outside the comfort of an air-conditioner
4. Design engineer with EPC/LSTK/detail having an inclination toward learning something new
engineering contractors* every day and who love multi-tasking and interaction
with other engineering disciplines like electrical,
mechanical, etc.
5. Project engineer who are technically aware about instrumentation engi
neering but are more inclined toward managing people
and projects rather than executing them
6. System engineer who love logic diagrams and the control system world
(like: DCS, PLC, etc.) as compared to field instrumentation
7. Software programmer for instrument- having good command over programming subjects (like:
ation related software C, C++, Java, etc.) and a natural flair for the software world
8. Production and Maintenance engineer who are ready to work in shifts and prefer routine activities
and an environment of an operating company
9. Technical Writer having a knack to understand how things work and to pre-
sent them in technically simple and correct way. Must have a
flair for writing
10. Functional Safety engineer who are technically clear on the fundamentals of instrument-
ation and mathematics (especially probability) and have the
desire to learn and work on high end control and emergency
systems.

may possibly help to get a job offer.
l Even while executing final year projects, attempt to
take subjects where frequent industry visits are re-
quired and execute them with sincerity and full jus-
tice. This would ensure that real life project imple-
mentation experience is gained. The industry is nice
and people are ready to help. Sometimes it may take
extra efforts to find the right person/company who is
willing to extend help; but for sure it is possible and it
happens.
l There is no harm in working (even for free) on week-
ends / holidays with companies where one can gain
some work experience. It surely adds on to one’s re-
sume and reflects positive approach toward work.
l While technical knowledge is a must, one must not
forget that oral and written communication skills
are equally important. Hone these skills and maybe
working knowledge of an additional language (like:
German, French, etc.) is a big plus.
*EPC : Engineering Procurement Construction,
LSTK : Lump Sum Turn Key

48 Chemical Industry Digest. December 2015