What is Engineering?

What is Engineering?

• Engineering offers solutions to real human problems by developing and applying tools, machines, materials, goods, and information.
• It involves the development and application of skills, knowledge, processes, blueprints, plans, diagrams, models, formulae, tables, engineering designs, specifications, manuals, and instructions.

The Work of an Engineer

• Engineers design, operate, or maintain equipment and apply the principles of science and mathematics to develop economical solutions to technical problems.
• They link social needs with commercial applications.
• Engineers' work involves the practical application of theoretical findings.

Historical Development of Engineering

• In the past, engineers did not go to school, but learned skills through years of work experience.
• Today, engineers require at least a three- or five-year university course to graduate and become specialists in their fields.

Continuing Education

• Continuing education or lifelong learning is critical for engineers to enhance their value to employers as technology evolves.
• Engineers need to cover different fields, incorporate their ideas into the real world, listen to the needs, and be familiar with the global economic situation.

Product Development

• Engineers consider many factors when developing a new product, such as functional requirements, design, testing, integration, and evaluation.
• They evaluate the design's overall effectiveness, cost, reliability, and safety.

Fields of Engineering

• Engineers work in various fields, including design, development, testing, production, and maintenance.
• Many engineers specialize in specific fields, such as structural and transportation engineering, ceramic, metallurgical, and polymer engineering.
• Some engineers specialize in one industry, such as motor vehicles, or in one type of technology, such as turbines or semiconductor materials.

Tools and Technology

• Engineers use computers extensively to produce and analyze designs, simulate and test machine operations, and generate specifications.
• They also use computers to monitor product quality and control process efficiency.
• The field of nanotechnology is introducing new principles to the design process.