Why is communication necessary in an engineering environment?

Question: seeking information from another person. Collaborate or cooperate with other people Inform: enabling or empowering other people to make use of information. Learn from another person how to perform a task requiring technical expertise. Help another person to learn how to perform a task or how to do something to help achieve desired objectives. Convey the details of the intent behind the design of an artefact or process so that others can manufacture it with the predicted attributes or operate the process successfully. Advocate adoption of a particular technical approach. Ask about the advantages and disadvantages of competing products or services, learn about future developments in competing products or services. Pose a technical query: seek additional information to help make effective use of a design, process or artefact. Specification: write a document that specifies a required package of information, artefact, process or material. Write a report to be placed on record: a succinct statement summarising a technical issue to record what was known and by whom at a particular point in time. Tell a joke: a brief story that, when related to an understanding audience, enables them to imagine circumstances which they find amusing. Seek to understand other people and learn about their opinions, viewpoints, language and interests Coordinate: influence another person to collaborate or cooperate with the communicator to conscientiously perform some specialised technical work to an agreed schedule. Influence perceptions: conversing with another person in a way that encourages the person to change his or her perception about other people, or on a technical issue.

Casual conversation: build or maintain a co-operative relationships with another person. Seek to understand other people and learn about their opinions, viewpoints, language and interests with respect to a particular technical issue. Ask about progress that has been made on a piece of technical work. Ask whether there has been a misunderstanding of technical requirements or whether a mistake has been made. Advocate the particular advantages of an artefact, solution or process with the intention of convincing another firm or engineer to purchase it or recommend it for procurement. Discuss the need for a particular artefact, solution or process with people for whom it might provide value (business development) to assess their level of interest, and their needs. Stake out or assert your territory: helping other people understand your competence and expertise and ability to take responsibility for a given aspect of a technical undertaking. Clarify: ask for additional information in order to help you understand a technical concept mentioned by somebody else. Seek approval or permission for a proposed technical course of action, verbally or in writing. Write a patent specification: a claim for the limited monopoly rights of an inventor for a particular innovation. Write a contract: a proposed agreement between two parties for the supply of technical services or products in return for payment. Write a test schedule: instructions for the conduct of testing to seek assurance that an artefact or service meets requirements defined in the specification or standard. Warn: alert someone to a technical issue and the need for pre-emptive action to avoid undesirable consequences. Reassure a client that the project will be completed on time and within budget with the required technical performance. Discuss client needs and interests in order to learn about them. Write an organisational procedure, checklist: a sequence of instructions to ensure that all the required steps to achieve an objective are performed by appropriately informed people.

Write a quotation: a firm estimate of the cost to provide specified information, an artefact, a defined quantity of material, or follow a defined process. Write a request for quotation: a detailed description of an artefact, information package, service or material to be purchased, written to enable suppliers to prepare quotations. Write an expression of interest: a response to an enquiry from an enterprise seeking to procure an artefact, information package, service or material, indicating that your firm is interested in being approached. Write a CV, resum: a concise statement of persons education, experience, abilities and interests provided to a firm with the intention of gaining employment. Write a cover letter: a brief letter accompanying other written documents explaining the purpose of the communication and who is likely to be interested in the documents. Perform a demonstration: a performance in which an artefact or other equipment or materials are demonstrated, with the aim of reassuring the audience about the capacity to achieve a given level of performance in service. Build or maintain a relationship: one or more informal conversations over a period of time to build trust and confidence between the communicator and another person. Provide a technical explanation: a verbal performance with the aim of building a level of technical understanding in the mind of another person or audience. Negotiate: collaboratively discuss and devise a course of action that is likely to advance the interests of the communicator, another person and maybe other stakeholders as well, and secure an agreement to pursue a particular course of action. Provide guidance and reassurance to help less experienced person develop their technical capability.

How to make sure that we maintain extreme levels of accuracy?

ensure that everyone has appropriate training for the tasks they have to perform (1 point: desirable but trained people are not always available) ensure that everyone has sufficient experience and supervised practice for the tasks they have to perform (2 points: often this is desirable but not achievable in practice) use only expert engineers to ensure that tasks are performed reliably (1 point: usually there are not enough expert engineers as they are busy with other priorities)

use computer analysis and modelling to ensure the highest possible calculation accuracy (1 point: While this is desirable, it is often not required. The accuracy of information needed for engineering decisions depends on lots of factors, including the stage of the project, the overall cost, and the investors perceptions of risk.) check results using fundamental physical principles to see if the answer seems to be close to what simple analysis methods would predict (3 points) follow relevant and appropriate standards and codes of practice (3 points) follow systematic working methods, processes and procedures, including the use of comprehensive checklists to make sure that all available information is collected and that people who need the information have timely access to it. (3 points) base work on known precedents and previous designs or project plans (3 points) avoid technologies with which no one in the project team has experience (3 points) adopt an follow carefully designed procedures and systematic flow of work (3 points) avoid people becoming fatigued or stressed (3 points) develop a comprehensive written understanding of the requirements (3 points) work with reliable component and material suppliers (3 points) plan the work in detail, and monitor progress to check that it matches expectations (3 points) adopt a risk management approach and focus on resolving the greatest uncertainties and risks early on (3 points) carefully document all relevant assumptions and seek to have these checked independently or by measurement if possible (3 points)

Factors influencing an engineers expertise?

experienced engineering supervisor (3 points) intelligence (1 point: research demonstrates that no measure of intelligence corresponds with the ability to become expert in a field of endeavour. However, good academic grades (one kind of intelligence) possibly makes it easier to get started in engineering)

self-learning capacity (2 points) length of time spent on deliberative practice to build expertise (2 points) ability to access to network of peers and other experienced people who can contribute their expertise (3 points) ability to develop co-operative and trusting relationships with people who can contribute expertise (2 points) access to, and knowledge of codes, standards, handbooks, texts, manufacturers catalogues and data sheets (2 points) access to, and knowledge of previous designs, records of past practice (2 points) access to information on materials and components through suppliers with knowledgeable sales staff (2 points) ability to work with client to clarify understanding of requirements (2 points) knowledge of engineering science and application ability to make accurate predictions (2 points) knowledge of business and finance, awareness of what the client values (2 points) supportive organisation culture that rewards conscientious contributions and promotes effective collaboration (2 points)

What may cause uncertainty in engineering environment?

Commodity prices, including energy-related commodities such as oil (2 points) Industrial disputes (1 point) Timing of deliveries of parts and materials (3 points) Weather (2 points) Natural variation at engineering sites (topography, vegetation, wind, soil, geomechanics, drainage, etc.) (3 points)

Manufacturing defects in materials (2 points) People forgetting to do something (5 points) Missing information (3 points)

Why are codes and standards important in engineering?

Banks and financial institutions are more likely to finance projects that demonstrate rigorous compliance with relevant codes and standards (3 points) standards and codes allow for easy ways for engineers to access and incorporate decades of experience and lessons learned by earlier generations of engineers that have been embodied in standards (3 points) following codes and standards reduces project risks (3 points) following codes and standards reduces the perception of risk in the project by outsiders, including investors (3 points) following codes and standards often reduces the time required to perform engineering tasks, for example, because engineers do not have to design from first principles (3 points) codes and standards can encourage creativity when engineers seek to apply standards in new ways and exploit opportunities presented by standards (3 points) following codes and standards allows an engineer to reassure clients that the engineering work is based on previous experience (3 points) testing standards enable engineers to step out from design standards when needed and to adopt unusual or creative ideas that can be rigorously tested, building on the experience of previous testing work (3 points)

Social benefits provided by engineers?

Provision of sanitation, energy supplies, food production and processing (and associated activities such as fertilizer production, irrigation etc.), transport, healthcare facilities, and communications (1 point each, max 5) Construction of shelter to protect people from natural exposure, natural disasters etc., (5 points) Manufacture of products such as clothing, food preparation and storage equipment, communication devices, vehicles, roads, (1 point each, max 5) Providing information to help with effective use of resources and expenditure of human effort, (5 points) Defence installations, law enforcement facilities and associated equipment that protect people and social institutions from potentially destructive or violent human behaviour, and (1 point each, max 5) Information systems and associated equipment that facilitate productive human effort and efficient use of resources, disseminate explicit knowledge, and facilitate social justice and fair access to opportunities. (1 point each, max 5)

Which of the following activities takes up most of the time spent by engineers at work, on average? f. Communicating with other people (reading, writing, drawing, speaking, listening, e.g. listening or speaking using a telephone) Engineers, on average communicate directly with other people 60% of their working time.

At the start of a typical project, engineers start with a vague or imprecise understanding of the requirements because the requirements are not clearly defined in writing or are not written at all.

On average, engineers perform hands on work only less than 5% of the time.

Expert engineers have a deep technical knowledge in some aspects of their work, and the ability to recognize and diagnose a large number of troublesome situations. They also have an extensive network of peers and other people who willingly help them with other detailed technical information when needed.

Engineers usually use imprecise technology that can be interpreted in different ways in different situations.

An expert engineer has the ability to anticipate technical problems and avoid having to solve them by adopting an appropriate alternative technical approach. Engineers spend about 30% of their time coordinating other peoples work.