> So perhaps it is a POV thing - huge company stuff done by several programmers vs small little black box stuff done by one or two EEs.

It absolutely is a POV thing. There is a reason why Make wasn't implemented with the features and design objectives of Bazel.

> But a good tool, however mundane the task, will always be fun. This is my second Law of Engineering.

A good tool will always be fun where "good" is based on your criteria, which is based on your context.