1. Vehicle Development Engineer Ellen Cameron

2. Introduction I have chosen to research the maths used in a Vehicle Development Engineer’s job. I decided to research this career choice as my Dad used to be a Vehicle Development Engineer and I realised how much maths his job used. I also thought his job sounded quite cool and exciting as he got to perform many tests on cars.

3. Description of Vehicle Development Engineer’s Job The job of a Vehicle Development Engineer is to design and test parts of cars to check they are:-  Safe  Meeting the high standards  Working properly Tests that Vehicle Development Engineers may do include:-  Testing the maximum speed of the cars and how fast they accelerate  Testing the seats are comfortable  Testing the air bags work  Comparing their brand’s cars with other manufacturers cars The Vehicle Development Engineer would have to take measurements during the test and then later write a report. The report would explain the results of the tests and state whether the test achieved the target of the test and was successful.

4. Maths Skills Used Maths is very important in this job. Depending on what type of Vehicle Development Engineer the employee was, they would use different maths skills. Some examples of the maths Vehicle Development Engineer would do include:-  Doing calculations to see how strong certain parts are  Checking how hot parts, such as light bulbs and wires, will get  Working out pressures (in tyres or in brake systems)  Using arithmetic to count up the number of parts  Calculating size and weight of parts  Working out how much the parts and the car will cost  Trying to stay in budget

5. Qualifications Required A Vehicle Development Engineer would have to have an:-  Engineering degree  Degree level maths However, when the employee is in school, they should consider taking the following subjects to get the best possibilities.  Maths  Physics  Engineering  Design  Technical Drawing and CAD  Computing A lot of the maths Vehicle Design Engineers use can be very complex or hard. Completing calculations and measuring are two maths skills used often in a Vehicle Development Engineer’s job which is why they will be needed to have degrees in maths and engineering.

6. Conclusion This job is all about numbers and calculations. As with all product development, the objective is to make a profit and you measure profit with numbers. The way you know if your product is good enough to make a profit is with numbers, whether it’s because you measured or calculated or added or compared. Maths is a key part in this occupation and a Vehicle Development Engineer would be unable to complete their job accurately without the use of maths.