- "And they probably redesigned the whole sickbay too! I know engineers. They love to change things."
- - Leonard McCoy (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)
On any space starship, engineers are officers assigned to monitor and maintain the starship's functionality. They often do most of the "grunt work" that is involved in keeping a ship or space station up and running. Engineering officers are generally assigned tasks that include maintaining and/or improving the performance of the warp drive, ship’s database, computer processors and circuitry, holographic emitters, tractor beams, transporter components, observational equipment (such as sensors, probes, and satellites), weaponry systems, deflector array, hull plating, life support, shields and alternative defense systems, and many other crucial parts of a ship’s anatomy. They are expected to tackle all the problems that drain the ship’s resources or lower its efficiency.
On a Starfleet vessel of any kind, the chain of command in the engineering department tends to be simple with smaller teams broken apart from the whole. A chief engineer and an assisting officer lead the entire engineering team, often delegating tasks to smaller teams formed within the whole. Because the operations of a starship, starbase or space station are so complex, the engineering department runs routine maintenance on all ship systems. Tests are done regularly through main engineering, which is the hub of activity for the entire department. From main engineering, all ship functions can be monitored and checked for any abnormalities.
Major logistical tasks are addressed by the Starfleet Corps of Engineers.
According to Chief Miles O'Brien it was very unusual for a Starfleet engineer to simply take a tool of his chief without asking. (DS9: "In the Hands of the Prophets")
Engineer specialties
- Aerospace engineer
- Agricultural engineer
- Consulting engineer
- Design engineer
- Electronics engineer
- Engineering adviser
- Engineering physicist
- Genetic engineer
- Geological engineer
- Holographic engineer
- Hydraulics engineer
- Maintenance engineer
- Mining engineer
- Orbital engineer
- Processing engineer
- Research engineer
- Sanitation engineer
- Systems engineer
- Warp field engineer
Engineer titles
- Assistant chief engineer
- Captain of engineering
- Chief engineering officer
- Engineer's assistant
- Engineer's mate
- Professor of Engineering
Apocrypha
Engineers are the focus of the Star Trek: Starfleet Corps of Engineers novels.