The Engineer's Playbook

The Engineer’s Playbook

So you have become an engineer, got a degree and you’re now working in the field of engineering- whatever branch that maybe- civil, mechanical, computers, electrical, instrumentation, piping, process, aerospace, biological etc- the list of discplines-gets longer every other year due to the ever changing nature of technology and innovation- but I would like to share here, some learnings I gleaned, through my experience and what kind of work is really involved in the work area of engineering- what are we doing as engineers?- when it comes to science or implementation of science in the real world? Here are those what I call the engineer’s playbook- for a jazzy term to use these days-but here is what, in my experience, it comes down to. Ofcourse you can always add to this list and keep the list as your own- hang it in your cubicle or wherever you work, sort of as reminders, for the young ones coming online or for the experienced ones too among you-my hope is this provides you some more insight, confidence and some experience in practical work as an engineer- for you to glean and grow from.

1. Engineering is an empirical, applied science- it grows (and has grown in knowledge of depth of implementation over generations of engineers gone by) by learnt experience of application of principles of science, modifications and alterations of scientific principles to suit the more real physical world and will continue to grow over future generations of engineers. Your work, your knowledge is also contributing to this vast compilation of engineering knowledge in some way shape or form. Many institutions are dedicated to this aspect- but most often, you will find, that your little learnt experience and knowledge, may not often find its way to the codes and standards books. This does not, however discount your own precious learning or how you share it. Share it. On social platforms, groups etc. Never discount your own practical learning and experience- from my own experience, I can say for sure, my own learning and experience, which were never to be found in codes and standards, work very well and should have found their way into codes- but never have- this does not make it any less- it just means, world of technology and innovation are changing very fast in world today than in earlier times.

2. Engineering is a field of applied science- taking theoretical principles of science, applying it in practice, and more often than not, finding that many of the theoretical principles are in their raw form, and much needs to be tweaked, altered, modified in order for it to practically work in the real world. So you will find as you go from being a student of physics, chemistry, biology, computers, etc to an engineering branch, that suddenly you are talking in terms of “this works, that doesn’t “ kind of language- that is practical knowledge- empirical knowledge- which invariably needs to be tweaked and adjusted here and there- take the example of an aircraft for instance- the earlier ones were very clunky, had many accidents compared to the ones today- what changed? how did improvements come about?- that is engineering and not textbook physics or chemistry.

3. Engineering is often based in established codes and standards- in whatever branch of engineering you are working in- these are a compilation of “what works very well” given how and where you apply these codes- be it in manufacturing, fabrication, construction, design or implementation. These codes are, really speaking,- the documented experience of engineers gone by- as if you are taking notes from your seniors in college and using them- but this time, it has the experience and the working knowledge backed with science and figures to make it easy for future generation engineers. Studying them diligently, and using them with an understanding of where and how to apply it or not, is what you gain with experience- but know them fully- go in depth with codes and standards, not just taking it and applying it- but really questioning it to the point you really glean the documented experience of older engineers who have gone by before you.

4. Engineers are, more often than not, the unsung heroes of our civilisation- often working in backgrounds of designing the buildings that we live in, working in fields to get the fuel that we use in our cars, running the water and electricity and all systems we use daily in our homes, right upto medical instrumentation that doctors use everyday. As engineers you will often not be recognised or appreciated for what you really did in your entire career- simply due to the superficial nature of human propensities- people in media, outer world view, politicians etc gather more views, but they are not the ones building and running the world.

5. The word Engineer- is both a noun and a verb- that is - it is both your title as a profession when you introduce yourself to someone and they typically ask you as a social norm- “ what do you do..?” and it is a verb- that is you are constantly engaged in the act of engineering- throughout your career- it is a continuous learning through real life experience- and you will find, more often than not- many codes and standards need to be altered or modified to suit whatever you are trying to accomplish in your real world circumstances- one rule is not universally applicable for any engineering discipline- you have to have a well rounded view of what it is you are trying to accomplish in design or workability or maintenance or any other aspect- to suit the real world scenarios you are dealing with. There is no such thing as one size fits all in engineering- and this is how those things you call codes and standards are also constantly evolving, changing, new learnt experiences and empirical practical knowledge of “what worked in this kind of a situation” is captured very well in these standards and procedures.

6. Engineers most often, work in teams- different engineers of differing disciplines often work in teams, to accomplish a project- for each discipline is a vast array of documented experience, science of material selection, what to use and when and so forth. Learn aspects of teamwork, early in your profession- how much of a team player you already are, where you need to absorb and implement certain behaviours, certain attitudes, that will help you calibrate your already existing talents in teamwork more- this will make your professional life a joy in everyday work life. It is like working in a beehive- each one is needed, each one fulfils a certain area required for proper functioning of a hive- each one is precious.

7. Engineers in their daily work- are more like doctors i.e. people only come to you seeking advise or help, and more often when something has gone wrong and the people concerned do not know or have the confidence of how to fix it. This will typically be out of neglect of the well documented codes and standards that could have been followed but have been compromised or diluted due to cost cutting measures, or compromises or cheap material or technology used as a method of combatting competition in the market for making cheaper goods- even in our daily life we see this- too many brands of washing machines or TV sets or such- each one vying for a market share and in the effort of making it cheap- they compromise on quality. So, when people come asking you for solutions to something that has gone wrong, their first approach (as is human) is to make it personal or point fingers at you, saying you did something wrong- do not worry about this, just go about what you do best- investigate the design, implementation aspects- dig deep into what was the equipment or such designed for, and how it was built or manufactured- my experience here is- you would find, 9 times out of 10, there will be a compromise there in some aspect- that leaves a faulty functioning- remember science does not lie- and that is where you come in most- you are a person of science- not wishful thinking- it is what the world relies on you to provide-you are that doctor who provides practical resolution to imagined problems of this world.

8. In the small work like today in 2022 that we live in, many times, you may get jobs, opportunities for international travel on work, you may work with different cultures and countries- so it is important to research and know a bit of their country, culture, what those people are like in general- before you land there. Wikipedia is a good general source for this. Just because you think, feel and believe about all kinds of things a certain way, does not mean the whole world is like that- remember you work in teams- so unless you cultivate a certain open mindedness about all other cultures and races of the world and know that humanity is what we have in common- all of us need the food, shelter, medicine etc in life and having the attitude of “how can I understand their eccentricities and propensities better in order to accomplish the project or task at hand” you may find yourself struggling- for no other reason other than your own biases. Also understand that as engineers, irrespective of countries and cultures, we all think the same way- experience with working with engineers from all over the world has taught me this- engineering brains think the same way- they have a similar pattern to their analysis and work- and yet there are cultural and social differences, simply because they have grown up in another land with another bizarre set of beliefs and ideas- same as you do. Also understand to appreciate the climate, the geography and dominant historical events of the place you maybe visiting- for a lot of what people do in other lands- is basically defined as a result of this- what they eat or drink, what they do for entertainment and pleasure, how they live, who or what they believe etc- once you dig into these aspects, you understand their human part more and that is the best way to appreciate where they came from and whey they are the way they are to a great degree.

9. As an engineer you would often find yourself like a Surgeon- in the area of competency- that is to say- inspite of applying all codes, standards, procedures, things go wrong in the real world- just like a surgeon who, inspite of all the tests, scans and MRI will often tell you after surgery, we went in there and found a totally different scenario and had to work through that in the moment and using all the knowledge of the working of the body and tissues- in a similar way, you will find you need to improvise, thinking on your feet to solve something urgently, or critical need- you will be called on with panicking people who have just discovered a shutdown or inoperability of a device or plant or such. And this is one of the areas that will define your competency as an engineer- the ability to solve real problems as they come up- much the same way as a surgeon does- bring all your knowledge and skill to bear, right into the circumstances of what is presented to you, even in the middle of people panicking and chaos- unfortunately unlike the surgeon who gets a “get out of jail free card” by making you sign on a form that says “in case you die on the table, I am not responsible” - you as an engineer have no such luxuries- if you do implement something in emergency scenarios and it does not fare that well, you will get blamed, shamed and in extremes (and more common than not) kicked out of your job simply because you tried your best, and the freedom, knowledge and your own experience at that time were in a little shortfall. We, as engineers, cannot take the stand, for example that “ before you occupy this house, you have to sign this document, which says I have built the building to the best of my knowledge, and due to unforeseen circumstances of the roof collapses on your head at night while you are sleeping, I am not responsible”- same approach that is so easily handed down to the medical community at this time. Understand, that with experience you will learn to play this game better- and make you a kickass engineer too!

10. Your accomplishments, albeit wonderful and very gifted too, will often go unnoticed and unappreciated in the world- even with your own family and friends most often- understand that this is simply because most of the world does not really get what you do as engineers, what depths you go to dissect issues and problems of engineering something to the point that it is workable and sustainable in the real world. It is best that you learn to pat yourself in the back, through your years of work and service in this world and be proud of who you are as a professional and help other engineers gift themselves of self appreciation too. A little understanding of human nature will help here which is- they are very superficial in their appreciation and depreciation of people- one day you are the hero, next project a zero. Let this not be a reflection of who you are and what you actually carried out in your work, and how much of good impact it left, even in a minor way, in the world.