Working in a technical job: 13 professions
Torn between maintenance, automation, quality or logistics? For each profession you read what the work involves, how you get into it and where you end up.
The professions
| Profession | In one sentence | Our pay range |
|---|---|---|
| Maintenance technician | The technician who keeps installations running: solving breakdowns, performing preventive maintenance and protecting production against downtime. | €2,900 - €4,200 gross per month |
| Automation engineer (PLC) | The engineer who makes machines think: programming PLC controls, building HMIs and automating production lines from design to commissioning. | €3,400 - €5,200 gross per month |
| Prevention advisor | The specialist who organises safety and wellbeing at work: analysing risks, advising management and getting the shop floor on board with a safety culture. | €3,200 - €4,800 gross per month |
| HVAC technician | The specialist in heating, ventilation and cooling: maintaining installations, solving breakdowns and keeping buildings comfortable and energy-efficient. | €3,000 - €4,300 gross per month |
| Project engineer | The engineer who drives technical projects from plan to delivery: guarding scope, steering suppliers and bringing technology, budget and planning together. | €3,300 - €5,000 gross per month |
| Electromechanic | The all-rounder of the technical shop floor: mastering electricity and mechanics to assemble, maintain and repair machines. | €2,800 - €4,000 gross per month |
| Technical sales engineer | The commercial engineer who sells technical solutions: translating customer needs into the right product and building relationships on expertise. | €3,200 - €5,000 gross per month |
| Quality engineer | The guardian of product quality: analysing deviations, improving processes and passing audits, from raw material to customer. | €3,200 - €4,800 gross per month |
| Supply chain planner | The planner who keeps supply and demand in balance: planning production, guarding stock and keeping the chain flowing from supplier to customer. | €3,000 - €4,400 gross per month |
| Production manager | The leader who keeps the factory running: steering shifts, guarding output and quality and making every day better than the last. | €3,800 - €5,400 gross per month |
| Process operator | The operator who runs and monitors an automated installation: following process parameters, adjusting and intervening safely when the process deviates. | €2,800 - €3,800 gross per month |
| Refrigeration technician | The specialist in cooling installations and heat pumps: installing, maintaining and repairing systems that food, pharma and data centers cannot do without. | €3,000 - €4,300 gross per month |
| Logistics team leader | The leader who keeps warehouse and goods flows running daily: steering people, guarding priorities and solving problems before they reach the customer. | €3,200 - €4,600 gross per month |
Pay range: gross per month, without premiums and fringe benefits, based on the vacancies we fill.
What you find per profession
For each profession you read what the work involves, which training and certificates employers ask for, which joint committee covers you, whether shift work is involved and whether VDAB marks it as a bottleneck profession. The description and the bottleneck status come from VDAB, the sector minimum wages from the FPS Employment.
With each profession, our own pay range sits next to what public sources such as Glassdoor, Indeed, Jobat, Talent.com, PayScale and Statbel report, with source, unit and date. The full pay explanation per profession is in the articles on what a technical profile earns.
Frequently asked questions
Which of these are bottleneck professions?
According to the VDAB list of bottleneck professions for 2026, 12 of the 13 professions on this page are bottleneck professions. Prevention advisor is not listed as a separate profession.
Sources
Checked on 3 November 2026 unless stated otherwise.
- VDAB, Knelpuntberoepen 2026
- FOD Werkgelegenheid, minimumlonen.be: sectorale minimumlonen per paritair comité
- Statbel, gemiddelde bruto maandlonen per beroep 1999 tot 2022 (gepubliceerd 25 september 2024) (checked on 13 November 2026)
Spotted an error or an outdated source? Report it to the editorial team
General information based on the law and the sources listed. Your collective agreement, your contract and your payroll provider or union remain decisive for your own situation.
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