Jobs / Architecture and engineering / 17-2112.02
Validation Engineers
Design or plan protocols for equipment or processes to produce products meeting internal and external purity, safety, and quality requirements.
- US jobs
- 365,740 (SOC 17-2112 group, "Industrial Engineers")
- Median wage
- $102,440 a year
- Job family
- Architecture and engineering
Can agents do the work of validation engineers?
We read the evidence for the whole job family, Architecture and engineering: Some tasks (first measured in the last 12 months)
Agents complete 20% or more of the tasks (or projects) on a direct benchmark.
Evidence: HWE-Bench, 79.9% of tasks completed.
Direct evidence that disagrees: Parametric CAD Bench V3, 9% of tasks fully completed (Perfect tasks).
0% of this occupation's work, by O*NET work activities, is measured by a direct benchmark (figures for the SOC 17-2112 group).
- 7%Document technical designs, procedures, or activitiesNot measured
- 7%Research technology designs or applicationsNot measured
- 6%Develop research plans or methodologiesNot measured
- 6%Evaluate designs, specifications, or other technical dataNot measured
- 4%Communicate with others about specifications or project detailsNot measured
- 4%Read documents or materials to inform work processesNot measured
- 4%Advise others on business or operational mattersNot measured
- 3%Manage control systems or activitiesNot measured
Benchmarks for the job family
These cover work in architecture and engineering, not always this occupation's tasks.
Direct evidence
Work benchmarks mapped primary to this family. They set the step when they report how many tasks agents complete.
- 61%Claude Opus 5.5 (max) with Claude Code 2.1.280 · 24 Sep 2026Strong
Also relevant
These benchmarks cover part of this family's work, or have no result yet. They do not set its step.
- 64.8%Claude Code + Opus 5.5 (max) · 6 Oct 2026Strong
Context only
These benchmarks span many occupations, or they test how agents behave. They give context but do not set the step.
Typical tasks
From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.
- Study product characteristics or customer requirements to determine validation objectives and standards.
- Analyze validation test data to determine whether systems or processes have met validation criteria or to identify root causes of production problems.
- Develop validation master plans, process flow diagrams, test cases, or standard operating procedures.
- Prepare detailed reports or design statements, based on results of validation and qualification tests or reviews of procedures and protocols.
- Maintain validation test equipment.
- Conduct validation or qualification tests of new or existing processes, equipment, or software in accordance with internal protocols or external standards.
- Communicate with regulatory agencies regarding compliance documentation or validation results.
- Prepare, maintain, or review validation and compliance documentation, such as engineering change notices, schematics, or protocols.
- Recommend resolution of identified deviations from established product or process standards.
- Design validation study features, such as sampling, testing, or analytical methodologies.
- Prepare validation or performance qualification protocols for new or modified manufacturing processes, systems, or equipment for production of pharmaceuticals, electronics, or other products.
- Create, populate, or maintain databases for tracking validation activities, test results, or validated systems.
Other job titles for this occupation (27)
Corporate Quality Engineer · Product Quality Engineer · Quality Assurance Engineer · Quality Engineer · Quality Management Systems Engineer · Reliability Engineer · Supplier Quality Engineer · Validation Specialist · Cloud Site Reliability Engineer · Electrical Reliability Engineer · Engineer · Equipment Engineer · Equipment Validation Engineer · Equipment Validation Specialist · Failure Analyst · Process Development Engineer · Process Engineer · Qualification Engineer · Quality Assurance Automation Engineer (QA Automation Engineer) · Quality Control Engineer · Service Reliability Engineer · Site Reliability Engineer · System Validation Engineer · Systems Engineer · Systems Reliability Engineer · Validation Engineer · Verification and Validation Engineer