How to be a good engineer E-Book

Santiago Barcón

• Herausgeber: LID Editorial
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 139

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2025

Beschreibung

Written by Santiago Barcón, who has dedicated his professional life to becoming an ever-improving professional and training others, always sharing his experiences and knowledge with great generosity. This enjoyable and useful work is destined to become a reference book for engineers and future professionals in this field. It can be applied to all professions, regardless of the discipline in which the individual works; they will dignify them and seek to create a better world where respect for others and for oneself prevails. The 100 pieces of advice offered in the book can be grouped into the following topics: skills and values, personal and professional development, and professional practice. In addition to explaining them, it presents real-life examples that illustrate the importance of what is stated. All of these topics highlight the importance of not only having technical knowledge, years of experience, and constant updating, but also developing personal and professional skills on a daily basis. Being open to learning from others, recognizing the work of others, and correcting mistakes, among others, are essential. The author encourages readers to consistently practice what is taught in the book so that it becomes deeply rooted and becomes a natural habit.

Leseprobe

#HowToBeaGoodEngineer

Only a true engineer, like my friend, colleague, and partner, Santiago Barcón, would dare to tackle such an important and necessary task as that of restoring enthusiasm for and pride in being an engineer. And he does so in an enjoyable and easy-to-read manner, offering the reader an impressive compendium of advice and suggestions that, undoubtedly, constitute the backbone of what our profession should be.

Eduardo Marchesi Engineer and CEO EuroSMC S. A.

On meeting Santiago Barcón, I understood that being an engineer goes beyond knowledge and dedication: it also involves understanding needs and searching for solutions; it is about professionalism and friendship.

This book details his experiences, as told to friends - an undoubtedly important legacy for future generations.

It is the gift of a vision of life that opens the door to success and highlights everything that being a good engineer entails.

Mario González Melo Engineer and CEO Phoenix Contact Mexico

Acknowledgments

In a professional career that has already spanned four decades, it is impossible to include everyone to whom I owe what I have achieved. Nevertheless, I begin with my family: grandparents, parents, siblings, wife, and children. And to my teachers, undoubtedly apostles of education, and especially those who really challenged me.

To my engineering colleagues with whom I fortunately maintain close contact. I have learned from hundreds of you over the course of my professional life, but I would particularly like to highlight Johann Inge Westman, and my partners: Rodolfo Maza, Genaro Maza, and Ramón Delgadillo (the first two of whom have unfortunately passed), for having absolute faith in the projects I presented to them.

To Rafael Guerrero, with whom I have co-authored another book, for writing the prologue to this one; to Eduardo Marchesi and Mario González, for their recommendations on the back cover and their valuable friendship.

To Thania Rodríguez, who supported me in transcribing the manuscript into electronic format. Also, of course, to Ada Laura Luna, Claudia Herrán, Norma Ramos, and Bertha Herrerías, from Editorial LID, who guided me in bringing this work to fruition.

Finally, for this English Edition, thanks to my great friend from New Zealand, Geoff Vaughan who, together with his wife Judy and their daughter-in-law, Brie Jessen-Vaughan, reviewed the English translation and offered valuable advice.

Dedication

To my family: wife, mother, children, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, and brothers, and especially to Almudena, Fátima, Lorea, Lucía, Marina and Santiago, my grandchildren. I hope that some of you will decide to follow this exciting profession.

Also, to all young engineers and to those who are already experienced, may you obtain benefits that will enable you, as the title of this work suggests, to be good engineers.

Contents

Foreword

Introduction

The Ten Commandments of an Engineer

100 Top tips to be a good engineer

Competences and values

01. PERSEVERANCE

02. SPEAK ENGLISH (OR ANY OTHER SECOND LANGUAGE)

03. TOLERANCE

04. DO NOT CREATE IDOLS

05. EXPERIENCE

06. PROBITY AND THE COURAGE TO REPORT

07. DIVERSITY AMONG ENGINEERING

08. HUMILITY

09. DO NOT LIE

10. DO NOT ADULTERATE THE PRODUCT

11. «WE» NOT «I»

12. INVEST IN YOURSELF THROUGHOUT YOUR LIFE

13. ABOUT LOYALTY

14. SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE THAT MAKE YOU BETTER

15. POLYMATHY

16. TRAIN AND STUDY ON A PERMANENT BASIS

17. THE IMPORTANCE OF PRACTICE

18. WRITE

19. THE VALUE OF READING AND ORAL EXPRESSION

Personal and professional development

20. IMPROVE YOUR PERSONAL TOUCH

21. LOOK FOR A MENTOR

22. NEVER STOP BEING CURIOUS

23. THE POWER OF «NO»

24. CONTROL YOUR EGO

25. DEDICATE TIME TO THINKING

26. EXERCISE DAILY

27. THE COURAGE TO ASK

28. YOU HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE

29. LEARN FROM THE EXPERIENCED

30. ON HIGHER EDUCATION

31. RESILIENCE

32. LEARN TO LAUGH AT YOURSELF

33. COMMUNICATE YOUR WEAKNESSES

34. IF A THEN B

35. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF

36. LEISURE TIME AND IDLENESS

37. METANOIA

38. «NEVER WASTE A GOOD CRISIS»

39. ON HOW TO BELIEVE

40. TRAVEL, TRAVEL, TRAVEL

41. THE PROBLEM WITH GOOD INTENTIONS

42. EVERYTHING CHANGES (MORE THAN YOU IMAGINE)

43. CANNONBALL OR ROCKET?

44. YOUR DETERMINATION DEFINES THE RESULT

45. THE MORAL RESPONSIBILITY FROM STUDYING IN A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY

46. PREPARE YOURSELF FOR THE FUTURE, NOT FOR THE PAST

47. KNOW WHEN TO WALK AWAY FROM A PROBLEM

48. WHAT CAN YOU CONTROL?

49. THE IMPORTANCE OF THINKING

50. ABOUT DECISIONS

51. «YOU WILL NOT BEAT THE EAGLE»

52. GET CLOSE TO POLLINATORS

53. HAPPINESS IS NOT THE GOAL

54. HOW ARE WE TO BELIEVE?

55. NO REGRETS

56. THREE RULES FOR EVALUATING IF INFORMATION IS TRUE

57. FACE THE EVIDENCE

58. HOW TO OBTAIN THE ATTENTION OF THE PUBLIC

59. ON THE DIVERSITY OF OPINIONS

60. CREATE ANALOGIES

61. HOW TO CREATE THE FUTURE?

62. ON ATTITUDE

63. DO NOT CONFUSE WANT WITH NEED

64. PROPOSE AND DO NOT COMPLAIN

65. ABOUT DIVERSITY

Professional practice

66. SAFETY

67. THE BOSSES

68. ON STANDARDS

69. SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTES

70. LOVE YOUR PROFESSION

71. TEAMWORK

72. ABOUT THE NEED TO REST

73. USE YOUR HANDS

74. ATTENTION TO DETAIL

75. RETIREMENT

76. «LET FOOLISH WORDS FALL ON DEAF EARS»

77. MIRACLE PRODUCTS

78. ENGINEERS IN CHARGE OF ENGINEERING FIRMS

79. ON ADVISORS

80. ALWAYS BE SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE

81. COMMERCIAL PRESSURES

82. DO NOT GIVE SPACE FOR MISUNDERSTANDINGS

83.

PREMEDITATIO MALORUM

84. APPRECIATE WHAT ENGINEERING HAS PROVIDED TO HUMAN PROGRESS

85. «TAKE OFF YOUR ENGINEERING HAT AND WEAR THE MANAGER’S» (NEVER FORGET YOUR RESPONSIBILITY)

86. AT THE START OF YOUR PROFESSIONAL LIFE CHOOSE A COMPANY FOCUSED ON ENGINEERING (AFTER THAT, TOO)

87. SURPRISES OF PROFESSIONAL LIFE

88. PLANNING AND RISK

89. THE ENVIRONMENT AND WHERE TO WORK

90. ON SIMULATIONS AND SCIENCE

91. WE LIVE IN A HIVE

92. BE THE BEST ENGINEER THAT YOU CAN… AND DO NOT FALL INTO SWEET INERTIA

93. THINK BEFORE USING THE INTERNET

94. SCIENCE FICTION

95. COMPETING WITH GREAT RIVALS MAKES YOU BETTER

96. UNDERSTAND AND RESPECT THE FORCE OF NATURE

97. «I WILL REPEAT MYSELF UNTIL YOU UNDERSTAND ME»

98. THE CONFIDENCE THAT YOU PROJECT

99. ON THE DEFENSE OF THE PROFESSION AND THE SECTOR

100. HOW MANY ENGINEERS ARE THERE IN MEXICO? (THE INCLUSION OF FEMALE TALENT)

Museums that every engineer should visit before they die

Epilogue

Bibliography

Landmarks

Cover

Backcover

Title Page

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Contents

Copyright Page

Start reading

Bibliography

Foreword

After reading the book, How to be a Good Engineer. Ten Commandments and 100 Top Tips, I recognized myself in several pages of the text. During my student years, I would have «fallen in love» with an orientation of this kind, or with the accumulation of advice contained in these pages.

When dedicating a few words, it is difficult to stop the hand that, left alone, would tend to praise the dear friend. Aware of this risk, I therefore resort to the following anecdote in order to speak about the author. In the seventh century B.C., a blind chronicler and poet narrated a Mycenaean legend that had occurred in the thirteenth century B.C. In it appears the great master craftsman of the Bronze Age, forerunner to current knowledge of electrical engineering, control, artificial intelligence, and transient phenomena, among others. He designed and built a series of artifacts, all of which were useful. This budding engineer would have made Hermes’s winged sandals and helmet, Achilles’s armor, the bow and arrows of Eros, the crotalum of Hercules and, as if that were not enough, Agamemnon’s scepter and the thunderbolts of Zeus.

Perhaps most interestingly, from the point of view of robotics and artificial intelligence, he designed and built two golden maidens (κομραι χρμσεαι), two automatons, with the extraordinary appearance of young women. These not only served the engineer and his guests with sweetness and loving care but also sang with beautiful voices.

This is how I see Santiago Barcón: tenacious, always looking for the best solutions, directing an accredited magazine and navigating the rough and turbulent sea of industrial competition, where only the fittest evolve and prevail.

Back to the text. The book, How to be a Good Engineer. Ten Commandments and 100 Top Tips assumes that the reader, a sure beneficiary of its contents, has finished their degree. Because of this, it presents a timely and impeccable decalogue for engineers. The precepts are organized into three sections - Competences and Values, Personal and Professional Development, and Professional Practice - which, in turn, are broken down into «Knowledge Capsules»- small doses of knowledge about the importance of a holistic engineering education.

Reading invokes memories. In the engineering school where I obtained my degree as an electrical mechanical engineer, I do not once remember seeing an advisor, guide, or tutor walking the halls; everything was ultimately left to the responsibility and risk of the student. If a class was poor, regular or just deficient, it was up to the students to complement it. I nevertheless have fond memories of my thermodynamics, algebra and geometry teachers, while I was forced to buy a book and study on my own for my key subject, Electrical Machines.

In an informal chat with Santiago over a cup of good coffee, he told me he is preparing a second volume. It will deal in a similar way with what happens during the period between entering the faculty and graduating with a professional degree. He also said that the volume would place importance on the ever-expanding role of the mentor, as each can tutor between twenty and forty students. This is no small matter if one considers that the training provided by this figure confers great professional standing, aimed at the success of their students.

This book is an enjoyable and fascinating read, full of real-life examples, inspiring quotes, and practical advice derived from the author’s own experiences. Its approach offers a new look at the role of engineers in their field of expertise. It is an undoubtedly interesting one for engineers of all levels, from students to established professionals.

Rafael Guerrero Cepeda

Engineer, Former Head of the CFE

Advanced Engineering Unit

Introduction

It is surprising that the syllabus for an Electrical Engineering degree, my degree, does not include a history of our profession as a compulsory subject. The same applies to other disciplines. Let us bear in mind that at the end of the 20th century, the Academy of Sciences of the United States of America considered that the most important change of the previous century had been the construction of an interconnected electrical system which, as we electrical engineers like to boast, is the greatest machine ever built by humans.

Reviewing the history of engineering not only increases general knowledge about the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries but also allows us to understand the challenges faced and how some technologies prevailed despite not being the best. It would also show us how the ambition of some capitalists unfortunately deprived the true creators of certain innovations of the time of the subsequent economic benefits. As an example, the radio was patented by Tesla, but Marconi, together with his associates, usurped it. Combining the theft with impudence, they returned the license to Tesla on the day it was due to expire.

On the other hand, it is surprising that names such as Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Edwin Harder, and others remain unknown, ignored by colleagues who continued their work.

I firmly believe that a concept is easier to understand if you know where it comes from, hence my insistence on studying the origins of engineering; for if we do so, we will surely become more deeply attached to our profession.

It is necessary to read -even in Wikipedia- about little recognized «giants»: Jean Marie Ampère, William B. Shockley, John Bardeen and Walter H. Brattain, James Clerk Maxwell, Heinrich Hertz, Alessandro Volta, Benjamin Franklin, Zénobe Théophile Gramme, Charles Brush, William Stanley Jr., Thomas Murray, Frank Sprague, and Lee De Forest. Not everything involves Edison or Tesla.

Knowing and understanding the history of our profession allows us to better understand engineering, an activity that began 400 years ago in France. Its birthplace should not surprise us as the etymology of the word ‘engineer’ is neither Greek nor Latin, but much more recent. At that time, artifacts were called engines and were complex mechanisms that showed intelligence in their design.

In its beginnings, engineering was linked to military issues and needs. In 1676, the first engineers, Frenchmen, who formed part of the army infantry, were organized into special units called corps du génie. These units were both a center of development and of engineering. They were also places where «engineers» were trained, referred to as officeurs du génie.

Less than two decades later, these groups became famous throughout Europe for their achievements in military-related constructions. Similar to what we see today, the groups were structured in an organization of masters and apprentices, however, without a clear academic syllabus, or anything close.

Other countries, anxious not to be left behind, borrowed the French word, ingénieur, to define this type of person, and so it has continued to the present day. By the end of the eighteenth century - about ninety years later - a study program had been developed that is very similar to the one we know today.

Its military origins will forever mark this profession: reliability, speed, and ease of use for a specific purpose have always been priorities. Given that the training of the first engineers was essentially military, discipline in practicing the profession is an enduring legacy. In addition to these characteristics, there was also preparation in mathematics and physics.

All this professional orientation was assumed by the École de Travaux Publics created in 1794, becoming the ÉcolePolytechnique the following year. Its three-year academic curriculum established the guidelines that we continue to follow to this day: theory and then practice (the similarities between the curricula of the École de Travaux Publics and the École Polytechnique of the time and current ones are immediately recognizable).

This brief history is completed by the exponential growth of this profession. In 1850, the first census in the United States that recorded the number of engineers reported a total of 2000, in a population of 23 million, that is, about one for every 10,000 people. By 1980, the ratio was 1/100, i.e., it had increased 1000 times.

I invite you to delve into the history of engineering. Not only is it a fascinating subject, but it also encourages us to remember the concepts we studied in our youth. I assure you that historical knowledge of our profession is what can differentiate us from our colleagues and make us more reliable in the eyes of our clients.

Let me give you an example: when I tell clients that the first rule of limiting harmonics was telephonic interference, as electricity and communication conductors were on the same circuit, they (the client or boss) realize that I am not «just another engineer,» and I also demonstrate something that is contagious: a passion for engineering.

The Ten Commandments of an Engineer

Love your profession above all other activities.

Do not minimize the decisions you have to make.

Take breaks that allow you to be productive and safe.

Honor your colleagues and competitors.

Do not put others at risk.

Give back to society more than you have received.

Do not steal or be corrupt.

Do not lie.

Do not base your professional success on financial achievement.

Continue to learn until the last day of your professional life.

I. Love your profession above all other activities.

As an engineer, you should have an absolute passion for your profession. It should be the focal point of your work activities, and you should not prioritize any other activity above it.

If you do not keep this high level in mind, the degradation of your performance will become more evident day by day.

Love also means pride, so you should defend engineering with the same zeal as you would your family.