• Question: what problems di you come up against in engineering

    Asked by Robo to Tony, Niamh, Dimitrios, Becky, Alessandra on 14 Jun 2017. This question was also asked by Summergirl3m11y.
    • Photo: Niamh Ryall

      Niamh Ryall answered on 14 Jun 2017:

      Many! One of the biggest ones is running experiments safely. Especially if it hasn’t been done before. It takes a lot of time to think through everything that might happen and write about it, so you know you’ve got a plan when things go wrong. Then there’s the problem of figuring out what your results mean and checking the theories of other engineers and scientists to see if you agree or disagree with them. It takes a lot of time and effort.

    • Photo: Rebecca Bennett

      Rebecca Bennett answered on 15 Jun 2017:

      Learning the market, understanding what our consumer really wants. Just because we think a product is amazing and we get amazing results in the lab doesn’t mean a consumer will embrace it.
      There is a massive amount of selling a product to the consumer in the right way in order to get a consumer to try it and then feel the benefit. I need to be far more patient through this process!!

    • Photo: Alessandra Treviso

      Alessandra Treviso answered on 16 Jun 2017:

      Some customers come with very vague requests and still expect an asnwer from you. And it has to be something that works and that they can use/produce. So sometimes it is really really challenging interpreting their desires.

Comments

  • Photo: Stacey

    Stacey commented on :

    Understanding the customer is a big problem, a lot of the time they have a vague requirement. I have to help them define the requirement fully, so they get what they want. Prototype and working with robotics/machines can also create problems, you need to understanding your equipment Health and Safety so you avoid accidents.