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Raising a new Generation of Leaders

GEC 217--Engineer-In- Society

Module 1 Cont’d 2
Engineering Discipline & Appropriate Technology

Coordinated
by Dr
Engr. Amuta E.O Agbetuyi
ENGINEERING DISCIPLINES
There are many
branches of
engineering, each of
which specializes in
specific technologies
and products.
Engineers Shapes
the future with
technology.

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 Branches of Products
Engineering
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Aerospace Engineering Aircraft, Robotics, Spacecraft, Trajectories
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Biomedical Engineering Prostheses, Medical devices, Regenerative Tissue Growth, Various Safety Mechanisms,(seat Belt)
Genetic Engineering
3
Civil Engineering Roads, Bridges, Dams, Buildings, Structural system, Foundation (engineering), Earthworks
(engineering),Waste management, Water treatment
4
Computer Engineering Microprocessors, Microcontrollers, Operating Systems, Embedded Systems
5
Electrical Engineering Electricity generation , and Equipment, Remote sensing, Robotics, Control system,
Computer, Home appliances, Internet of things, Consumer electronics, Avionics, Hybrid vehicle
Spacecraft, Unmanned aerial vehicle, Optoelectronics, Embedded system
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Industrial Engineering quality control systems, manufacturing systems, warehousing systems, supply chains, logistics
networks, queuing systems, business process management
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Software Engineering Apps, websites, operating systems, embedded systems
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Architectural Buildings and bridges
Engineering & Building
Engineering
9 Wine-making, Food production (e.g. beer, milk, cheese)
Chemical Engineering
Petrochemicals (e.g. gold, rare earths, oil refining, natural gas, plastics)
Industrial Chemicals (e.g. detergents & soaps, chlorine, explosives)

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 To Engineer Is Human
Engineering is a human endeavor. Humans have
engaged in engineering to meet their needs as
long as they have had needs.
Engineers invent and innovate when confronted
with problems, needs, and desires to meet our
needs for daily life, such as access to water,
energy, transportation, and entertainment.

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To Engineer Is Human
• The ancient
pyramids are an
engineering marvel.
The great pyramid
was the tallest man-
made structure in the
world for almost four
thousand years.
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 To Engineer Is Human Cont’d
• Petroski (2004) said, “Making things is an activity as old as
civilization, and making ever new things is part of being
human.” Our lives are permeated with technological inventions
that humans have engineered.
• Essentially, it is important to understand that engineers don’t
just work with machines, designs or circuit boards, and
engineering doesn’t only require a good understanding of
science and mathematics.
• several different engineering achievements have changed the
way we live today.

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 Engineers and the Society
• Engineers needs to be understood in the context of its role in society, and
your role as an engineer has to be understood in the context of your work
within a company, and ultimately within society.
• As an engineer, you may be involved in negotiations; you may become a
manager, supervising the work of a team of engineers; you may have special
responsibilities to ensure that work is safe, or to ensure it is not damaging the
environment.
• You may have a lot of responsibility, and be required to make financial
decisions and ethical judgments, as well as mathematical calculations.

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 Engineers and the society
• Engineers are creative both as initiators and implementers of new
ideas. Engineers invent new technologies, such as the telephone or the
silicon chip, Car braking systems, water treatment, gas turbines and
mobile data networking, are just a few examples of continuous,
creative innovation and improvement by engineers:
• that keep us safe, drive the economy and support our modern life
styles and
• that help to make other people’s ideas work, such as structural and
geotechnical engineers creating technical solutions to make an
architect’s design for a building.

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 Engineers and the Society
• Many of the problems facing society and engineering today are
complex.
• Engineers have been highly successful in creating the complex
technical systems that make modern life possible. Unfortunately, we
have been less successful in anticipating and addressing the negative
consequences of our creations. Creativity comes with responsibility.
• Engineers have devised ever more efficient ways of extracting fossil
fuels from the Earth and burning them for human benefit, and so must
take central responsibility for addressing the urgent problems of
climate change through energy efficiency and renewable energy.

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 Engineers and the society
• When working to devise creative solutions to complex social,
economic and environmental problems, it is vital that engineers
have a good understanding of the context of the problems they are
trying to solve. This requires engineers to work with clients, users,
communities and other stakeholders to establish a clear
understanding of needs, constraints and potential impacts of any
proposed solutions.
• Understanding the needs and requirements of users, communities,
society and the environment, is as important to ethical engineering
as meeting the needs of clients or employers. Working with a range
of stakeholders can provide additional constraints and inspiration
for creative design, leading to solutions that are more likely to have
positive outcomes

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 Engineers and the Society
• Engineers have designed and built cars, roads and motorways, and
so must face up to the social and environmental problems of
congestion, urban sprawl, emissions and rising fuel costs.

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 Engineers and the Society
• We have built water systems that provide
endless supply to homes despite fresh water
being a scarce resource in many places, and
now engineers must help people find ways to
reduce water wastage.
• Engineers have created technical systems that
have transformed society and the environment.
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 Engineers and the society
• Creativity is usually associated with risk taking, while engineers are
required to reduce risks to the public, environment and the
commercial success of their clients and employers. However, finding
innovative solutions within the boundaries of safety, reliability and
efficiency.
• Working with communities and clients to deliver sustainable solutions
to complex social, economic and environmental problems requires a
diverse set of engineering skills. Creativity is the key to finding
inspiration for new engineering designs and solutions within the
constraints of ethical engineering practice grounded in science and
engineering methods and standards that have evolved over
generations.

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Raising a new Generation of Leaders

Roles of Engineers in
the Society
 Roles of Engineers in the Society
• Engineers are the bedrock for
development of any serious nation.
• Engineering turns science and
technology into something tangible
and useful to society.
Engineering bridges the gap between
Society and scientific knowledge.
the society is undergoing dramatic
change which is indirectly from
engineering activities.

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 Roles of Engineers in the Society
• Education
• Production
• Construction
• Information and Telecommunication
• Foreign Exchange
• Infrastructure
• Clean, Sustainable Energy
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 Roles of Engineers in the Society
• Quality Education with modern days
technology:
• Many developed countries balance and sustain
their economy with returns from their institutions
and colleges
• Efficient Production :
• Production of goods have been multiplied with
less human effort, low cost, and improved qualities.
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 Roles of Engineers in the Society
Information Communication and Technology
(ICT) :
• The rapid growth in ICT and Telecommunication
has open doors of opportunities, and in turn boost
the economy.
Infrastructure:
• The huge investment in Engineering in Dubai
makes it a must go area for luxurious lovers.

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Dubai before Development

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Dubai After Development

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 Roles of Engineers in the Society
Construction:
• The Engineers deals with the creation,
improvement, and protection of the environment,
providing facilities for living, industry and
transportation, including large buildings, roads,
bridges, canals, railroad lines, airports, water
supply systems, dams, irrigation, harbours, docks,
aqueducts, tunnels, and other engineered
constructions within a given region which produces
high economic values.

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 Roles of engineers in the society
Clean, Sustainable Energy:
• Power plays a huge role in any developments
that happen to a country.
• Stable and sustainable power; stable and
sustainable economy

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POSTS AN ENGINEER CAN OCCUPY IN GOVERNMENT
The Pupil Engineer
- Engineer II
- Engineer I
- Senior Engineer
- Principal Engineer
- Assistant Chief Engineer
- Chief Engineer
- Assistant Director
- Deputy Director
- Director
- Director General.
The Engineer Can Function In any of the Following areas of
Operation: Planning, Execution, Research, Maintenance,
Consultation and Commissioning.

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 THE ENGINEER IN INDUSTRY
In the industry, the engineer can work in the
following environments:
- manufacturing
- marketing/sales
- operations and maintenance
In Research and training, he must understand:
- Engineering and the drawings attached
- Management of men and materials
- Management of adequate financial resources
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Raising a new Generation of Leaders

Area of Engineering
Functions
 Area of Engineering Functions
Research: Research engineers are
knowledgeable in principles of
chemistry, biology, physics, and
mathematics. He searches for new
knowledge in order to solve
problems arising from an old work
or opening a new one within the
environment in order to bring out
immediate solution.
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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Development
• Development engineers bridge the gap
between the laboratory and the production
facility.
• They also identify problems in a potential
product by building prototypes.
• An example is the development of concept
cars for companies like Ford and Toyota.
• He applies existing and new knowledge in
order to develop the prototype of another
device.

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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Testing
• Testing engineers are responsible for
testing the durability and reliability of a
product and making sure that it performs
how it is supposed to. They simulate
instances and environments in which a
product would be used.
• Crash testing of a vehicle to observe
effects of an air bag.
• He performs tests on engineering
products so as to determine suitability for
particular application or usage.
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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Design
• Design engineers often work on components of a
product, providing all the necessary specifics needed
to successfully manufacture the product.
• He regularly use computer design software as well as
computer aided drafting software in his jobs.
• Design engineers must also verify that the part meets
reliability and safety standards required for the
product.
• A concern always on the mind of design engineers is
how to keep the development of a part cost effective,
which is taken into account during the design process.
• he applies the result brought by the research engineer
in order to produce detailed designs of services,
structures and processes.
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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Analysis
• Analysis engineers use computational tools and
mathematical models to enrich the work of
design and research engineers.
• Responsible on a larger scale for bringing
together components of parts from engineering
designs to make a complete product.
• Responsible for making sure all components of
a product work together as was intended by the
design engineers.

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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Operations & Maintenance Engineer
• Responsible for setting up and maintaining the
production line.
• Must have technical know-how to deal with
problems.
• Responsible for inspecting the facility and
equipment.
• Must be certified in various inspection methods.
• he runs and maintains the production facilities in
industries.
• He puts in order an equipment or machine when
it is faulty
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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Technical Support
• Works between sales,
customers and producers.
• Typically will have knowledge
of the technical aspects of
product.
• Must have good interpersonal
skills.

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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Sales Engineer:
• Sales engineers have technical background,
but are also able to communicate effectively
with customers.
• The job market, for sales engineers is
growing, due to the fact that products are
becoming more and more technically
complex.
• he has the technical background of the
production of a technical product and uses it
to advertise to prospective buyers

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 Area of Engineering Functions cont’d
Consulting Engineer:
• Consultants are either self-employed, or work for a
firm that does not directly manufacture products.
• Consulting engineers might be involved in design,
installation, and upkeep of a product.
• Sometimes required to be a registered professional
engineer in the state where he/she works.
• Consultants are typically required to have expertise
within the areas where they are consulting.
• this is a specialist in his field who is consulted to
give advice on an engineering project or
supplement the in-house team of engineers

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 Areas of Function of an Engineer cont’d
Manufacturing & Construction:
he is concerned with the
building of big, gigantic or high
rise structures.
Work individually or in teams
• Responsible for transforming
raw materials into finished
product.
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 Areas of Function of an Engineer cont’d
• Managing Engineer: he is employed in an
establishment in order to take care and
coordinate the activities of the technology team
• Academic Engineer: he is involved in training
and educating other potential engineers in
tertiary institutions.
• Resident Engineer: he supervises an
engineering project at a particular site.

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Raising a new Generation of Leaders

Appropriate Technology and

a New World of Science and
Technology
Appropriate Technology

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 Appropriate Technology (AT) and a new
world of Science and Technology.
• Appropriate technology is a grass roots approach to
technology that builds a strong sense of community
and encompasses benefits that span across social,
environmental, cultural, and economic. AT is not a
one size fits all approach, but rather adapts to best
fit the community in which it is developed.
• AT best fits with the community it serves because it
is created by the people to meet a need.
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 AT
• The communities are placed at the Centre of
decision making and create technologies that
will best serve their communities in the long
term.
• “The goal of Appropriate Technology (AT) is to
increase the standard of living for the
developing world without, complication, or
environmental damage.

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 Importance of AT
• It permits local needs to be met more effectively through community
involvement, and for this reason it tends to be aligned with local
values and traditions.
• it minimizes transport of goods in an era of expensive and
environmentally harmful energy, allowing greater local industry
participation.
• reinforces local control which provides a cushion against the effects
of outside economic changes.
• enables people to self-organize without complicated management,
training and specialized knowledge.
• AT recognizes the will of local people to act on their own behalves,
and is a technology made by and for the people

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 Examples of (AT) and a new world of Science and Technology:

1. Baking in solar oven: Electric Baking oven

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Examples of (AT) and a new world of Science and Technology cont’d
2. The Hippo Roller is a simple tool for
transporting water from distant
watering-holes back to homes and
villages – an alternative to the
traditional 5-gallon-barrels-on-heads
approach.
Hippo Roller
• The product itself is similar to a
barrel with a handle that you push
ahead of you like a steamroller’s
drum, and has a capacity of 90 liters.
That’s nearly a 5X increase in
productivity.”
Modern methods
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Examples of of
Examples (AT) and
(AT) a new
and world
a new of of
world Science and
Science Technology
and cont’d
Technology:

3. The Mukombe "tippy tap" for washing hands

won the 2013 Stockholm water prize.

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Examples of (AT)
Examples andand
of (AT) a new world
a new of Science
world andand
of Science Technology cont’d
Technology:
• Lack of refrigeration or insufficient cooling,
35% of perishable foods worldwide are thrown
away before reaching the consumer. [Source: Dr.
Michael Hülsmann,]
4. “The pot-in-pot refrigerator is made up of two
earthenware (i.e. porous) pots, one placed inside
the other. The gap between the two different
diameter pots is filled with wet sand in order to pot-in-pot refrigerator
keep both pots damp. A damp cloth is then used to
cover the top, and the finished assembly placed in
a shaded, dry, and well-ventilated location. The
water in the sand evaporates out through the outer
pot and into the dry air outside.
• This simple evaporative process reduces the
temperature of the pots and the perishable
contents (e.g. fruits and vegetables) kept in the
Modern refrigerator
inner pot.”

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Examples of (AT) and a new world of Science and Technology cont’d
Examples of (AT) and a new world of Science and Technology:
5. Camel transporting solar powered Top loaded freezer used as
refrigerator with vaccine.
as fridge, using 1/10th of
electricity

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Examples of (AT) and a new world of Science and Technology cont’d

6 . Solar Cooking: On a sunny day, it can cook an

entire meal for the whole family.

Solar cooker

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 Solar Cooker
A solar cooker changes sunlight into heat and cooks
food. It uses no fuel except the sun's energy-no wood,
charcoal, gas, kerosene, paraffin, or electricity. The
cooker works on three basic principles of physics:
• sunlight is absorbed by dark objects and converted
to heat;
• shiny surfaces reflect and don't absorb energy;
• light goes through transparent materials, while heat
mostly doesn't

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Examples of (AT)
Examples andand
of (AT) a new world
a new of Science
world andand
of Science Technology cont’d
Technology:

Gas stoves – which have the

7. Flexible bag biogas (methane) highest thermal efficiency of all
digester. Dung from 2-3 cattle is enough modern cooking stoves –
for a family’s cooking purposes and to produce the most air pollution
run a gas lamp in the evening. in modern kitchens.

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 Evaluation of AT
1. Ability of technology to stand alone without additional support systems.
2. Individual versus collective technology, with regard to which one of the technology, the
culture values.
3. Cost of technology which takes into account full costs to social, economic, and
environmental impacts.
4. The risk factor including internal risks, that relate to the fit in local production systems and
external risks, which relate to the needed support systems.
5. Evolutionary capacity of technology, with regard to its capability of being reconfigured to
grow with the society it benefits, thereby solving different problems that the community
encounters.
6. Single-purpose versus multi-purpose technology, where the latter refers to technology that
has the ability to complete different tasks at the same time.

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See u next class
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