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CE Orientation Civil Engineer

The document discusses the civil engineering profession. It defines civil engineering as dealing with infrastructure projects like buildings, bridges, roads, and water systems. It notes that civil engineers are problem solvers who apply math and science to create value from natural resources. The document outlines the knowledge, skills, and attributes that civil engineers need, including communication skills, ethics, critical thinking, and an understanding of business, economics, and societal needs. It emphasizes that civil engineering work benefits society by improving quality of life.

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jamir
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187 views22 pages

CE Orientation Civil Engineer

The document discusses the civil engineering profession. It defines civil engineering as dealing with infrastructure projects like buildings, bridges, roads, and water systems. It notes that civil engineers are problem solvers who apply math and science to create value from natural resources. The document outlines the knowledge, skills, and attributes that civil engineers need, including communication skills, ethics, critical thinking, and an understanding of business, economics, and societal needs. It emphasizes that civil engineering work benefits society by improving quality of life.

Uploaded by

jamir
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 22

SE 153 Ecology

The Civil Engineer

WMSU
CLIMATE
Engr. Ramon P. Velasco1 Jr.
Assist. Prof. IV
THE CIVIL ENGINEERING PROFESSION

“You see things; and you say "Why?"


But I dream things that never were;
and I say "Why not?"”
George Bernard Shaw

2
What is an engineer?
Engineers are problem solvers!

“Engineering is concerned with the


implementation of a solution to a practical
problem”
A scientist may ask "why?" and proceed to
research the answer to the question.

By contrast, engineers want to know how to


solve a problem and how to implement that
solution. 3
In other words,
scientists investigate phenomena, whereas
engineers create solutions to problems or
improve upon existing solutions.
A scientist builds in order to learn. An engineer
learns in order to build.”
(http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Engineering)

One way to define engineering is: “how to do


new things in new ways” (Win Phillips, 1997)

4
Another definition is: "Engineering is the
application of math and science to create
something of value from our natural
resources."
The difference between science and
engineering was explained well by Theodore
Von Karman, an aerospace engineer. As he
stated: "Scientists discover the world that
exists; engineers create the world that never
was."
(http://www.discoverengineering.org/aboutengineers.asp)
5
What is Civil Engineering?
Civil Engineering is the oldest and quintessential
engineering profession. It encompasses a
variety of sub-disciplines and jobs. The civil
engineering curriculum emphasize the following
major sub-disciplines:
• structural
• environmental
• water resources
• geotechnical
• construction
• transportation 6
“Professional engineers should work for
the welfare of the public. They are
responsible for observing societal needs,
and often have the position and resources
to improve society. As professionals,
engineers are expected to set examples in
the work field and to establish themselves
as assets to society.”
T.D. Oates, 1993
7
What is a profession?
A PROFESSION is defined by:
1. Knowledge = requires formal education,
judgment and discretion that are not
routine and cannot be mechanized;
continuing education required
2. Organization = sets standards for admission

to profession, enforces standards of


conduct, establishes codes of ethics
3. Public Good = purpose of service and
preservation of public welfare 8
“History provides the big picture, why large-
scale projects were built and what their
benefits are to society...You can wake people
up to the importance of infrastructure, the
efforts of the civil engineers who have
improved the quality of life through its design
and construction, why it needs to be repaired,
and where tax money will be going. You can
use history to educate...engineers ...about
where our present problems came from.”
James M. Fels, 1990; in Morley 1994.
9
What do engineers need to know?
Based on the 1995 Civil Engineering Education
Conference of the American Society of Civil Engineers,
the following areas were identified as fundamental
elements which should be incorporated into
Undergraduate engineering education (ASCE 1995):
1. A global vision and approach to problem
identification and problem solving in areas such as
infrastructure, environment, facilities, and systems
2. A basic management knowledge base in areas such
as business, resources, personnel management,
communication skills, costs and value judgments, and
time management 10
What do engineers need to know?
3. A solid foundation in personal and inter-personal
attributes ethics
4. An involvement with engineering practice as the
formal education evolves.
These elements were therefore chosen as emphasis
areas for this course, and should provide a foundation
for you as both professional engineers and in your
future courses. What you learn here should help you
identify areas where you will need to be strong in
order to succeed as an engineer, and therefore in
selecting courses which will allow you to build your
skills in these areas. 11
What Emerging Engineers Need to Know
Industry survey by ASEE rank*, percent ASME/NSF**
survey marked “very important” or “somewhat
important” skills for new BS-level engineers, and skills
in your career***.

12
What Emerging Engineers Need to Know

13
Because every job in engineering is a little
different, various skills (such as listed in the
previous table and others) have varying levels
of importance in different jobs. Thus, surveys
of varying groups of employers always have
slightly different rankings of various skills that
are important for civil engineers. However,
some of the skills appear near the top of
almost every survey. These can be considered
of major (or high) importance to all civil
engineers. 14
Desired Attributes of an Engineering
Graduate (American Society for Engineering
Education: Engineering Education for a
Changing World)

1 Good Communication Skills


2. Higher ethical standards
3. Ability to think critically and creatively;
independently and cooperatively
4. Flexibility
15
Other skills have widely ranging importance
depending on the specific job that you do
within civil engineering. Skills that were cited
infrequently, not at all, or at the bottom of
surveys can be considered of minor (or low)
importance for the majority of civil
engineers. Some examples of important skills
for civil engineers were given in the table on
the previous page and are listed and
discussed below.
16
Desired Attributes of an Engineering Graduate

5. Grasp of Engineering Science fundamentals


(math, statistics, physics and life sciences,
information technologies)
6. Good understanding of design and
manufacturing processes
7. Basic understanding of the context in which
engineering is practiced (economics, history,
environment, customer and societal needs)
8. Possess a multi-disciplinary, system perspective
17
Skills in order of importance (in your
career):

• writing
• engineering
• business/financial
• personal interaction
• computer
18
Civil engineering is moving somewhat away from the
gold-standard of “design for function”, and
expanding to embrace “design to cost and
environmental compatibility”. It is important to
recognize the revolution that has occurred in
engineering since the 1960s. Computers and the web
have changed many aspects of the job. Specifically,
computers have replaced many things that engineers
used to do. No longer are high-level skills with a slide
rule and detailed manual computations needed, because
computers have assumed much of this burden. This has
resulted in significant time savings, freeing engineers to
focus on broader integration issues of importance. 19
MORE is expected of engineers than any other
profession!
Civil engineers are responsible for the
well-being of the entire population via water
treatment, wastewater treatment, air pollution
control, road design, and design of dams/
buildings/bridges. Our work often goes
unrecognized. The public tends to take the
quality of our work for granted – until something
goes wrong or performs below expectations.
20
What do Civil Engineers do?
Every job and career path is different. The
information below provides some examples and
advice about a typical job path. However, every
person, every employer, each job is different
and there are no specific rules. Expect the
unexpected. Variety and diversity are the key
trait of civil engineering to remember. If you
don’t like one civil engineering job, don’t
despair. There is a fit for your skills, aspirations,
and talents out there waiting for you. 21
GOOD AFTERNOON!

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