Some Guiding Principles for Engineering Research in Universities

• A central dedication by engineering professors to contribute to the solution of present and future problems of Canadian society, in so far as they fall within the broad scope of the engineering profession. While science is properly international or non-national in its outlook, engineering practice is, by its nature, focused towards the communities it serves. Since engineering research must be oriented toward eventual application, it is proper that Canadian engineering professors chose to direct their efforts toward problem areas with Canadian needs in mind. The impact of this engineering research may however be made international through the efforts of Canadian companies and consultants working in an international context.

• An acceptance by university leaders that the criteria of performance applicable to engineering professors need to be different from those which pertain to many of the university's learned disciplines. These criteria should be no less stringent with respect to quality.

• An acceptance by university leaders and funding administrators that engineering research is essentially multidisciplinary, and that it frequently involves team work. Such synergistic skills of engineering researchers should be recognized, encouraged, and rewarded.

• A recognition that measures of research success which are pertinent for engineering research in universities include the discovery and initial development of potentially useful materials and processes, the innovative formulation of operational principles for the design of practical processes, products and systems which can eventually serve user needs, the creation and evaluation of exploratory designs, and the investigative study of risks and the causes of failures. Documentation and verification of these measures is more difficult to achieve than is the documentation of peer reviewed papers in the sciences.

• A significant involvement of leading users of engineering research in the processes of appointment, tenure decision and promotion for engineering professors. Such persons can ensure that the broader criteria for engineering are effectively implemented. In the past, many of the persons, external to the university, who have participated in these processes have been researchers in large industries with sophisticated research establishments. While these researchers make a valuable contribution, they do not always reflect the needs of a majority of the engineering and consulting industry.

• A clear recognition by funding agencies that engineering research should respond to criteria which are distinctly different from those of the basic sciences. The end result of an engineering research project may more properly be a design, an artifact, a process, or a system concept than a research paper.

• A major involvement of users of engineering research on the panels of the funding agencies which provide support for university engineering research. Some of these may themselves be researchers. However, the role of the non-academic persons on these panels should be mainly to assess the value and relevance of the proposed projects in the user community.

• The introduction and extension by the funding agencies and by government departments of programs which encourage linkages between engineering professors and Canadian industry in the conduct of joint research of a medium-term to long-term nature. An excellent example is the Cooperative Research and Development Grant program of NSERC.

• A recognition by industry that universities are committed to the free dissemination of research results, and are therefore not in a position to undertake proprietary research. However, pre-competitive research undertaken in engineering faculties in cooperation with industry can provide a sound basis for the innovation of competitive products and processes for the world market. In addition, consultancy by engineering professors can continue the linkage to industry in competitive situations.

• A recognition that incentives are needed to attract both engineering researchers in universities and personnel in industries to undertake cooperative projects. It is an appropriate role for governments to provide such incentives. These incentives must be strong enough to encourage approaches to universities by companies who have no previous history of such interaction, and, in some instances, no previous involvement in research and development. From the viewpoint of the engineering professor, the process must be made both simple and rewarding. For such incentive programs to be effective, there must be reasonable limits on the demands by supporting agencies for documentation in the initial application and in the regular reporting on interactive projects. A major criterion for support should be the willingness on the part of both the professor and industry to devote time and resources to the project.

• A recognition by governments that a major share of the funding for engineering research projects carried out jointly by engineering faculties and industries must come from resources provided by these governments. In general, these projects are at a pre-competitive level. The results of the research are openly available. Much of the value of the work is in the educational development of the students involved. Some of our larger firms can afford major support for research in universities. However, the financial investment that most of our smaller emerging industries can be expected to make for this type of research is limited. While a small financial contribution by an industrial firm is a valid measure of its commitment, an investment of time by the industrial partner is frequently of much greater value in contributing to the research and to ensuring the effective transfer of technology.

• The maintenance of a broad base of support for the research of engineering professors. In the interests of good education alone, most engineering professors should be involved in some aspect of engineering research and/or practice. In the interests of an adequate supply of graduates with advanced-level education, most if not all engineering professors should be directing the work of several graduate students. Essentially all of these engineering professors involved in research and graduate supervision should receive some sustaining support. Most universities have not been in a position to provide such support from their base budgets in recent years.

• A revised rationale for the proportioning of research funds between the sciences and engineering. It should be recognized that there is a wide potential market for advanced engineering graduates in the newly-emerging, advanced technology industries on which much of our future high quality employment and prosperity depends. In contrast, the market for researchers in the basic sciences is relatively smaller and is dominated by the universities themselves.

• A revised interpretation of the role of the NSERC operating grant program as it applies to engineering. Many of the most successful engineering researchers find that their NSERC operating grant funding is frequently best used to start projects of a fairly fundamental nature and to explore their possible applications. Such projects provide good grounding for graduate students. The funding policies should be so framed that, if and when the project shows sufficient potential and relevance to attract the attention of a potential user, an industrial partner should usually be sought for the continuing, often major, development of the project. At this stage, the researcher and the industrial partner should access one of the support programs targeted for joint industrial/university research and development. With this combination of sources for research funds, the good professorial researcher can be adequately supported in carrying out major research and development efforts of national relevance. This approach relieves NSERC operating funds of the pressure to provide engineering researchers with all of their required research support.

• A reexamination of the structure of NSERC. Consideration might be given to a greater bifurcation of NSERC to permit more latitude in interpreting the needs of engineering research and in devising mechanisms to serve these needs without impinging on the interests of researchers in the basic sciences. A basic issue in NSERC is who should be funded. The principles outlined above suggest a broad base of support with limited maximum funding from the operating grant sources for engineering professors. Beyond this base funding, the programs involving industrial and user interaction must be made the most attractive avenues for support as seen by these engineering professors. In contrast, researchers in the basic sciences frequently receive their sole research support from the NSERC operating grant program. To enhance the probability of significant breakthrough results, it may be most appropriate for NSERC to focus in the sciences on a relatively few outstanding researchers rather than to attempt a broad base in these disciplines. Such a policy is however inappropriate for engineering.

• In establishing new policies for the support of research, NSERC should take account of the fact that engineering professors work in a broad spectrum which, on the one hand, merges through engineering science with that of basic research and, on the other hand, merges with industrial product development . A significant number of professors in faculties of engineering carry out research in established areas of basic sciences which have been largely abandoned by academic researchers in the physical sciences and mathematics. Engineering professors should therefore have access to funding for which the criteria extend across this spectrum.

• Government departments at both the federal and provincial levels should become more involved in direct funding of engineering research and development to be carried out by industry and engineering faculties in cooperation. In this way, the direct involvement of the user community can be enhanced in assessing the importance and relevance of projects to be undertaken. The establishment of federal and provincial centres of excellence has provided useful experience for extension of this approach in the future.