Introduction TO Professional Engineering in Canada, Fifth Edition
By Gordon C. Andrews, J. Dwight Aplevich, Roydon A. Fraser and Carolyn G. MacGregor
Contents
Preface to the fifth edition, iii
Part I The Engineering Profession 1
Chapter 1 An Introduction to Engineering 3
1.1 What is an engineer? 3
1.2 The role of the engineer, 5
1.3 Engineering disciplines, 6
1.3.1 Choosing your program, 7
1.4 Engineers across Canada, 10
1.5 Canadian engineering achievements, 11
1.5.1 Sources related to Canadian engineering history, 13
1.6 Challenges and opportunities for engineering, 14
1.7 Further study, 15
1.8 References, 17
Chapter 2 The Licensed Professional Engineer 19
2.1 Engineering is a profession, 20
2.2 Regulation of the engineering profession, 20
2.2.1 Government regulation, 21
2.2.2 A critical event: the Qu´ebec Bridge tragedy, 22
2.2.3 The laws regulating engineering, 25
2.2.4 Legal definitions of engineering, 27
2.3 Admission to the engineering profession, 28
2.3.1 Academic requirements, 29
2.3.2 Experience requirements, 31
2.3.3 Language competency, 32
2.3.4 The professional practice examination, 32
2.3.5 Offering engineering services to the public, 32
2.4 The purpose of provincial Associations, 33
2.5 Further study, 33
2.6 References, 36
Chapter 3 Professional Engineering Ethics 37
3.1 Association codes of ethics, 38
3.1.1 The national code of ethics, 38
3.2 Enforcement activities of the Associations, 39
3.2.1 Common professional complaints, 40
3.3 Ethics in the workplace, 41
3.4 Analyzing ethical problems, 42
3.4.1 Ethical theories, 43
3.4.2 Case studies in ethics, 46
3.5 The professional use of computer programs, 48
3.6 Proper use of the engineer’s seal, 50
3.7 The iron ring, 51
3.8 Further study, 52
3.9 References, 56
Chapter 4 Engineering Societies 57
4.1 The purpose of engineering societies, 57
4.2 The history of engineering societies, 58
4.3 The importance of engineering societies, 59
4.4 The relationship of the engineer to laws and organizations, 60
4.5 Choosing your engineering society, 62
4.5.1 Canadian engineering societies, 62
4.5.2 American and international engineering societies, 64
4.6 Further study, 65
4.7 References, 68
Chapter 5 Learning Strategies 69
5.1 The good and bad news about engineering studies, 69
5.2 Managing your time, 70
5.3 Preparing for the start of classes, 71
5.4 Developing a note-taking strategy, 72
5.5 A checklist of good study skills, 72
5.6 Assignments and projects, 73
5.7 Preparing for examinations, 74
5.8 Writing examinations, 75
5.9 When things go wrong, 76
5.10 Your professional career and lifelong learning, 76
5.11 Further study, 77
5.12 References, 79
Part II Engineering Communications 81
Chapter 6 Technical Documents 83
6.1 Types of technical documents, 83
6.1.1 Letters, 84
6.1.2 Memos, 84
6.1.3 Internet postings, 86
6.1.4 Electronic messages, 87
6.1.5 Specification documents, 88
6.1.6 Bids and proposals, 88
6.1.7 Reports, 89
6.2 Finding information, 92
6.3 Technical presentations, 94
6.3.1 Visual aids, 96
6.4 Further study, 98
6.5 References, 100
Chapter 7 Technical Writing Basics 101
7.1 The importance of clarity, 101
7.2 Hints for improving your writing style, 102
7.3 Punctuation: a basic summary, 105
7.4 The parts of speech: a basic summary, 106
7.5 Avoid these writing errors, 107
7.6 The Greek alphabet in technical writing, 108
7.7 Further study, 109
7.8 References, 112
Chapter 8 Formal Technical Reports 113
8.1 Components of a formal report, 114
8.1.1 The front matter, 114
8.1.2 The report body, 119
8.1.3 The back matter, 123
8.2 Steps in writing a technical report, 125
8.3 A checklist for engineering reports, 127
8.4 Further study, 129
8.5 References, 132
Chapter 9 Report Graphics 133
9.1 Graphics in engineering documents, 134
9.2 Standard formats for graphs, 134
9.2.1 Bar charts and others, 136
9.2.2 Straight-line graphs, 137
9.2.3 Logarithmic scales, 138
9.3 Engineering calculations, 141
9.4 Sketches, 143
9.5 Further study, 146
9.6 References, 148
Part III Engineering Measurements 149
Chapter 10 Measurements and Units 151
10.1 Measurements, 151
10.2 SI and other unit systems for engineering, 152
10.3 Writing quantities with units, 156
10.4 Basic and common units, 158
10.5 Unit algebra, 161
10.6 Further study, 162
10.7 References, 164
Chapter 11 Measurement Error 165
11.1 Measurements, uncertainty, and calibration, 165
11.2 Systematic and random errors, 167
11.2.1 Systematic errors, 167
11.2.2 Random errors, 167
11.3 Precision, accuracy, and bias, 168
11.4 Estimating measurement error, 169
11.5 How to write inexact quantities, 169
11.5.1 Explicit uncertainty notation, 169
11.5.2 Implicit uncertainty notation, 170
11.6 Significant digits, 170
11.6.1 Rounding numbers, 171
11.6.2 The effect of algebraic operations, 172
11.7 Further study, 174
11.8 References, 176
Chapter 12 Error in Computed Quantities 177
12.1 Method 1: exact range of a calculated result, 177
12.2 Method 2: linear estimate of the error range, 179
12.2.1 Sensitivities, 180
12.2.2 Relative sensitivities, 182
12.2.3 Approximate error range, 183
12.2.4 Application of Method 2 to algebraic functions, 184
12.3 Method 3: estimated uncertainty, 186
12.3.1 Derivation of the estimated value, 188
12.4 Further study, 189
12.5 References, 192
Chapter 13 Basic Statistics 193
13.1 Definitions and examples, 193
13.2 Presentation of measured data: the histogram, 196
13.3 Measures of central value, 197
13.4 Measures of spread, 201
13.5 Measures of relative standing, 203
13.6 Further study, 205
13.7 References, 206
Chapter 14 Gaussian Law of Errors 207
14.1 Conditions for applying the Gaussian model, 208
14.2 Properties of the Gaussian distribution function, 211
14.2.1 Probability intervals, 212
14.3 Fitting a Gaussian curve to sample data, 214
14.4 Least squares, 215
14.4.1 Optimality of the sample mean, 215
14.4.2 The best straight line, 216
14.4.3 Correlation coefficient, 218
14.5 Rejection of an outlying point, 220
14.5.1 Standard deviation test, 220
14.6 Further study, 220
14.7 References, 222
Part IV Engineering Practice 223
Chapter 15 Fundamentals of Engineering Design 225
15.1 Defining engineering design, 226
15.1.1 Types of engineering design, 226
15.2 Characteristics of good design practice, 227
15.2.1 Design heuristics, guidelines, standards, and specifications, 231
15.3 The engineering design process, 233
15.4 Design skills, 235
15.4.1 Clearly defining the design project, 235
15.4.2 Generating solutions, 236
15.4.3 Models, simulations, and prototypes, 237
15.5 Systematic decision-making, 239
15.5.1 Pairwise comparisons, 239
15.5.2 Computational decision-making, 241
15.6 Design documentation, 242
15.7 System life cycle, 246
15.8 Designing with others, 247
15.9 Becoming a design engineer, 249
15.10 Further study, 250
15.11 References, 253
Chapter 16 Project Management and Scheduling 255
16.1 Project management, 255
16.1.1 The project life cycle, 256
16.1.2 Cost management, 258
16.2 Gantt charts, 259
16.3 The critical path method (CPM), 259
16.4 Scheduling with CPM, 262
16.5 Refinement of CPM, 264
16.6 Summary of steps in CPM, 265
16.7 Further study, 266
16.8 References, 268
Chapter 17 Safety in Engineering Design 269
17.1 Responsibility of the design engineer, 269
17.2 Principles of hazard recognition and control, 270
17.3 Eliminating workplace hazards, 274
17.4 Codes and standards, 276
17.4.1 Finding and using safety codes and standards, 278
17.5 Further study, 279
17.6 References, 282
Chapter 18 Safety, Risk, and the Engineer 283
18.1 Evaluating risk in design, 283
18.2 Risk management, 283
18.3 Analytical methods, 284
18.3.1 Checklists, 285
18.3.2 Hazard and operability studies, 285
18.3.3 Failure modes and effects analysis, 286
18.3.4 Fault-tree analysis, 287
18.4 Safety in large systems, 289
18.5 System risk, 290
18.6 Expressing the costs of a hazard, 291
18.7 Further study, 292
18.8 References, 294
Chapter 19 Environmental Sustainability 295
19.1 Defining sustainability, 295
19.2 An overview of sustainable thinking, 297
19.3 The process of global warming and climate change, 300
19.3.1 The solar balance, 302
19.4 Excessive consumption and the depletion of oil and gas, 304
19.4.1 Ethical implications of a peak in oil and gas production, 308
19.5 Guidelines for environmental practice, 309
19.6 What we can do: personal lifestyles, 310
19.7 What we can do: engineering for sustainability, 312
19.8 Conclusion, 314
19.9 Further study, 315
19.10 References, 317
Chapter 20 The Engineer in Business 321
20.1 Seeking a job: r ´esum´es and interviews, 322
20.2 Business organizations, 325
20.2.1 Legal business structures, 325
20.3 The individual in corporate culture, 327
20.4 Starting or joining a small company, 328
20.4.1 The business plan, 329
20.4.2 Getting advice, 330
20.5 Further study, 331
20.6 References, 332
Chapter 21 Intellectual Property 333
21.1 Introduction, 333
21.1.1 Proprietary intellectual property, 334
21.1.2 The public domain, 334
21.2 The importance of intellectual property, 336
21.2.1 Rights of employers and employees, 337
21.3 Copyright, 337
21.3.1 Copyright registration, 338
21.3.2 Fair dealing, 338
21.3.3 Copyright and computer programs, 338
21.4 Patents, 339
21.4.1 The patent application process, 341
21.5 Industrial designs, 342
21.6 Trademarks, 343
21.7 Integrated circuit topographies, 344
21.8 Trade secrets, 345
21.9 Further study, 345
21.10 References, 348
Appendix Answers to Quick Quiz and selected Further Study questions 349
Chapter 1, 349
Chapter 2, 349
Chapter 3, 349
Chapter 4, 349
Chapter 5, 349
Chapter 6, 349
Chapter 7, 349
Chapter 8, 349
Chapter 9, 349
Chapter 10, 350
Chapter 11, 351
Chapter 12, 351
Chapter 13, 352
Chapter 14, 352
Chapter 15, 352
Chapter 16, 352
Chapter 17, 352
Chapter 18, 352
Chapter 19, 352
Chapter 20, 353
Chapter 21, 353
Index, 355