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Ship Engineers

It's a bright outlook for

This career will grow rapidly in the next few years.

Learn more about what they do.

Supervise and coordinate activities of crew engaged in operating and maintaining engines, boilers, deck machinery, and electrical, sanitary, and refrigeration equipment aboard ship.

Related: Hydroelectric Plant Technicians Marine Engineers & Naval Architects Motorboat Mechanics & Service Technicians Sailors & Marine Oilers Stationary Engineers & Boiler Operators

Industries: Transportation & Storage Government

Summary
Details

Act as a liaison between a ship's captain and shore personnel to ensure that schedules and budgets are maintained and that the ship is operated safely and efficiently.
Maintain electrical power, heating, ventilation, refrigeration, water, or sewerage systems.
Order and receive engine room stores, such as oil or spare parts, maintain inventories, and record usage of supplies.
Fabricate engine replacement parts, such as valves, stay rods, or bolts, using metalworking machinery.
Order and receive engine room stores, such as oil or spare parts, maintain inventories, and record usage of supplies.
Monitor the availability, use, or condition of lifesaving equipment or pollution preventatives to ensure that international regulations are followed.
Perform general marine vessel maintenance or repair work, such as repairing leaks, finishing interiors, refueling, or maintaining decks.
Supervise marine engine technicians engaged in the maintenance or repair of mechanical or electrical marine vessels, and inspect their work to ensure that it is performed properly.
Clean engine parts and keep engine rooms clean.
Record orders for changes in ship speed or direction, and note gauge readings or test data, such as revolutions per minute or voltage output, in engineering logs or bellbooks.
Monitor and test operations of engines or other equipment so that malfunctions and their causes can be identified.
Operate or maintain off-loading liquid pumps or valves.
Clean engine parts and keep engine rooms clean.
Maintain or repair engines, electric motors, pumps, winches, or other mechanical or electrical equipment, or assist other crew members with maintenance or repair duties.
Maintain complete records of engineering department activities, including machine operations.
Perform or participate in emergency drills, as required.
Install engine controls, propeller shafts, or propellers.
Start engines to propel ships, and regulate engines and power transmissions to control speeds of ships, according to directions from captains or bridge computers.
Monitor engine, machinery, or equipment indicators when vessels are underway, and report abnormalities to appropriate shipboard staff.
Monitor engine, machinery, or equipment indicators when vessels are underway, and report abnormalities to appropriate shipboard staff.

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

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

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.
Computers and Electronics
- Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
History and Archeology
- Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Economics and Accounting
- Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Production and Processing
- Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Food Production
- Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
Mechanical
- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
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.
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.
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.
Transportation
- Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
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.
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.
Mathematics
- Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
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.
Fine Arts
- Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
Design
- Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
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.
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.
Biology
- Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
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.

Education

Postsecondary certificate

Work Experience

Less than 5 years work experience

Training

No on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

Washington Annual Salary

96390/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

46.34/hr

Currently Employed

940

Yearly Projected Openings

120

Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:

Attention to Detail
Dependability
Integrity
Cooperation
Self Control
Adaptability/Flexibility

Adjustable widemouth pliers
Allen wrench
Ball peen hammer
Box end wrenches
Calipers
Claw hammer
Cold chisels
Combination pliers
Combination wrenches
Commercial water heaters
Condensing units
Cross and straight pein hammer
Curved nose pliers
Depth gauges
Diagonal cut pliers
Dial indicator or dial gauge
Diesel engines
Electric boilers
End cut pliers
Evaporative coolers
Feeler gauges
Fire suppression system
Flat hand file
Flat nose pliers
Fuel pumps
Gas generators
Goggles
Hacksaw
Hammers
Hex keys
Inspection mirror
Jigsaw
Longnose pliers
Mallets
Micrometers
Mobile medical services first aid kits
Multimeters
Nut drivers
Open end wrenches
Pipe or tube cutter
Plasma cutting machine
Power chippers
Power drills
Power flaring tool
Power grinders
Power sanders
Pullers
Punches or nail sets or drifts
Ratchets
Razor knives
Rivet tools
Round nose pliers
Rubber mallet
Screwdrivers
Shears
Sledge hammer
Slip joint pliers
Sludge or sewage removal equipment
Socket attachments and accessories
Socket sets
Sockets
Stationary separation equipment or parts or screens
Strain gauges
Strap wrenches
Sump pumps
Taps
Tinners snips
Torque wrenches
Tracer or duplicating or contouring lathe
Turbine engines
Water pumps
Welder gloves
Welder torch
Welding masks
Wire brushes
Wire twister

Customer relationship management CRM software
Data base user interface and query software
Document management software
Electronic mail software
Enterprise application integration software
Enterprise resource planning ERP software
Facilities management software
Helpdesk or call center software
Industrial control software
Office suite software
Operating system software
Presentation software
Project management software
Spreadsheet software
Word processing software

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