What is the best engineering advice you ever received? 205

[tulum]

I would like to continue engineerdaves series of threads; what frustrates you at work, and what satisfies you at work...

I just finished reading one of Donald Trumps books entitled "the way to the top". What he did was he asked the top executives across the US to submit the one single most important thing they learned to help them achieve businees success.

For example one qoute was (and is very applicable to engineering):

"Although you can't always control where you are planted-to which department or specific project you are assigned-you can control the experience while you are there...bloom where you are planted."

So my question to the forum is: What is the best engineering advice you ever received?

 

[Boothby171]

"The biggest problems are always at the interface..."

--Me

 

[BandH]

I like the following:

Never look back unless you can laugh, never look forward unless you can dream - it was in Eddie Jordan's office.

Beware of ROAD employess => ROAD = Retire on Active Duty employees

 

[kontiki99]

This advice was a follow up to doing what I thought was best.

"and Oh yeah, don't F--- it up."

 

[engineer151515]

Years ago ... before I became an old engineer ... I was field assigned to a refinery with a senior (chemical) engineer who was a retired Marine Colonel. We were kicking around in the gravel one day when I asked him a question. "Lets do the math" I said. "Your career in the Marines must have put you through Vietnam, and perhaps Korea. So tell me, how does a old Marine Colonel get to BE an old Marine Colonel?"

He thought for a moment. His mind working. Then he spoke.

"Son.... never defend an undefendable position."



I thanked him and have taken this advise to heart ever since.

 

[SmartEngineer]

The best I have ever learned and heard in the project is:
" Any decision you have made in the project design stage , you will going to see it at the site"

From this I did learn that to be careful any making decision in project life till I make sure no worry would be at site.

Cheers

 

[taylorg]

One I think I saw elsewhere on this forum and now often find myself quoting:

"Luck is the residue of design..."

 

[Twoballcane]

From an old manager of mine when I was doing some analysis work, “your guess is only good as your model”.

 

[BandH]

From my FEA days:

Put crap in, get crap out - not always said in such nice words though!

 

[HgTX]

"Garbage In Garbage Out" (GIGO) is the time-honored original. Even nicer words.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies: faq731-376

 

[Sprocket59]

A designer's greatest asset is the lead time between design and production.

 

[JStephen]

"Never measure the hardness of the same piece of steel twice. You'll get two numbers and won't know which one to use."- from one of the more practical of my ME professors. In other words, "A man with one watch knows what time it is. A man with two watches is never sure."

 

[GregLocock]

Gosh, so all that time spent on gauge R&R is a waste of time?

He may have been a good ME prof, he certainly didn't understand statistics.

Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[FACS]

"Finish the drawing, and then put it in your drawer. Take it out the next day and fix the mistakes."

--my first boss.

Charlie

http://www.facsco.com

 

[JStephen]

It's okay, Greg, he didn't mean it entirely seriously. He was a great guy, nearing retirement age, had a sense of humor, one of the two or three old professors that didn't have PhD's, and had probably done more engineering than the ones that did. Once on the day before a holiday, the school was trying to avoid any cancellation of classes by profs, so he announced that "Friday, the class will meet unassembled."

 

[NickelMet]

Now that is something I'd like to have .... "unassembled meetings". Maybe more "real" work could be done!! LOL!!

~NiM

From Dave Barry (comedian/author):
"If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be 'meetings'".

 

[BelspringKen]

An engineer I used to work for said that generally we can take care of the technical issues but that communication is where most of the problems creep in.

Another engineer (commenting on the FE exam)said that you should now the basics of your "bad" subjects (in my case, electricity) so that you can at least answer the easier questions.

 

[IJR]

Sorry Pals

This is the most precious tool for me:SEARCH FOR HELP AND STICK TO WHERE YOU CAN FIND IT.

If you can not find help from inside your company, try to see if you can find that from your client side.

If you can not find help from inside your department, try to see if you can find that from other departments.

It works magic for me.


Respects
IJR

 

[JStephen]

Well, hopefully, you get to the point pretty quick where you're the helper, not the helpee. Sometimes it takes more work on your part instead of looking for help from someone else.

 

[stampyoldani]

---------------quote-------------------------
The best carrer advice for an engineer is...

Marry a rich woman....
---------------------------------------------

Beware! I have also heard this one:

"those who marry for money usually end up earning it"



and for saving money by DIY projects...

"materials cost $xxx, tools cost $xxx, and the only way you can write off the time spent doing it, is if your time is worthless"

 

[stampyoldani]

One more...

"the key to good management is to keep the people who hate you away from the people who haven't decided yet"