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  #16   Spotlight this post!  
Unread 07-10-2014, 14:01
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by gblake View Post
What defines and engineer
Obviously, an engineer solves problems that currently exist, and a scientist solves problems that don't yet exist.
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Unread 07-10-2014, 14:25
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by Michael Hill View Post
Obviously, an engineer solves problems that currently exist, and a scientist solves problems that don't yet exist.
Not always true, see for example the history of Gorilla Glass:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorilla_Glass

I am sure someone thought that was a real waste of engineering.
While I type that on an iPhone display.
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Unread 07-10-2014, 14:25
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

A good engineer learns why something works the way it does.
You must understand how all the interactions play their part and affect each other.
If you recite what someone else said, that doesn't mean you understand it.
Learn each thing firsthand for yourself so you truly understand it.
Then understand how these different principles work with or against each other.
Fully understand the problem before coming up with a solution.
All the book smarts in the world won't get you to the finish line.
Theorizing and arguing won't teach you anything.
Testing, prototyping and understanding will take you a long way.
In the end, it comes down to experience.
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Unread 07-10-2014, 14:51
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by Kevin Ainsworth View Post
Theorizing ... won't teach you anything.
You may want to clarify what you mean by that.


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Unread 07-10-2014, 15:21
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

A passion for excellence and a sense of urgency.
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Unread 07-10-2014, 16:58
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

Beyond communication - emotional intelligence. Being able to read someone you're working with/for/over has an immense impact on your (and your team's) productivity.

Being able to understand the larger (and smaller) implications of your work is very important. I.e. seeing the forest and the tress at the same time will help keep your work relevant and useful.

Most other points I consider valuable have been touched on (or beaten to death) already.

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Obviously, an engineer solves problems that currently exist, and a scientist solves problems that don't yet exist.
Ugh. I don't like this quip (and those like it). It makes engineers sound second-rate to scientists when in fact the scientist-engineer relationship is an equal partnership - you can't engineer without scientific principles and you can't investigate science without engineered equipment.

I prefer this quote from Einstein: "Scientists investigate that which already is; Engineers create that which has never been."

[/peeve]
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Unread 07-10-2014, 18:37
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by JamesCH95 View Post
Beyond communication - emotional intelligence. Being able to read someone you're working with/for/over has an immense impact on your (and your team's) productivity.

Being able to understand the larger (and smaller) implications of your work is very important. I.e. seeing the forest and the tress at the same time will help keep your work relevant and useful.

Most other points I consider valuable have been touched on (or beaten to death) already.



Ugh. I don't like this quip (and those like it). It makes engineers sound second-rate to scientists when in fact the scientist-engineer relationship is an equal partnership - you can't engineer without scientific principles and you can't investigate science without engineered equipment.

I prefer this quote from Einstein: "Scientists investigate that which already is; Engineers create that which has never been."

[/peeve]
I was only kidding...
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Unread 07-10-2014, 20:23
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by Michael Hill View Post
I was only kidding...
You forgot that engineers...

...have no sense of humor.

(Those smilies are only there for the people that might actually believe that...)
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Unread 07-10-2014, 21:52
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

How many engineers do you know who can design and math you under the table, but can't wrench their way out of a wet paper bag? Or design elegant stuff that can't be built?

The practical application aspect of what we've labeled Engineering is hugely overlooked in the current environment. The theory, the academic, the theoretical must be hitched to experience with the Real Stuff in order to Make Things Work, and those we put on the design pedestal have to earn their keep so the welders and wrenchers and electricians and pneumaticists can build gear fitting their vision.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 09:46
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

Coopertition: Succeed in an endeavor even while working with people you do not agree with and without drinking their Kool-Aid.

Diplomacy: Nicely telling another engineer that they are probably wrong about something abstract, gently proving it, and professionally leading the team to the right long-term solution.

Enthusiasm: The instant an engineer stops proactively learning is the instant the engineer should become a manager. Not that being a manager with a engineering background is a bad thing, but technology moves too bleedingly fast these days.

Humility: Become self-conscious about what is not known, and admit it. Your peers will get behind you faster. Learn Empathy from Coopertition.

You don't know Jack: Maybe you think you do, but 3 years from now you will realize that you actually don't. You don't know Jack is a perpetual cycle...

Concise: Do not drone on about a technical topic, especially to non-engineers. Doing so typically has the appearance of arrogance due to lack of knowing what the audience actually wants.

Last edited by JesseK : 08-10-2014 at 09:48.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 09:57
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by jpetito View Post
How many engineers do you know who can design and math you under the table, but can't wrench their way out of a wet paper bag? Or design elegant stuff that can't be built?
I highly value the 3 years I spent working part time at an auto salvage yard, while I was in engineering school.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 11:03
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

It is always nice to be able to 'close the loop' on a manufacturing process.

Whether that is accomplished by handing off a project for review and manufacture to that department and have an excellent feedback process in place or by going down and getting your hands into the process is generally a question of the situation.

I like having my own tools, even if they are not quite on the scale of what I would want to turn production on. Then if there are some particular sensitive pieces with unusual fit or finish needs I can focus on that while production of the remainder moves forward.

Ideally you want to design things so that they can be mass produced without resorting to precision fitting but when you reach the physical limitations of the materials or situation involved sometimes you just have to make do.

Plus if I get an idea at 3AM I can crank up the tools and explore.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 11:18
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

So
Scientists are mostly concerned with why something works
Engineers are mostly concerned with how something works
Technicians are mostly concerned with making something work

Regardless of your profession, you need to be a little all three.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 11:44
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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Originally Posted by jpetito View Post
How many engineers do you know who can design and math you under the table, but can't wrench their way out of a wet paper bag? Or design elegant stuff that can't be built?

The practical application aspect of what we've labeled Engineering is hugely overlooked in the current environment. The theory, the academic, the theoretical must be hitched to experience with the Real Stuff in order to Make Things Work, and those we put on the design pedestal have to earn their keep so the welders and wrenchers and electricians and pneumaticists can build gear fitting their vision.
Some. But I don't really care if the guy making the coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian model for my project can turn a wrench, I care that he understands the theory behind his work and will validate his model against emperical data.

We don't all have to be experts in practicality. What we all DO need are open and effective lines of communication and enough humility to listen and carefully consider criticisms to our work.
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Unread 08-10-2014, 12:35
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Re: What does it take to be a good engineer?

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How many engineers do you know who can design and math you under the table, but can't wrench their way out of a wet paper bag?.
I encountered very few in my engineering career spanning 4 decades.

Fortunately, I also encountered few technicians who were so uniformed that they used an impact wrench when the assembly instructions call for a torque wrench.


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