Electronic vs Electrical Engineering

The differences and benefits of Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Electrical and electronic engineering. They sound similar and are often thought to be the same thing. There are certain factors in both fields that do overlap, and electronics is sometimes seen as a sub-category of electrical engineering. However, there are some key differences between the two.

Let’s start by breaking down the two terms. Electrical engineering encompasses both the production and the supply of electricity wherever electricity is needed. It could be for a huge office block or for a single home. These engineers would offer a holistic approach to the distribution of electricity in a building. They would design the equipment or systems, perform quality assurance tests on the completed product and subsequently install it. These systems range from security alarms all the way to fire detection systems. In addition to power distribution, electrical engineers are also responsible for designing the actual layout for this power supply and also for lighting. In essence, they allow for power to flow from one point to the next.

Electronic engineers on the other hand deal more with the actual design of internal components of any electronic device. This is where overlap can occur because, as we’ve mentioned, electrical engineers also perform certain design functions with regard to distributing power. However, power distribution is not really a concern for electronic engineers. Their aim is to make sure that the circuitry and internal components, which they have constructed, of an electrical product is working properly.

Electrical engineering deals with the supply of power while electronic engineering deals with the manufacturing of products that can manipulate this distributed power.

Just to provide a bit of contrast again to these two types of engineering, the distribution of electricity allows you to turn on your radio, while electronic engineering allows you listen to actual songs through their circuitry and their ability to manipulate the powers of electricity through electrons, hence the name. Based on this, it can be a bit difficult to distinguish the differences between these two fields. However, it is easy to determine that both are equally important in providing a convenient way of life. Electronic engineering can offer great products such as music systems, audio-visual systems and can aid in security by providing CCTV systems. However, in the case of all of these options, you would need electricity to power them, and without electronic engineering, electricity would simply be power being distributed. Their mutually beneficial partnership has resulted in the benefits of technology being a part of our normal, everyday lives.

E-Consulting Engineers provides both electrical and electronic engineering services, essentially giving you the best of both worlds.