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?

 

[Pud]

One told to me before the advent of CAD etc, but probably still true:

'Beware of drawings: not only do they contain drafting errors, they contain all your design errors too!'


Cheers

Harry

 

[plasgears]

Pilots have a saying about what is useless:

- the runway behind you,
- the altitude above you,
- the experience you never gained.

 

[ewh]

Another one from pre-cad days, but still applies:

A good designer never blames his tools.

 

[GregLocock]

That's plain stupid. I've seen engines designed on 3D cad that had no concept of solid modelling - every line was literally a 3d curve in 3d space.

Now, suppose nobody had pointed out that this was an inherently crazy approach and that there was much better software on the market?

Oh, and what are you supposed to do when your software has a bug in it? Grin and bear it, and charge the lost time ot the customer?





Cheers

Greg Locock

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

 

[ewh]

It means that a good designer uses whatever tools are at his disposal and compensates for them where they are lacking. He is aware of how to accomplish what he needs using those tools. Wether a design is done in wireframe or in solids doesn't matter, the design itself does. Of course, unknown software bugs are an exception.

 

[strokersix]

That also follows in machine shop practice. A good machinist can produce good results with outdated and worn out equipment. The skill of the operator is often more important than the cost of the machinery.

 

[Heckler]

Learn how to develope "thick skin" because somebody is going to make light of your designs, what you say, or even how you dress. Also, if you can dish it out learn how to take it because somebody is going to come along and dish some on you one day. I have a designer that doesn't take constructive advice well.

 

[jimkirk]

Don't confuse...
numbers for data,
data for information,
information for knowledge,
knowledge for wisdom.

 

[Okpower]

1. Many times, real equipments or systems don't have ideal conditions, so be pratical, very practical and make things work.
2. As a balance with the first advice, be pratical, but, think on things maintenance too.

 

[HydroROG]

Beginning a new job I always seemed to run into new concepts and ways of doing things. Stumbled into strange ways, words and work and found the 3 T's to be most helpful. Terminology, tools and techniques. Once these were mastered the jobs fell into place.

 

[owg]

Only put a small proportion of what you know in your presentation. That way you will be able to answer most of the questions. If you put all you know in the presentation you will be able to answer none of the questions.

HAZOP at

http://www.curryhydrocarbons.ca

 

[GregLocock]

...or you may have given the impression that you don't know anything.



Cheers

Greg Locock

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

 

[AhmetUnal]

There was this sentence at the beginning of a book I read one time:

"Keep it simple. As simple as possible. But no simpler... -Einstein"

 

[jimkirk]

In theory, there's not much difference between theory and practice, but in practice there is.

 

[kchayfie]

In order to get ahead in a company, do the jobs that no one else wants to do. In order to get paid more, work for a different company.

 

[Maui]

Constants aren't; variables won't.

Maui

 

[HVACctrl]

This is more managerial or team-oriented:

Always try to work yourself out of a job. Make it so others below you can do your job. They'll rise up, your boss will see what you've accomplished and you will be given newer, greater opportunities for it.

 

[bvanhiel]

A lot of advice on design, but missing my motto:

"iterate, iterate, iterate..."

I can't count the number of times I've been presented with a schedule by management that had 0 time between the prototype being completed and production manufacturing kickoff. Unless your industry is so refined that the engineers are really technicians, design failures will occur. You can either plan on them happening in your prototypes or they can happen in production.

-b

 

[KENAT]

Hope it doesn't offend anyone but one we learnt at my last place the hard way.....

'Never trust the engineering judgement of someone who feels the need to remind you they're an engineer"

Also:

"You can never design anything to be idiot proof, they'll just find a bigger idiot"

Ken

 

[aardvarkdw]

Most of my drafting instructors were fond of tellings us, "When you start a new job, forget every thing we taught you about how WE want things to be done and learn to do things the way those that write your checks want things to be done. That doesn't mean do things WRONG, it just means remember where the money comes from."

"When in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout." Robert A. Heinlein

"Never pet a burning dog..."