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Commercial and Industrial Designers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Design and develop manufactured products, such as cars, home appliances, and children's toys. Combine artistic talent with research on product use, marketing, and materials to create the most functional and appealing product design.

Related: Craft Artists Fabric & Apparel Patternmakers Fashion Designers Mechanical Drafters Model Makers, Metal & Plastic

Industries: Manufacturing Professional, Science, & Technical Wholesale/Commercial Sales Management

Summary
Details

Prepare sketches of ideas, detailed drawings, illustrations, artwork, or blueprints, using drafting instruments, paints and brushes, or computer-aided design equipment.
Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics.
Confer with engineering, marketing, production, or sales departments, or with customers, to establish and evaluate design concepts for manufactured products.
Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics.
Read publications, attend showings, and study competing products and design styles and motifs to obtain perspective and generate design concepts.
Develop manufacturing procedures and monitor the manufacture of their designs in a factory to improve operations and product quality.
Develop industrial standards and regulatory guidelines.
Supervise assistants' work throughout the design process.
Participate in new product planning or market research, including studying the potential need for new products.
Coordinate the look and function of product lines.
Research production specifications, costs, production materials, and manufacturing methods and provide cost estimates and itemized production requirements.
Modify and refine designs, using working models, to conform with customer specifications, production limitations, or changes in design trends.
Develop industrial standards and regulatory guidelines.
Investigate product characteristics such as the product's safety and handling qualities, its market appeal, how efficiently it can be produced, and ways of distributing, using, and maintaining it.
Direct and coordinate the fabrication of models or samples and the drafting of working drawings and specification sheets from sketches.
Present designs and reports to customers or design committees for approval and discuss need for modification.
Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics.
Present designs and reports to customers or design committees for approval and discuss need for modification.
Read publications, attend showings, and study competing products and design styles and motifs to obtain perspective and generate design concepts.
Design graphic material for use as ornamentation, illustration, or advertising on manufactured materials and packaging or containers.
Develop manufacturing procedures and monitor the manufacture of their designs in a factory to improve operations and product quality.
Fabricate models or samples in paper, wood, glass, fabric, plastic, metal, or other materials, using hand or power tools.
Advise corporations on issues involving corporate image projects or problems.

Mathematics
- Using math to solve problems.
Writing
- Writing things for co-workers or customers.
Management of Personnel Resources
- Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
Instructing
- Teaching people how to do something.
Judgment and Decision Making
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
Operations Analysis
- Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
Installation
- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
Complex Problem Solving
- Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
Speaking
- Talking to others.
Negotiation
- Bringing people together to solve differences.
Systems Analysis
- Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
Persuasion
- Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
Reading Comprehension
- Reading work-related information.
Learning Strategies
- Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
Equipment Selection
- Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
Operation and Control
- Using equipment or systems.
Management of Financial Resources
- Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
Monitoring
- Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
Systems Evaluation
- Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
Active Listening
- Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
Science
- Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
Service Orientation
- Looking for ways to help people.
Coordination
- Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
Technology Design
- Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
Programming
- Writing computer programs.
Troubleshooting
- Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
Active Learning
- Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
Critical Thinking
- Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
Social Perceptiveness
- Understanding people's reactions.
Equipment Maintenance
- Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
Time Management
- Managing your time and the time of other people.
Quality Control Analysis
- Testing how well a product or service works.
Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
Management of Material Resources
- Managing equipment and materials.

Oral Expression
- Communicating by speaking.
Static Strength
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
Dynamic Strength
- Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
Originality
- Creating new and original ideas.
Problem Sensitivity
- Noticing when problems happen.
Control Precision
- Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
Category Flexibility
- Grouping things in different ways.
Mathematical Reasoning
- Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
Number Facility
- Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Night Vision
- Seeing at night or under low light.
Extent Flexibility
- Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Gross Body Equilibrium
- Keeping your balance or staying upright.
Inductive Reasoning
- Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
Fluency of Ideas
- Coming up with lots of ideas.
Hearing Sensitivity
- Telling the difference between sounds.
Selective Attention
- Paying attention to something without being distracted.
Explosive Strength
- Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
Stamina
- Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
Peripheral Vision
- Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
Auditory Attention
- Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
Multilimb Coordination
- Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
Written Expression
- Communicating by writing.
Deductive Reasoning
- Using rules to solve problems.
Dynamic Flexibility
- Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Written Comprehension
- Reading and understanding what is written.
Sound Localization
- Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
Speech Recognition
- Recognizing spoken words.
Finger Dexterity
- Putting together small parts with your fingers.
Time Sharing
- Doing two or more things at the same time.
Memorization
- Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
Flexibility of Closure
- Seeing hidden patterns.
Manual Dexterity
- Holding or moving items with your hands.
Visual Color Discrimination
- Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
Trunk Strength
- Using your lower back and stomach.
Gross Body Coordination
- Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
Near Vision
- Seeing details up close.
Far Vision
- Seeing details that are far away.
Speech Clarity
- Speaking clearly.
Glare Sensitivity
- Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
Perceptual Speed
- Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
Reaction Time
- Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
Speed of Closure
- Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Visualization
- Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
Response Orientation
- Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Speed of Limb Movement
- Quickly moving your arms and legs.
Rate Control
- Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
Information Ordering
- Ordering or arranging things.
Oral Comprehension
- Listening and understanding what people say.
Depth Perception
- Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
Spatial Orientation
- Knowing where things are around you.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Keeping your arm or hand steady.
Wrist-Finger Speed
- Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

Medicine and Dentistry
- Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Public Safety and Security
- Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Administration and Management
- Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Therapy and Counseling
- Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Administrative
- Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Geography
- Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Psychology
- Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Foreign Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Personnel and Human Resources
- Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Customer and Personal Service
- Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Building and Construction
- Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
Sales and Marketing
- Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
Engineering and Technology
- Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Communications and Media
- Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Chemistry
- Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Philosophy and Theology
- Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
Physics
- Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
Education and Training
- Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
Sociology and Anthropology
- Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
English Language
- Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Law and Government
- Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Telecommunications
- Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

Education

Bachelor's degree

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

106720/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

51.31/hr

Currently Employed

520

Yearly Projected Openings

Artistic: People interested in this work like activities that include creating, designing, and making your own rules. They do well at jobs that need:

Attention to Detail
Initiative
Dependability
Analytical Thinking
Cooperation
Persistence

Desktop computers
Digital cameras
High capacity removable media drives
Liquid crystal display projector
Notebook computers
Personal computers

Analytical or scientific software
Cloud-based data access and sharing software
Computer aided design CAD software
Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
Data base user interface and query software
Desktop communications software
Desktop publishing software
Development environment software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Financial analysis software
Geographic information system
Graphical user interface development software
Graphics or photo imaging software
Internet browser software
Object or component oriented development software
Office suite software
Operating system software
Presentation software
Process mapping and design software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Video creation and editing software
Web platform development software
Word processing software

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Commercial and Industrial Designers

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