ABSTRACT

In this chapter, the author explains how engineers generate value for their firms and clients. Furthermore, value generation must be seen more broadly than the economics of the enterprise alone. An enterprise can only flourish because of the community that supports it; therefore, an enterprise must also generate social and economic value for the community. Engineers create value through innovation, research, development, experimentation, and intellectual property such as patents and designs. Most innovation creates improvements to existing products. Engineers create value by minimising human effort, material usage, energy consumption, health risks, and environmental disturbance, reducing the cost of engineering work. Engineers use analysis methods to forecast technical and commercial performance with sufficient apparent certainty to justify the financial investment. Engineers also use analysis methods to identify the relative significance of risks and uncertainties, thus reducing uncertainty in the minds of investors.