I agree. It's fascinating to take pretty much any device on your desk, and think, "How would I build a machine / process to build 10,000 of these a day?" Manufacturing engineering is something I have a great deal of respect for. Lots of hard problems, infinitely changing constraints, many challenges - and then marketing fucks it all up. :)
No seriously, manufacturing engineers need more recognition, and don't even belong on the same list as lawyers. More children need to know that "building machines" is a viable career choice. I wish I had known . . . [/rant]