Materials and Process Engineering

Processing our raw materials and commodity goods more effectively is important to New Zealand’s continuing economic welfare. We need to develop products that have significant value in world markets, and therefore must understand fully the properties of materials as diverse as food, wood, metals, plastics and fuel. We then need to know how to use this knowledge to design, manufacture and process these materials into high-value products such as dietary formulae, ceramics that can withstand high temperatures, titanium alloys, pharmaceuticals, laminated boards and functional proteins. It is also important to understand the properties of these high-value products and how they will interact with their environment, whether it be within the body or in the atmosphere.

This discipline serves industrial and other activities where material is undergoing a change, be it chemical, biochemical or physical. Process engineering involves knowing how to prepare feed materials, how to make reactions occur, separating and purifying products, controlling wastes, minimising energy usage, and ultimately adding value to the raw materials used to produce something useful to people. These skills form the basis for the majority of New Zealand’s export earnings.

Career Opportunities

• Biotechnologist
• Composite Engineer  
• Manager  
• Materials Scientist  
• Process Engineer
• Product Developer  

Potential Employers

• Crown Research Institutes
• Environmental Industries
• Food and Dairy Industries
• Iron and Steel Manufacturing
• Petrochemical and Plastics Industry
• Pulp, Paper and Wood Industries

School subjects

NCEA Level 3 Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics with Calculus. Some first-year papers have specific prerequisites so check the paper list carefully.