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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3 neering had also emerged, as experimentation in machine-shop production of arms, tools, and other implements grew more sophisticated. The central accomplishment of American machine technology in this period was a standardized system for production of parts called the "American System" of manufacturing. This technique, combined with a penchant for innovation and simple, elegant design, began to provide the United States with technological autonomy and to build the foundations of an independent economic strength. As the population increased and development expanded across the continent, the demand for engineering goods and services continued to grow. To meet these and other educational needs, the federal government began in 1862 (under the auspices of the Morrill Act) to support higher education. This federally subsidized land-grant college system gave great impetus to engineering education, making possible a more scientific approach to technical problems. As a result, the profession began to diversify. Out of civil and mechanical engineering grew mining and metallurgical engineering. Mechanical engineering became more specialized, and by the beginning of the twentieth century a new emphasis on science in engineering had spawned first electrical, then chemical engineering. Industrial engineering (initially a branch of mechanical engineering) developed to systematize further the manufacturing processâespecially in the burgeoning auto industry. Work roles also diversified: While military and independent consulting engineers had predominated earlier, corporations became the predominant force for technology development, and specialized assignments within a project team became the rule. Professional standing, for an engineer, was now very closely aligned with corporate standing. Wars were strong stimulants to engineering in the United States. Taking World Wars I and II together, government direction of research and development (R&D) for the war effort led to postwar booms in chemical, aeronautical (later aerospace), radio, electronics, nuclear, and computer engineering. Even the Great Depression spurred engineering, through massive government funding of such projects as the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Rural Electrification Administration. Engineering had become the nucleus of the nation's phenomenal productivity and economic strength. Structural Characteristics The panel was able to make certain general observations about the internal and external forces that helped to shape the engineering profession in the United States throughout its early development. These
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4 early, formative processes gave the profession much of its contemporary structure and set patterns for its societal role, status, and function. ⢠Societal Demand for Goods and Services. On a large-scale this "demand-pull" appears to have been the primary driver of technology development, and particularly of growth in established technologies. ⢠Undeveloped Societal Demand. When demand for a product or a service is latent, entrepreneurs (or, in the present-day context, market analysts) may identify the potential demand and develop the technological means to fulfill it. ⢠Technology Transfer. The availability of new technologies through transfer into a society or from one sector of society to another is another force that sparks demand. ⢠Indigenous Advances in Technology. Autonomous technology development, whether through purposive effort or accidental discovery, can create demand if the new technology answers existing societal needs. This is the "supply-push" factor. ⢠Infrastructure Development. Institutional components must be developed to support the engineering enterprise. These elements are: (a) educational institutions, (b) competitive corporations, (c) research facilities, and (d) technical communication networks. ⢠Support by Key Individuals. It is most often individuals, not institutions, who bring about needed changes in traditional practices and entrenched points of view. ⢠Government Support. Because of the scale of actions needed to foster broad change or development in the engineering profession, government support of and intervention in the technology development process is crucial. ⢠Supportive Societal Environment. There must be a social climate that is conducive to technology development and engineering activity. Key contributory conditions are: (a) societal approval of technological advancement; (b) acceptance by the political and financial "establishment"; and (c) existence of a facilitating market structure. A key characteristic of the profession has been that it tends to follow quite closely the market for goods and services it provides. Both the individual practitioner and the engineering disciplines are highly responsive to perceived societal demand, although this responsiveness can create problems for engineering education as well as for the engineering employee. Thus, the profession's adaptability is a strong point in that it contributes to economic security, but it is a weak point in that professional engineers are dependent on forces that are largely out of their control.
