I wholeheartedly support the idea of the laser/plasma or minigun kit for engineers. Personally I’d prefer the plasma cannon, but anything with a long range like that would be superb. Buffing what’s already there would involve completely rebuilding a lot of the skills that we already get (see turrets), and that seems like it might just be a non-starter.
The biggest problem I see with the class really isn’t the kits, it’s that (and this has been said) the class lacks focus. I jokingly refer to it as ‘schizophrenic’ but really, the design philosophy seems to have been diluted to the point of being meaningless. We’re told we are supposed to be a versatile class, and even penalized for it, but with the way that traits function we are more or less required to pick one facet of the class and then go for the brass ring.