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hardware materials

🔻 Declining ESCO reuse: sector-specific

The characteristics, applications and environmental effects of materials used to develop hardware.

hardware materials — the characteristics, applications and environmental effects of materials used to develop hardware. McKinsey's Skill Change Index places it in the declining band (SCI 55.25/100) — a skill likely to fall in demand as AI and automation cover more of its ground by 2030. ESCO classifies it as a sector-specific (rooted in one industry) skill within knowledge. It is currently listed by 3 occupations in our catalogue, including ICT environmental manager, computer hardware engineering technician, and computer hardware test technician.

Category: knowledge › software and applications development and analysis SCI: 55.25/100 Also known as: hardware features

Occupations that require hardware materials

Showing top 3 of 3 occupations · ranked by India employment volume, then AI-durability.

ICT environmental manager · 🤖 5.0/10
computer hardware engineering technician · 🤖 5.5/10
computer hardware test technician · 🤖 5.5/10

Frequently asked questions

What is hardware materials?

The characteristics, applications and environmental effects of materials used to develop hardware.

What category of skill is hardware materials?

ESCO classifies hardware materials under the knowledge category, specifically in the software and applications development and analysis subcategory.

Is hardware materials an AI-durable skill?

McKinsey's Skill Change Index places it in the declining band (SCI 55.25/100) — a skill likely to fall in demand as AI and automation cover more of its ground by 2030. Prioritise this skill only when it directly enables paid work today — plan for AI to absorb more of it every year.

Which jobs require hardware materials?

In our catalogue, 3 occupations list hardware materials as a required or important skill. The top occupations by employment volume include ICT environmental manager, computer hardware engineering technician, computer hardware test technician.

How transferable is hardware materials between industries?

ESCO tags hardware materials as a sector-specific (rooted in one industry) skill — a signal of how portable it is when you change field.

Is hardware materials the same as hardware features?

Yes — hardware materials is also known as hardware features. They refer to the same underlying capability in the ESCO taxonomy.

How can I learn hardware materials?

The most reliable path is to pick a job or project that demands hardware materials and learn through delivery. Complement that with role-specific roadmaps and short courses. Explore the occupations below to see where this skill is used in practice.

Data: ESCO v1.2.1 (CC-BY-4.0). Durability framework informed by McKinsey Global Institute (Nov 2025). See our methodology.