Engineering Business

[TheGreatAli]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

 

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[Parks]

Find your first customer or first problem you can solve with you doing it. What kind of engineering?

 

[Guest-5ty5s4]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

First you would need a PE if you are going to advertise yourself as an engineer without getting arrested or fined, at least in the United States. You could always offer ancillary services without a PE, or hire someone with a PE instead.

The best person to answer this though would be @ZCP

 

[Anon3x156]

read the books

 

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[Niptuck MD]

market yourself and your expertise and solve problems
delve into whatever branch it is your comfortable in. FOr me it was construction and industrial\


@ZCP is doing this and has been doing this for a minute. maybe he has some posts that can be of use

 

[4gus]

I was an engineer, but I didn't try to start an engineering business. But I have a friend who did that. He started off as an independent contractor instead of employee. Depend on where you live and what kind of engineer you are, but it is a small circle. Everybody knows everybody.

So, when he was working as contractor, he is a civil engineer btw, he found out that his company got some new projects and needed more engineers. He reached out to his other friends and ask them to work under him. His friends were happy because they found work, company is also happy because they don't need to find the engineers by themselves. That's how he started.
I think he could go bigger if he wants, but I guess he just like being an engineer. He still run a small team of 3-5 people while being the lead engineer.

He works with both small and big engineering companies, what's important is the nature of the project. For short term projects, usually company doesn't want to hire permanent employees. It takes too long and too expensive so they'd rather hire a contractor.

 

[Kevin88660]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

Depends on the niche.

Mechanical, Civil/Building or Computing engineers are totally serving different markets.

 

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[Kevin88660]

I was an engineer, but I didn't try to start an engineering business. But I have a friend who did that. He started off as an independent contractor instead of employee. Depend on where you live and what kind of engineer you are, but it is a small circle. Everybody knows everybody.

So, when he was working as contractor, he is a civil engineer btw, he found out that his company got some new projects and needed more engineers. He reached out to his other friends and ask them to work under him. His friends were happy because they found work, company is also happy because they don't need to find the engineers by themselves. That's how he started.
I think he could go bigger if he wants, but I guess he just like being an engineer. He still run a small team of 3-5 people while being the lead engineer.

He works with both small and big engineering companies, what's important is the nature of the project. For short term projects, usually company doesn't want to hire permanent employees. It takes too long and too expensive so they'd rather hire a contractor.

There is also a construction boom here. Singapore is expanding its infrastructure to make the entire city assessable by train stations-easily. The target is no matter where you live, the nearest train station is within 8 minute walking distance.

The government land authority is the client here and they invite main contractors from China who had little experience in oversea projects to join in the bidding.

The result was the due to inexperience these Chinese companies got the contracts and vastly underestimated the cost (due to much higher regulatory requirement in noise and safety in Singapore). Certain procedures they have to use German equipment because of the standard set by the land authority here and tehre. They were in big losses and also also spill over to the business for subcontractors. Everyone is having a not so easy time due to reduced or no margin.

 

[Isaac Odongo]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

Really, you need to read the books. Learn something fundamental for yourself and ask higher level questions.
TMF
Unscripted
Rat Race Escape

 

[Ing]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

That is the big question standing at the beginning of EVERY business.
The answer nr one is already given by @Parks : find someone with a problem you can solve. Solve it. FIRST CUSTOMER. Than you have a business and can go from there.

The difference between the second customer and the first may look not so high, but! It is different. Because there may be some %or whatever between them.
But between no customer and the first one the increase is infinite. That’s where the beginner’s problems are.

 

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[Losspost]

That is the big question standing at the beginning of EVERY business.
The answer nr one is already given by @Parks : find someone with a problem you can solve. Solve it. FIRST CUSTOMER. Than you have a business and can go from there.

The difference between the second customer and the first may look not so high, but! It is different. Because there may be some %or whatever between them.
But between no customer and the first one the increase is infinite. That’s where the beginner’s problems are.

Not as easy in engineering.... So many people here do software or services. Which a lot you even can start from at home.

But if you want to do something in the field of technology. There are some very high entrance hurdles. Developing a product can sometimes take up to multiple years just for a MVP.
There is also stuff you simply can not develop on your own but need a team of engineers for.

The major advantage is, that if you get a product out of it, it can be very hard to replicate by others.

 

[TheGreatAli]

Not as easy in engineering.... So many people here do software or services. Which a lot you even can start from at home.

But if you want to do something in the field of technology. There are some very high entrance hurdles. Developing a product can sometimes take up to multiple years just for a MVP.
There is also stuff you simply can not develop on your own but need a team of engineers for.

The major advantage is, that if you get a product out of it, it can be very hard to replicate by others.

Yeah exactly, I’m going to be a Mechanical Engineer in a year, creating a product has so many hurdles and finding the first customer won’t happen until I have some product/value to give to that customer

 

[Ing]

Not as easy in engineering.... So many people here do software or services. Which a lot you even can start from at home.

But if you want to do something in the field of technology. There are some very high entrance hurdles. Developing a product can sometimes take up to multiple years just for a MVP.
There is also stuff you simply can not develop on your own but need a team of engineers for.

The major advantage is, that if you get a product out of it, it can be very hard to replicate by others.

I am and work as a mechanical engineer since 3 decades. Yes, you are right!

 

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[Losspost]

How do you go from an employed engineer to starting an engineering business?

If you really want to go what people generally understand under “engineering” excluding services, I would say one path would be the PhD route. This may not be the same for the US as where I live you actually get somewhat paid for a PhD. If you have a great project which is suitable to solve a problem there is a good chance you can make a spin-off from your university. With this, you already have multiple years of engineering into your product when you start.

There maybe also some companies who allow you to create a spin-off if they have some technology they are not interested to bring to the market.

Starting a engineering start-up from nothing is very hard. It may be possible if you focus on topics which require less know-how and machinery. Nanotechnology for example would be a very bad idea.

 

[Kevin88660]

The major advantage is, that if you get a product out of it, it can be very hard to replicate by others.

Dyson fan!