Remote and contract work reshaped software hiring first, and the assumption settled in that it only applies to software. It does not. Mechanical design, CAD work, PLC programming and automation engineering are all routinely contracted across borders, and the practical questions are different enough to be worth stating.
What transfers and what does not
Design work transfers well. A mechanical designer producing CAD models, drawings and tolerance stacks needs a licence and a review process, not a particular building.
Simulation and documentation transfer for the same reason.
Commissioning does not. Anything that ends with somebody standing next to a machine has a travel plan attached, and pretending otherwise wastes everyone's time at offer stage.
Hybrid arrangements — remote design, scheduled site visits — are the norm rather than the exception.
The practical differences
- Software licensing is a real cost and a real negotiation; agree who pays before the first week.
- File formats and revision control are less standardised than in software — decide early.
- Safety and compliance sign-off is jurisdictional, and remote work does not change who is liable.
- Portfolios are often confidential, so expect to assess differently than you would a developer.
The constraint in non-software engineering is almost never the distance. It is who holds the licence, who signs the drawing and who is standing on site when it is commissioned.
