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Is aerospace a good industry to gain experience? FPGA specific.

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pigtwo:
Hello all,

I'm in the process of searching for a new job and I'm seeing a ton in the aerospace industry.  The company I'm looking at seem to design systems for satellites.  I have about 5 years of experience(3 PCB design, 2 FPGA design).  I'm mainly interested in doing enjoyable work and getting good design experience.  My main concern with aerospace is that I imagine there is a lot of overhead with little allowance for changes or new designs and that you might not really get the opportunity to learn new things. 

Does anyone have any experience working in aerospace?  If so did you feel like it provided experiences to grow in a technical sense?  I don't know how much it would change but I'm primarily looking for FPGA experience.

Thank you!

bob91343:
I worked in aerospace for many years and it's pretty much the same as any other industry.  It's driven by tight specifications, budget, and mostly the ego of management.  As with any big company you have to maintain an image and be a team player.  The latter means not much room for innovation.  You gotta follow the rules.

That's why I got out.  I opened a retail electronics repair shop and it was great.  I set my own hours and decided how much I wanted to get paid and with whom I would work.  I did that for 13 years.

winniethepooh_icu:
Don't listen to bob, sounds like he was an under performer and was not treated well.

There is certainly opportunity in this industry to be involved with FPGA designs but you must carefully choose your employer based on what aspect you wish to be involved in. 

Aerospace is very careful and slow to evolve (not in a bad way, due to well-placed caution) and you will find that working with FPGA's in many aerospace companies will involve more minor changes than actual ground-up design.  At some companies, companies which may confirm they work with FPGA's, their true involvement is simply integrating an existing FPGA design into new/different platforms with little or no changes, and much of the involvement is top level validation testing without any actual FPGA design at all.

Honestly, if you really want to be involved heavily in FPGA design, a better choice might be the consumer electronics industry.  This would allow you to be involved with the latest FPGA technology, and move very quickly to new projects.

Make sure to select an employer with good mentoring available (that is, avoid startups full of young people, they are like chaotic lemmings and you won't learn much from them).

Benta:
One special thing about aerospace is, that you're required to document every single move you make with a design. If you like paperwork and are a stickler for accuracy and perfection, fine. If you're a "normal" engineer, you'll probably drown.

bob91343:
And drown I did.

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