The Expansive Discipline of Mechanical Engineering

Mechanical engineering is a subject that is extremely diverse and derives its concepts from the need to manufacture and design everything, ranging from small individual devices and parts, such as inkjet printer nozzles and micro scale sensors, to large systems such as machine tools and spacecraft’s. A mechanical engineer’s role is to carry a product from an idea right to the marketplace. For accomplishing this, a variety of skills is required. These specific set of skills and knowledge needs to be acquired by a mechanical engineer. They need to understand the thermal environment and the forces that a product, its subsystems or its parts will be encountering. They also need to design them for functionality, the ability to withstand forces, aesthetics, the thermal environments that they will be subjected to, and the determination of the way that would be the best for their manufacturing. It is the duty of a mechanical engineer to ensure that their products operate without failure. The one skill that lies in the exclusive domain of a mechanical engineer is his or her ability to design and analyse systems and objects with motion.

Skill level required

These skills are in need for virtually every single thing that is produced. This makes mechanical engineering the most diverse and broadest of engineering disciplines. A central role is played by mechanical engineers in all the industries, such as aerospace, automotive, biotechnology, electronics and computers, micro electro mechanical systems, energy conversion, environmental control, automation, manufacturing and many more.

Mechanical Engineering stream and the concepts

Put simply, the field of mechanical engineering deals with anything that moves. This includes the human body, which is a very complex machine. The study done by mechanical engineers includes topics such as solid and fluid mechanics, study of materials, thermodynamics, control, heat transfer, design, manufacturing and instrumentation to understand mechanical systems. There are many specializations available in mechanical engineering colleges in the UK. The subjects taught include cartilage-tissue engineering, biomechanics, vibrations, laser-assisted materials processing, energy conversion, combustion, microfluidic devices, MEMS, fracture mechanics, mechanisms, Nano mechanics, micro power generation and tribology, both wear and friction. There are a variety of divisions listed under the field of mechanical engineering, including aerospace engineering, textile engineering, advanced energy systems and solid-waste engineering.

Amazing expanse of Mechanical Engineering Subject

The diverse breadth of the discipline of mechanical engineering allows the students enrolled in the subject to choose from a variety of career options, even beyond the industries enlisted above. Irrespective of the particular path that is chosen by them for their careers after graduation, the education provided to them under mechanical engineering will have provided them with enough skills of creative thinking to enable them to design exciting systems and products on their own. They will also be able to possess the analytical tools they need to achieve their design goals, an ability to overcome all sorts of constraints, teamwork skills that are needed to market, produce and design a system, and many other skills. Valuable skills such as these could also help them launch a career in law, medicine, management, consulting, finance, banking and many others.