Development of the Professional Engineer - Term Paper Example

Development of an Engineer Introduction A chartered engineer in the United Kingdom is considered to be a professional engineer who is registered with Engineering Council UK. Engineering Council UK is the British regulatory body for engineers. These chartered engineers are at least master’s degree holders who are professionally competent due to their training and experience in the respective field. Civil law protects this title of Chartered Engineers. Finch (2008) states that it has become one of the most established and creditable international engineering qualification in many countries. Department of Innovation (2009) states that Engineering Council maintains a set of standards that the chartered engineers are expected to follow; these recognized standards are meant for professional outcomes and ethical conduct in the industry. These standards help to ensure the employers that their engineers have confidence in their knowledge areas and have the required expertise. There are a list of member institutions who have been authorized to assess engineers for registration for this recognized title; Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIOB), Institution of Engineering and Technology etc. Finch (2008) stated in her article that according to the ICE website, there were 79,432 members recorded in 2006. Route to Membership A chartered engineer is required to portray a standard of performance and possess a commendable level of expertise in his field. ICE 3005 Development Objectives (2009) states that in order to acquire the title; one should follow a set of development objectives that will serve as a planning tool for learning and acquiring the desired level of expertise. These development objectives are not any assurance of the membership of the institution, but provide a strong base and foundation on the basis of which one can be confident when the level of expertise is to be judged by the professionals [2]. Fig.1 gives the membership process that is followed by ICE: Fig.1: ICE 3005 Development Objectives (2009) In the above figure, it can be seen that ICE proposes two approaches for membership. One approach is through the individual himself and the other one is ICE approved company scheme. The common thing in both of these approaches is that development objectives are given utmost importance. If an individual comes for the ICE ‘Training under Agreement’ then a supervisor (SCE) will be appointed to him/her to help him and guide him through the process of increasing his knowledge and level of professionalism. On the other hand if the individual is not under any agreement with ICE then he is advised to choose his own mentor. It is advised that the mentor is also a chartered engineer so that he is well aware of the requirement. Later, in the company scheme (Fig.1) the training of the individual shall be analyzed by the supervising civil engineer i.e. analyze if everything was grasped by the applicant and if he has shown commendable result at the end of his training. In the self-managed approach, the achievements in his career will be analyzed by ICE assessors and if he was able to work according to the required professional standards or not. ICE 3005 Development Objectives (2009) states that the professional review shall be the deciding factor regarding the membership of the individual. It can be done by any number of chartered engineers who have had great experience in the respective field and understand the details of the work. It is advised for the individual under the agreement to attend their training phase very attentively and try to grasp as much knowledge as possible from their SCE. Similarly, it is important for the self-managing individuals to seek appropriate guidance from their chosen mentor and learn from their experiences. Development Objectives ICE proposes some development objectives which shall be discussed here to provide a comprehensive knowledge of the requirements of the membership. Development objectives have been framed in a way that they can be applied in a diverse range of areas of civil engineering for e.g. designing, implementation, construction, transportation etc. It is advised for the students to start aiming towards the development objectives from their academic years. It is a good practice to keep a scale of achievement on every objective so that the level of comprehension regarding the objective can be judged by the mentor and thus guided accordingly. This will also prove to be helpful later on when the training phase will be reviewed by the professionals. 1. Increase your engineering knowledge to a level which helps in understanding the existing and emerging technologies. The foremost important step in this development objective is to assess one’s level of knowledge and skills and then try to acquire and improve respectively. Acquisition of knowledge of existing and emerging technologies should be given priority so that one can keep pace with the advancement of the modern age. One should possess a complete understanding of the engineering principles, codes, standards and specifications. 2. Theoretical and practical methods should be applied for the analysis and solution of the engineering problems. One should possess such a level of knowledge that engineering problems can be efficiently identified and contribute in the process of finding solutions. In this process, the knowledge of the engineering principles can play an important role in finding the solutions. One should be able to analyze the feasibility, constraints and limitations of different solutions and thus choose the most appropriate one. Appropriate research and analysis might be initiated to find the best possible technique for the solution. Feasibility of the solution with respect to cost, time etc should be thoroughly analyzed. Risk analysis is also one of the important steps in the process of devising a solution for an engineering problem. In the end, the effectiveness of the solutions should be studied so the most effective one is implemented. 3. Possess technical and management skills Besides the technical knowledge, it is almost mandatory to possess strong managerial skills so that one can manage projects and resources effectively. Project management involves many activities that require motivational skills, management and interpersonal skills. The resources need to be motivated and managed in a way that they don’t feel overworked or underworked. Work has to be balanced among the resources to avoid the situation of any demoralization and thus have to be constantly monitored for a correct project direction. Resources have to be supervised so that the tasks are completed within their assigned deadlines, and at the same time empower them with some amount of freedom to make decisions. Project activities should also be monitored to ensure that they are being implemented according to the assigned budgets. Team members should be trained, if need be, and developed into strong engineers who can face challenges and devise solutions efficiently. 4. Quality Management One should possess the knowledge to measure the quality of the deliverables and hence the implementation phases so that required quality improvement measures can be enforced. Measures should be taken to introduce continuous process improvement in the project activities. It should be ensured that the project is executing with respect to the quality standards so the end product also possesses those characteristics. At times, quality measures are focused on the end products only and then appropriate measures are taken to improve the deliverables. This approach proves to take more time to rectify the end product. A better approach is to monitor the activities for quality standards so that the end product bears required standards. Another important element is to manage contractual issues [2] for e.g; what are the responsibilities of different parties to a contract. Contractual records should be maintained for future reference. 5. Possess effective interpersonal skills Communication with the colleagues is a very important element in any field as it helps one to learn new things and to maintain a cordial environment for better production. Interpersonal skills also encapsulate the concept of respecting the ideas of other people participating in discussions with an open mind. Brainstorming sessions and discussions have always proved to a good approach to solve matters and finding solutions. Exchange of information is specifically very important in the civil engineering field since it involves technical knowledge and implementing solutions. One should portray a helpful attitude and guide anyone who needs assistance. This supportive environment helps in reaching fast and efficient solutions. 6. Show a commitment to professional standards and recognize obligations to the environment A chartered engineer should always abide by the professional standards and the code of conduct which is expected by him. He should be well aware of the current developments and the factors that might be affecting the construction industry to demonstrate a sense of awareness of the environment. Safe systems and construction procedures should be adapted to safeguard the environment. The environmental impact from the solutions should be considered as it is the social responsibility of every engineer. Demolition and disposal activities should be carefully managed. Social and economic issues should be considered while implementing solutions. Ethical behavior is expected to be demonstrated towards the environment and people [2]. Another important factor of development is that the development process should be continuous. One should manage one own development process and should always be eager to learn more from others, experiences and academic sources. References Department for Innovation, (2009), Universities and Skills. EU Europe Open - EU to UK - Regulated Professions in the UK. Accessed on 3rd Jan, 2010. Finch, H., (2008), How to Become a Chartered Civil Engineer, eHow.com, Accessed on 3rd Jan, 2010, http://www.ehow.com/how_4885360_become-chartered-civil-engineer.html ICE 3005 Development Objectives, (2009), Development Objectives, ICE, Accessed on 4th Jan, 2010, http://www.ice.org.uk/downloads/ICE3005_DevelopmentObjectives(1).pdf Read More