5 simple rules to being a better electrical engineer

It’s rather easy to determine a new engineer from a well-established professional in the field.

Professional engineers are able to define a problem, break it down into manageable pieces, analyze them, and put it all back together in a more efficient and effective final product. 

And it’s all done with what appears to be the greatest of ease.

But how does a young engineer — in this case, an electrical engineer — get to this point of effortless professionalism? The following are five standard rules of thumb to being a better E.E.

Make it work, then make it beautiful
This rule might seem simple enough, but too often is the case where young E.E.’s work on a project with only the final product in mind. This sort of mindset leads to mistakes occurring along the way. The goal must be to accomplish each purpose of the project with a high level of perfection before moving on. That means creating a solution and then debugging it to the point that operates flawlessly, and when the final product is completed, whether it’s a board level product, industrial machine, or software program, only then should the focus be shifted to product design. 

If something can happen by accident, it will happen
During the design phase, it can be easy to overlook potential accidents, especially if they don’t occur during tests. A good rule of thumb is that if early prediction models indicate that an accident could occur during the operation of the product, assume it will happen, even if 50 tests do not reveal the accident itself in front of you. Data is very rarely, if ever, wrong about things. Address potential issues from the get-go, and get an extra set of eyes to take a look the design before it moves on to manufacturing—this will help you avoid the headache of future re-design work and product recalls. 

Demand good tools
This is a relatively simple and straightforward rule of thumb, but it’s something that is often overlooked for the sake of budget or ease. If a poor tool is purchased for use in developing a product, it should be done so with the mindset that it will be disposed of after its use. Otherwise, if one is being purchased to be added to the workbench, then quality matters. The difference between a Weller and a Metcal iron is enormous, and should be considered from both a cost as well as a productivity standpoint; especially when taking into consideration things like overtime / replacing broken tools / re-doing poorly constructed prototypes. 

Keep an eye on things during production
Just because a design has been finalized and a working prototype’s been finished, it does not mean the E.E.’s job is done. It’s important to now keep an eye on the manufacturing of the technology itself; this is especially true in today’s day and age where a lot of manufacturing is being outsourced overseas. With cheaper labor comes less expertise in certain areas, and this can lead to cut corners, shoddy production work. Having an extra set of eyes on site within the factory ensures greater quality control, and a better final product. 

There will be heat
One of the more important things to keep in mind when creating a technology is to develop a method for the device to expel heat. That being said, it is necessary for the E.E. to calculate the dissipated energy of ALL parts in the device, and to include a method for the technology to remove the heat as necessary. If this is not considered, the product will (eventually) fail, and a redesign will be (immediately) needed. 

Do you have your own rules of thumb to follow? Post them below and if enough are submitted, a follow-up article will be posted!