Transcript What is Engineering?

What is Engineering?
Accreditation Board for
Engineering and Technology
“Engineering is the profession in which a
knowledge of the mathematical and natural
sciences, gained by study, experience, and
practice, is applied with judgment to
develop ways to utilize, economically, the
materials and forces of nature for the
benefit of mankind.”
Reasons for Student Interest in
Engineering
Proficiency in math and science
High school counselor suggestion
Relative who is an engineer
Heard it’s a field with tremendous job
opportunity
• High starting salaries
• Always took things apart as a child
• Likes building things
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The Engineer and Scientist
Scientist
• Discovering things or
acquiring knowledge
• Answers they seek
may be abstract or
practical
• Asks “Why?”
Engineer
• Thinking about the
application when asking
why
• Concerned with issues
about a product
• Cost
• Demand
• Impact on society and the
environment
Same Industries, Different Roles
Scientist
• Study planets to
understand them
• Atomic structure to
understand nature of
matter
• Study tectonic plates
to understand and
predict earthquakes
Engineer
• Design spacecraft to
operate on planet
• Smaller and faster
microprocessors
• Study the movement
of tectonic plates to
design safer buildings
Engineering Technology
“Engineering Technology is that part of the
technological field which requires the
application of scientific and engineering
knowledge and methods combined with technical
skills in support of engineering activities; it lies
in the occupational spectrum between craftsman
and engineering at the end of the spectrum
closest to the engineer.”
-ABET
Engineer and Technologist
Engineer
• Apply technology for a
better society
• Create new
technology through
research, design, and
development
Technologist
• Apply technology for a
better society
• Work with existing
technology to produce
goods for society
Technologist vs. Engineer
Technologist
• Identifies computer
proper networking
equipment for
business use
• Seeks out equipment
needed to construct
music player
Engineer
• Designs new
computer boards to
transmit data faster
• Designs new music
player
What Do Engineers Do?
• The following slides
contain the basic job
functions of all
engineering
disciplines
Research Engineers
• Interested in the application of sciences
for a breakthrough
• Conduct experiments and interpret the
data
• Computational techniques used to answer
complex problems without experiments
• Work for some research center
Development Engineers
• Apply knowledge of
Research Engineers to a
specific application
• Shows that something
will work under actual
conditions
• Identify areas of research
that need modifications
before full-scale
production could begin
www.steffes.com/ engineering/testing.aspx
Testing Engineers
• Responsible for designing and implementing
tests to verify integrity, reliability and quality of
products
• Devises ways to simulate conditions a product
will be used in
• Challenges are simulating life spans and
acquiring accurate and reliable data
• Have wide range of technical and problemsolving skills, work well in teams and with
management personnel
Design Engineers
• Provides detailed specifications of the products
society uses
• May only be charge of a single part in an
assembly
• Verifies product’s integrity
• Communication with manufacturing engineers is
critical
• Also work with existing products
• Redesign to reduce costs and time to produce
Analysis Engineers
• Performed in conjunction with design,
development and research
• Typically specialists in a technology area
important to products or services
• To produce required info, validation must
occur with computer and mathematical
models
Systems Engineers
• Work with the overall
design, development,
manufacture, and
operation of a complete
system or product
• Ensure components work
as a complete unit
together
• Responsible for meeting
overall design
requirements
Manufacturing/Construction
Engineers
• Turn specifications from design into reality
• Responsibility is to develop processes to take
raw materials and change them into the finished
pieces
• Keep track of equipment, maintenance records,
and inventories of materials
• Identify high-cost and -risk areas of
manufacturing/construction
• Manufacturing-Indoor, Construction-outdoor
Operations and Maintenance
Engineers
• Coordinate the technician service
schedule to ensure efficient service of
machines
• Expertise with mechanical and electrical
issues to maintain production lines and
schedule
• Work in non-manufacturing roles
Technical Support Engineers
• Serves as link between
customer and product,
assisting with setup
• Must have good
interpersonal and
problem-solving skills
• Solid technical training
• May troubleshoot
problems with a product
www.coherent.com.au/ service/techsupport.htm
Customer Support
• Link between customer and manufacturer
• Involved in business aspect of customer
relationships
• Concerned with actual and perceived value
by the customer
• Work closely with Technical Support and
Management Personnel
Sales
• Have interpersonal skills conducive to
effective selling
• Trained to identify which products,
services, and solutions are right for the
customer and how they can be applied
• Some sales forces use engineers to answer
technical questions
Consulting Engineers
• Self-employed or work for a firm that does
not provide goods and services directly to
consumers
• Provide technical expertise to firms
• Handle technical issues as arise and then
move on to another company
• Might evaluate effectiveness of an
organization and methods for improvement
Management
www.unm.edu/cirt/ photos/hist/cirt90s.html
• Engineers work
themselves into project
management positions
• More than one half of all
engineers will be involved
with some management
responsibilities before
career is over
• Acquire business or
management training
Other Fields
• Law, education, medicine, and business
• Patent law needs engineering degree to be
effective due to technical issues
• Corporate liability law is popular due to
ability to weigh technical and legal risks
• Engineers may also teach from elementary
all the way to technical schools and
universities