Wide knowledge base gets them the jobs
Rahat Bano interviews Dr Smriti Srivastava, associate head, department of instrumentation and control engineering, Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology, Delhi
Give us some examples of instrumentation engineering — apart from an AC’s thermostat.
Instrumentation engineering is the engineering specialisation focused on the principle and operation of measuring instruments used in design and configuration of automated systems in electrical, pneumatic domains, etc.
Automatic control of the parameters of a chemical reactor by robots is a good example of instrumentation and control.
Nowadays, robots can even perform heart surgery, which is a good example of medical instrumentation. Robots even help reduce sea pollution as they can go underwater. Fuzzy logic control of the washing machine is a current example. The LCD TV and the DVD are advancements of instrumentation engineering.
Every power plant has a control room, which is all about instrumentation and control.
Then there are sensors and transducers, such as those used for alerting you about the water level in overhead water tanks. The car’s auto-locking system and anything run with a remote control is instrumentation and control engineering.
What are the job options for instrumentation engineers? Which industries absorb them?
Instrumentation and control engineers typically work for industries with automated processes, such as chemical or manufacturing plants, with the goal of improving system productivity, reliability, safety, optimisation and stability. The control of processes is one of the main branches of applied instrumentation.
Automation plays an increasingly important role in the global economy and in daily experience. Engineers strive to combine automated devices with mathematical and organisational tools to create complex systems for a rapidly expanding range of applications and human activities.
Job options are good. Instrumentation engineers work in software firms like HCL and TCS, as well as hardware companies. Other employers include Larsen & Toubro, ABB (Asea Brown Boveri), Siemens, Texas Instruments, National Instruments, Bechtel, Fluor Daniel, Foster Wheeler and even American Express. In the public sector, there are EIL, BHEL, NTPC, SAIL, GAIL, Indian Oil Corporation, and ONGC.
Till last year, our instrumentation engineers used to be the first to get placed (as compared to their counterparts in other branches) because employers want them for their wide knowledge base. They have knowledge of hardware as well as software. They can get into hardware or software jobs or ones involving both hardware and software. This year, the placement scenario is different due to the recession.
Author: HT Horizons
Date: 30th Dec., 2009
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