The Complexities and Concepts of The Engineering Profession in the 21st Century - Research Paper Example

The Complexities and Concepts of The Engineering Profession in the 21st Century 0 Introduction If one were to describe the modern way of life, it will certainly include a reference to the machines, devices, structures, goods and services which daily circumscribe our activities and concerns. Pure science has given way to applied design as the primary concern of human endeavour in this area, the means by which the human race exerts dominion over our natural resources and makes possible our present lifestyle. It is the engineering profession that designs the implements and devices that define the way we live, that form our culture and provide directions for its development. Thus, the engineering profession shall have to address the challenges posed upon it by developments in the 21st century. 2.0 Assessment of the engineering infrastructure / societies Engineering, as a profession, is organized and thrives according to the spirit of fellowship among those who profess and practice it. Several professional organizations and institutions, among them the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) and the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) have figured significantly in the standardization, advancement, and professionalisation of engineering practice, thereby vastly improving the responsiveness of engineering and technology to the social context. 2.1 The Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) The Institute of Mechanical Engineers, or IMechE, has claimed in its website to being “the fastest growing professional engineering institution in the UK,” and well it might be so, since the 160-year-old organization boasts of 80,000 members who are deployed across the UK’s industries that play a dynamic role in economic development. It is a private association that owes its existence neither to business nor government, although it works hand-in-hand with these institutions and the academe, leading companies and research “think tanks” in order to advance knowledge of and guidance in all facets of mechanical engineering. IMechE pursues four major thrusts, namely: Energy, through the promotion of responsible use of sustainable energy and the engineering of sustainable supply. The strain on the world’s resources must be reduced, and to this end the IMechE promotes the sharing of knowledge, change in behaviour, and advancement in sustainable technology. Environment, through the adaption of technology to not only serve human needs, but to mitigate climate change, minimise waste, conserve natural resources, avoid pollution, and reduce the technological footprint of our present way of life. Transport, by promoting safety, efficiency, lowered emissions and reduced congestion in the design, creation and maintenance of transport systems. Education, by inspiring future engineers and providing them with the knowledge and initiative to respond to significant social changes. To this end, IMechE members do not only provide the pool of expertise for imparting knowledge, but also gives upwards of £400,000 annually in scholarships and awards, each ranging from £250 to £10,000 for exemplary UK engineering talent. The IMechE’s efforts in these areas have not gone unnoticed. The Institution’s Geo-Engineering Report had been accorded global media coverage, with report and commentary provided by BBC Radio 4 News, The Times, Daily Telegraph, and Le Figaro coverage, aside from a host of national news and broadcast media. Likewise, IMechE strengthens its liaison with business with its Award for Business Development and Change Management, which comprises an integral component of the Manufacturing Excellence Awards. Online among its upcoming events are a two-day course on the management of research and development (R&D) projects, a seminar on the financial appraisal of projects, and a one-day programme on commercial and contract risk awareness (IMechE Website, 2009). 2.2 The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) It can be said that what the IMechE seeks to do for mechanical engineering in particular, the RAEng seeks to provide to all engineering applications in general, which is to provide strategic directions for engineering professionals, practitioners, academics and students. Its stated objective is “to promote excellence in the science, art and practice of engineering,” thus viewing the field of engineering in its holistic sense. It mentions a three-pronged strategic approach to attain its objective, namely: To enhance the UK’s engineering capabilities In order to achieve this, the RAEng endorses and sponsors national and international programmes that promotes the application of science, technology transfer and innovation. Engineering research, interdisciplinary ethos, international exchange, and determining and disseminating best practice. To celebrate excellence in order to inspire the next generation This is pursuant to the adage, “Excellence breeds excellence.” Engineering excellence is celebrated and disseminated in order to inspire budding engineers. The organisation supports and initiates collaborative creative activity among the present membership as well as the young. To lead debate by guiding informed thinking and influencing public policy. The Academy seeks to guide informed thinking and to influence public policy. It does this by encouraging debate, not to foster controversy and division, but to provide a forum for the mutual exchange of ideas; because it is through information exchange that we devise better ways of doing things. The intention is to source out progressive, forward-looking solutions guided by impartial advice and solid quality foundations. Furthermore, through debate, the positive role of engineering in economic growth and national strength. The RAEng provided significant commentary to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen, the person of Lord Browne of Madingley, President of the Academy. The RAEng has exerted efforts towards the reduction of emission and society’s total energy demand, through seminars and public meetings it organises and sponsors. The Academy also aims to increase awareness and recognizes worthy efforts towards this end, in such projects as the Bosch Technology Horizons Award which it enthusiastically supports. The preceding discussion delved on the infrastructure that provides support and impetus to the engineering profession. This is followed by a discourse on the implications of sustainable development that face the profession in the context of the 21st century. 3.0 The Implications of Sustainable Development Engineering Before embarking on sustainable development, it is important to describe what “sustainability” is. The word has been given various meanings and usages, but the attribute of sustainability implies the ability to be maintained indefinitely. It is a concept that acknowledges that this planet and everything in it is finite, and must therefore be consumed or expended in such a way that allows for replenishment. Source: Engineering for Sustainable Development: Guiding Principles, by the RAEng, 2005, p. 7. In the preceding figure, a Venn diagram illustrates the issue of sustainability as a central concern involving ecological capacity, technological and economic pursuits, and the effects upon human capital and the expectations of society. Sustainability addresses a convergence of these issues, thus engaging the engineering function to veer from the purely technological directions and encompass the sociological-ecological constructs. 3.1 The Principles of Sustainable Development According to the Royal Academy of Engineering, “Sustainable development is the process of moving human activities to a pattern that can be sustained in perpetuity. It is an approach to environmental and development issues that seeks to reconcile human needs with the capacity of the planet to cope with the consequences of human activities” (Dodds, R & Venables, R, eds. 2005, p. 7). The thrust towards sustainable development came from the realization that the resources of this world that support life as we know it now are finite, and that at the rate we are expending it there will come a time when this planet would no longer be able to support human – and other forms of – life. The diagram below presents a concise flowchart illustrating the principles of sustainable development, as outline in the RAEng report Engineering for Sustainable Development. These general guidelines provided the basis for the 12 Principles of Engineering for Sustainable Development, articulated by the Royal Academy of Engineering, and presented as follows. The principles of sustainable development in the 2005 UK strategy “Securing the Future” (Source: Engineering for Sustainable Development: Guiding Principles, by the RAEng, 2005, p. 5) The 12 Principles of Engineering for Sustainable Development: 1. Look beyond your own locality and the immediate future. 2. Innovate and be creative. 3. Seek a balanced solution. 4. Seek engagement from all stakeholders. 5. Make sure you know their needs and wants. 6. Plan and manage effectively. 7. Give sustainability the benefit of any doubt. 8. If polluters must pollute…then they must pay as well. 9. Adopt a holistic, “cradle-to-grave” approach. 10. Do things right, having decided on the right thing to do. 11. Beware cost reductions that masquerade as value engineering 12. Practice what you preach. It will be noted that the twelve principles outlined above take cognizance of new challenges imposed upon engineers and technology experts, to evaluate the effects of their design upon the environment, the replenishment of natural resources, and the consistency of their application. 3.2 New Directions in Engineering With the advent of sustainable development, a new approach is demanded of engineers and scientists. No longer are they confined to the laboratories and manufacturing plants of their companies; they have become, necessarily, partners in the open decision process, fulfilling the role of the Honest Broker of technical and scientific knowledge (Mitchell, Carew and Clift, 2004, p. 29). In the new social order where the concern for sustainable development is expected to govern not only our work but also our homes and daily lives, the engineers and scientists are required not only to improve and enhance their knowledge and professional skills, but also to deploy this expertise in ways that are unfamiliar and, according to Mitchell et al., even uncomfortable to some. The new model of professional practice will require these professionals to assume a broader social role, that of participative decision-making, requiring them to collaborate with “non-experts” involved in the process. Primarily, there is the re-direction from objective certainty to the less-defined sphere of nebulous, relativistic, borderless problems that characterize the social sphere, where each participant or interest has its own assumptions and contexts, its own objectives and agenda, and its own paradigm for arriving at what its conceives to be the “ideal” solution. Subsequently, there are the implications on the imparting of knowledge and training of the new generation of engineers and scientists, to enable them to address the “messy, contextualised, holistic problems” (Mitchell et al, 2004, p. 30). Four concerns face the present-day engineer caught in the crux of this metamorphosis: 1. To determine the key skills and attitudes required of the new model expert, involving a switch from technological advocate to the “Honest Broker” of technical information; 2. To assess the challenges of the new model to the traditional customs and structures of science and engineering, moving from the strictly factual deductive-inductive logical process to different concepts of “rationality”; 3. To draw connections between the idea of “honest brokering” and the skills and attributes students can develop through active learning processes, since the social dimension could not be contained in classroom or laboratory teaching; 4. To develop “foresighting” and “backcasting,” presently unused in the expert fields, that utilise the case-study approach to support the controlled experiment learning culture of the sciences. References Azapagic, A; Perdan, S; & Clift, R, eds. 2004 Sustainable Development in Practice: Case Studies for Engineers and Scientists. Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons. Dodds, R & Venables, R, eds. 2005 Engineering for Sustainable Development: Guiding Principles. Royal Academy of Engineering, London. Accessed 20 December 2009 from http://www.raeng.org.uk/events/pdf/Engineering_for_Sustainable_Development.pdf Hartley, P 2005 What is sustainable development and what are the implications for the Shell Center for Sustainability? Accessed 20 December 2009 from http://cohesion.rice.edu/CentersandInst/ShellCenter/emplibrary/SustainableDevelopment.pdf Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) Website, 2009. Accessed 20 December 2009 from http://www.imeche.org/ Mitchell, C A; Carew, A L & Clift R 2004 The Role of the Professional Engineer and Scientist in Sustainable Development. In Sustainable Development in Practice: Case Studies for Engineerr and Scientists, Azapagic, A, Perdan, S, & Clift, R eds., John Wiley & Sons Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) Website, 2009. Accessed 20 December 2009 from http://www.raeng.org.uk/default.htm Read More