I am frequently amazed by how often cost engineers will gloss over assembly operations and treat them as a small line item, a rough “catch-all” assumption, or a brief cost model element labeled as “someone just puts it together.” But that simple act within a cost model can hide a lot of activity: reaching for parts, orienting them correctly, finding the right angle, starting a fastener, checking fit, handling a tool, moving material, or dealing with a fixture that almost works but not quite. These little motions are easy to underestimate during quoting and design reviews. On the factory floor, though, they show up as real time, real labor, and real cost.  That is exactly where Methods-Time Measurement, or MTM, becomes valuable.

SPCEA recently ran a multiple-choice poll on LinkedIn asking a simple question:
“How are you MOSTLY using AI in your current role?”

One of the most valuable skills a cost engineer can develop is the ability to gather accurate information directly from the manufacturing floor. The true drivers of cost are often hidden within the details of the manufacturing process itself.

In many organizations, the role of cost engineering is narrowly associated with supplier negotiations, purchase price analysis, and cost reduction workshops. While those responsibilities remain important, leading OEMs, especially within the automotive industry, have expanded the role significantly. Today, cost engineers are deeply involved in competitive benchmarking activities that help manufacturers understand where they stand in the marketplace, not only from a technical standpoint but also from a cost-competitiveness perspective.

In the aftermath of World War II, Ford Motor Company stood on the brink of collapse. Once the embodiment of industrial innovation under Henry Ford, the company had drifted into administrative chaos by the mid-1940s. Leadership instability, outdated practices, and a lack of financial discipline left Ford hemorrhaging money, losing tens of millions of dollars without having the accounting systems to understand why.

Many cost engineers don’t start their careers on a factory floor. They start with spreadsheets, drawings, cycle times on paper, and assumptions that everything runs the way it is theoretically supposed to. In many cases, that works… right up until it doesn’t. That’s where OEE comes in.

In cost engineering - especially within the electronics industry, as in my own work - it’s easy to think that mastery lives in spreadsheets, cost models, and perfectly formatted should-cost reports. Those tools matter, but they aren’t where deep understanding is forged. The most effective cost engineers I’ve known pair strong analytical skills with real-world experience. My own most valuable insights didn’t come from a cost model; they came from hands-on work: touching parts, building circuits, breaking things, fixing them, and seeing firsthand how manufacturing and assembly actually behave when theory meets reality.

As the demand for cost engineers continues to grow, understanding the academic backgrounds that hiring managers seek has become increasingly important. In a recent survey conducted by SPCEA, we explored the educational qualifications preferred by employers when hiring cost engineers. The results offer valuable insights into the qualifications that are most valued in this profession.

I had some time to reflect and do a bit of research on key trends over the holiday.