Donald Hay, president/chief executive of Hayco Manufacturing, which produces consumer houseware products, said electronic engineers played a key role throughout the entire manufacturing process, from creating design concepts to development through each production stage.

At Hayco, electronic engineers work closely with mechanical, industrial, design tooling, manufacturing, technical, structure, packaging, testing and safety engineers. Forson Precision (HK), a subsidiary of the family-owned Hayco business and an industry leader in precision and injection moulding, also employs many engineers - with the group having a combined staff of more than 7,000.

Companies such as Hayco and Forson are typical in that virtually every category of engineering position can be found there, providing a greater opportunity for employees to specialise. Like many large companies, they offer a wide range of training programmes, with a high capital investment placed on human support and career development.

'We take a long-term view when we hire engineers and provide them with opportunities and support to grow with the company. Hayco has a proven track record of innovation and quality manufacturing, and many of our latest products utilise electronic or liquid delivery designs developed in-house,' Mr Hay said, adding that this helped to keep engineers motivated and provided technical challenges.

He said other tools for building a loyal workforce included the company's commitment to its staff through continuous training programmes, including soft skills training such as communication, in addition to job specific training. Employees are also made to feel they are a valuable part of the company through quality, safety and product awareness.

Mr Hay said a junior engineer might spend the first year on the job learning the company's products and design procedures before choosing a technical speciality.

Job responsibilities vary and include specification, design, development and implementation of products or systems, as well as research to create new ideas. An undergraduate degree in electrical engineering is usually the minimum requirement for most entry-level positions, such as tester and data collector.

More experienced engineers with the right skill sets are offered the opportunity to couple the technical aspects of the position with management responsibilities. Mr Hay said the technical expertise required for management today was increasing because of the explosion of knowledge in engineering, technology and science. Engineers with the required aptitude were also given the chance to study in Europe, where they could learn new skills in a different culture.

With more than 11,000 employees, Surface Mount Technology (Holdings), or SMT, one of the largest electronics manufacturing services providers in the Asia-Pacific region, is another company that takes a long-term view to the recruitment and training it offers its in-house engineers.

'Basically, we offer similar things to other companies but try to make them better, more appealing and more effective,' said Chan Kei-biu, founder, chairman and managing director of the company.

SMT, which is also a pioneer of 'green' manufacturing, recruits both experienced engineers and fresh graduates. Engineers are offered different programmes and training opportunities based on their experience and expertise.

In addition to in-house programmes, the company has set up a number of training programmes linked to external institutions in Hong Kong.

The company's core businesses cover a range of areas, including automotive, telematics, consumer electronics, computer peripherals, telecommunications and the industrial controls field.

'The broad spectrum of disciplines provide electronic engineers with the opportunity to specialise in one area or explore new challenges,' said Professor Chan, who is also chairman of the Hong Kong Electronic Industries Association.

Professor Chan said that in the future, some Hong Kong engineers working on the mainland might need to move outside of the Pearl River Delta (PRD). Under the mainland government's five-year plan to upgrade the PRD manufacturing base, high-polluting, high-energy-consuming and low added-value companies will be required to move to other dedicated locations in the mainland which will be equipped with facilities to handle pollution and waste products.

Professor Chan said that while some electronic engineers would not welcome the prospect of moving from the PRD, it would open up more job opportunities as high-end electronic companies moved into the area.